The name Kirtland Cutter is important in the history of Spokane, yet few know of his history in Connecticut. Cutter’s great grandfather, Jared Potter Kirtland, became the first medical student enrolled at Yale at the time the School of Medicine opened in 1813.

After graduation, Dr. Kirtland practiced medicine throughout Connecticut until 1823, when his wife died and he moved to Ohio. During his life, Dr. Cutter also developed an interest in natural history and assisted in the first geographical survey of Ohio. As a naturalist, he passed his beliefs through his family, which is evident in Cutter’s architectural designs and of Doctor Kirtland’s remembrance at Yale University.

In the early 20th century, Lucy Boardman, a philanthropist and niece of Dr. Kirtland, not only donated funds for scholarships at Yale, but also donated a building, Kirtland Hall. The building, built in 1902, housed the Geology Department and became an integral part of the Sheffield Scientific School.

The architect of the project was none other than Spokane’s famous architect, Kirtland Kelsey Cutter. In respect to his ancestor as well as the donor of the project, Cutter mimicked the structural design of the home that Boardman grew up in, but constructed it out of local brownstone, instead of importing limestone as the fashion had been. The different building material visibly separates Kirtland Hall from the rest of the Yale campus, while the players illustrate the importance of familial ties.

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Preservation is important to small communities in keeping their heritage and remembering their history.

The Metaline Falls School, constructed in 1912, was designed by Kirtland Cutter. It was the first school in the region and the only school in Metaline Falls until 1956. It housed grades K-12. The building housed the Selkirk School District Office until 1972, when the district abandoned the structure.

In 1990, a small group of educators, led by Eva Gayle and Al Six, organized volunteers to rehabilitate a building that had not been maintained for nearly two decades. Within the first year, volunteers provided more than 14,000 hours, restoring the dilapidated building into a theatre and community center, renaming it Cutter Theatre.

In 2009 the Theatre received a grant of $2,000 from the Valerie Sivinski Washington Preserves Fund, to “assist with structural stabilization and exterior restoration.” The project leaders also attempted to keep costs down, by finding used equipment when possible. The current theater seating once held visitors to Spokane’s Déjà Vu. The original gymnasium formed the stage area and the green room hosts community gatherings, aside from being a ready room.

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