This building, the INB Performing Arts Center, was originally built as the Washinton State Pavilion for Expo 74.

One of the most serious concerns for an exposition is getting exhibitors. The first on the list was the state of Washington. Fair Planners ask the state government for $7.5 million, arguing in part, that the Seattle fair had received $10 million in state funds. It was decided that the Washington State Pavilion would be a convention center and opera house where the Union Station currently stood. This location wasn't a popular choice because it was in a rundown neighborhood, but it was argued that the new building would help revitalize the area. Due to rising costs and additional $2.9 million was granted from the state government and another $1 million was raised locally. Local donors got to have their names engraved on plaques that were placed on the seats.

The first performance held in the opera house was a performance by the Spokane Symphony on May 1, three days before the opening of the fair. On May 3 the night before the opening ceremonies the Los Angeles Philharmonic Also held a performance in the Opera House. Throughout Expo '74 many symphonies and choirs from across the country and around the world would perform in the Opera House.

After the fair, the Opera House and convention center belonged to the state government. The city of Spokane desperately wanted them but did not have the money to purchase them. Eventually the Governor was convinced and help pass legislature to sell them to the city for one dollar. Shortly after the Convention Center was used to house a multimedia show called "The Spokane Story," which began with Thomas Jefferson and the Lewis and Clark expedition and continued on to show many important chapters of Spokane history. For many years Eastern Washington University had a science center located at the convention center. The main floor of the convention center is now an ice skating rink by winter and an amusement park by summer. In 2006 the Spokane Public Facilities District approached the Inland Northwest Bank for financial help with the buildings. They bank agreed to help and offered $1.5 million over 10 years and out of appreciation the building was renamed the INB Performing Arts Center.

For more (including 9 images), view the original article.

Download the Spokane Historical app for Android and iPhone
Find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube

The Pine Creek Dairy Creamery building was built in 1908. It was an extension of the Pine Creek Dairy that operated in the Spokane Valley. The building was used for office space and a distribution center as well as the manufacture of cream, butter and cheese.

The Pine Creek Dairy quickly became the region's largest dairy producer. The dairy had 120 cows and bought milk from other area diaries. In 1929 the Carnation Dairy Company from Kent Washington bought out the Pine Creek Dairy and the Broadveiw Dairy another local dairy company and merged the two under the name of the latter. They moved operations into the Braodveiw Creamery building and the Pine Creek Dairy Creamery was vacant between 1931 and 1935 during the worst of the Great Depression.

By 1936 the business climate of Spokane was on the rise and two business had occupied the creamery building, the McHugo Transfer Company and Davenport Candycrafts Company. The Next year Davenport Candycrafts Company bought the bought the building and began to use all of it. 1960 Gustav and Jeanette Harras bought the property and converted the second floor into living space and used the first floor as a distribution center for their two companies Northwest Bakery & Fountain Supplies Inc. and Peerless-Sunpujt Inc. restaurant equipment. In 1966 the building was bought by Scotty Holmes Studio of Interior Design. Over the next ten years a series of owners came and went.

In 1991 Spokane Lincoln-Mercury Sales bought the building, however they did not use or lease it and in 1995 they sold it to Jeanne and Brian Farwell who sold it the next year to David and Mary Thompson the owners of Affordable Interior Solutions & Floor Coverings. In 2003 the building was bought by, Nancy Lee Raily and Kimberlee K. Melcher. Melcher operated Kimberlee Company, a Boutique design center that specializes in interior and kitchen design, and occupies the first floor with office space and showrooms. Railey operated Railey Allstate Insurance on the second floor. The building is currently being used by Urbanna Natural Spa, Salon and Wine.

The Pine Creek Creamery is an import symbol for Spokane for several reasons. It shows the industrial development and settlement of East Downtown Spokane. The Creamery is also a symbol of the importance of agriculture to Spokane and the transition to industrialization of agriculture. Spokane became a hub for the Inland Empire's agriculture and the Pine Creek dairy was an important part of this.

For more (including 5 images), view the original article.

Download the Spokane Historical app for Android and iPhone
Find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube

The Mearow Block began as two separate buildings the Bickett Hotel built in 1905 and the Richmond Hotel built in 1907. Joseph A. Mearow bought the two buildings and in 1928 connected them with a one-story brick building. Mearow operated the Bell Furniture Company out of the first floor of both buildings from 1925 to 1945. When he retired he sold the building to Sylvan Dreifus who ran the Sylvan Furniture Company out of the first floors from 1945 until 2003.

The Mearow Block is historically significant because both the Bickett and the Richmond were single room occupancy hotels. These style of hotels were an important part of Spokane's history. Between 1900 and 1910 Spokane had a massive population boom growing from 30,000 to 100,000. The bulk of the growth was young working class men. An industry started to support this surplus of unmarried working men and soon exploded. However after 1910 construction of new single room occupancy hotels had for the most part ended.

During the preparations for EXPO '74 many of these hotels were demolished, which makes these two hotels even more important as remaining examples. While the first floor of the two hotels have been changed because they are primarily used for retail, the second and third floors remain largely unaltered.

For more (including 5 images), view the original article.

Download the Spokane Historical app for Android and iPhone
Find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube

Originally named the Hangman Creek Bridge, this span was constructed in 1911. The creek below was known as Hangman Creek since 1854, when Colonel George Wright hanged a group of American Indians, who had entered his camp under a flag of truce, along the creek. In the 20th century the original native name for the creek, Latah Creek, was restored.

The Sunset bridge served as the entrance to Spokane for years.
The road coming down Sunset Hill to the west had various names and route numbers over the years, including the Glacier Highway, the Three Flags Highway, and today, State Route 2. The completion of Interstate 90 in the 1960s rerouted traffic away from this area, but the many hotels and old motor courts nearby testify to its long history.

Construction on the Sunset Bridge began in 1911 and shared many features of the Monroe Street Bridge that had been finished earlier that year. Many people who were involved in the design and construction of the earlier bridge worked on the latter. Both of these bridges were early examples of long-span fixed-end arch bridges within the state. There were a few key differences between the bridges mostly because of differences in locations. The Sunset Bridge had semi-circular arches, instead of the flattened central arch that the Monroe Street Bridge features. The support pillars of the Sunset Bridge are also larger than normal. This is because the foundation of the bridge is compact sand so the pillars had to have a wider base.

For more (including 7 images), view the original article.

Download the Spokane Historical app for Android and iPhone
Find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube

You are looking at the Miller Block, built in 1890. Stanley Miller, a co-proprietor of the Spokane Ice Company, bought this land and had a two story wood-post building constructed in 1887. This building burned down during the great fire of 1889. Miller quickly rebuilt, and construction was complete in 1890. Miller succumbed to the economic depression of 1893 and lost his mortgage. In 1903 Daniel Drumheller, one of Spokane's early mayors, bought the Miller Block and soon resold it. James Leonard, a Spokane mining industrialist, purchased it from him, and then rented out the spaces inside the building. In 1906 the Sherman Clay Music Company moved in to the first floor while the upper three floors were used as a hotel. In 1910 Leonard died and his wife Anna took over his business investments.

In 1914 the building underwent a major redesign so that it could better suit the needs of the Clay Music Company. The building was strengthened with steel and concrete and the basement was deepened. Sound proof rooms were added as well as an auditorium large enough to fit 200 people. The fourth floor was equipped with a piano repair and refinishing plant. In 1924 the music company moved out and several telegraphs began operating out of the Miller Block. Because other telegraphs operated next door and the Davenport Hotel was directly across the street, this area of town was very busy. Other notable groups who have used the Miller Block include; the Arthur Murray Dance Studio, the Business and Professional Women's Club, the Canadian Legion, and various labor unions. In 1985 the Miller Block was combined with the neighboring Whitten Block and converted to house the Hotel Lusso.

The Miller Block was designed by William J. Carpenter. He used a Romanesque Revival style that reflects the design trends that were popular in Chicago before the turn of the century. The building's decorative facade is well preserved.

For more (including 6 images and 1 sound clip), view the original article.

Download the Spokane Historical app for Android and iPhone
Find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube

Spokane's Old City Hall was built in 1912-1913. The structure was intended to temporarily house the government of Spokane until funding could be raised for the constructions of a larger and more grand structure. The building was designed to be converted into a warehouse once a new building had been completed, which was supposed to take place within five years. However, the city's government has been fiscally conservative so the money for the construction of a new building was never raised. So, this building served as the city seat of Spokane for nearly 70 years.

The need for a new building to house the city government arose in 1910 when the city agreed to sell the location of the previous city hall to the Milwaukee and North Coast Railroad. The railroad wanted to build a new line and the previous city hall was directly in its path. In February 1911, through an eminent domain proceeding in the Superior Court, the city acquired the property on the corner of Wall Street and Spokane Falls Boulevard. Julius A. Zittel was chosen to design the building. He proposed two large structures that were voted down. Eventually a smaller and more plain building was settled on. This building was designed to be temporary and was intended to be replaced as soon as money could be raised. In May 1912 the contract was giving to M. C. Murphy Co. to construct the building.

Julius Zittel was born in Germany in 1869. He immigrated to America and studied architecture in Chicago. This influenced many of his buildings including the Old City Hall building, which combines elements of Commercial Style and Chicago Style. He came to Spokane in 1887 just before the Great Fire of 1889 and participated in the building craze that took place after it.

In 1982 the seat of city government was moved into the former Montgomery-Wards Building. The Old City Hall building was converted for commercial use. Through all of this, the building has only undergone minor changes and is still largely in its original condition.

For more (including 8 images and 1 sound clip), view the original article.

Download the Spokane Historical app for Android and iPhone
Find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube

You are looking at the old Montgomery Wards building, now Spokane City Hall. The site of this building is wonderfully situated. It over-looks the Lower Spokane Falls, is next to Riverfront Park, and is in the Central Business District of Spokane. However, this was not the case in 1929, when this building was constructed. It was near the business district, but this area was an industrial district. The company decided to build here because it was near the business district and the rail lines. The Union Pacific track passed a short distance to the north of the building and constructed a new spur to run directly next to the building. The building had two large fright elevators on this side of the building. As the area around the building changed business declined. The rail lines moved away, and the industrial district changed into a business district. In 1978 Montgomery Wards moved into a new store on Division Street. The building was bought and renovated by the city and in 1981 opened as Spokane's new City Hall. This building stands today as a symbol for an important chapter in American commerce.

The Montgomery Wards building was constructed in the Art Deco style. It was only the second building in Spokane to use this style. The south and east walls show this style the most, because they are the sides with the most public exposure. The north wall is designed in a plain industrial style because it is a side rarely seen by costumers. The west wall is styled in a manner half way between the Art Deco of the south and east walls and the plain industrial style of the north wall. The first floor has large display windows and the southeast and southwest corners are cut at 45 degree angles to allow for display windows at these points. The Art Deco style was also used inside on the basement, first and second floors, the top five floors were left unfinished because they were only used for storage. Today little remains of the original interior, but the exterior is for the most part intact. Only a few minor changed have occurred and recently the building was painted an off-white color.

For more (including 7 images and 1 sound clip), view the original article.

Download the Spokane Historical app for Android and iPhone
Find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube

The Great Western Savings and Loan building was constructed in 1900. It was originally named the Empire State Building, for the Empire State - Idaho company. The building was paid for by Charles Sweeny and F. Lewis Clark, who also funded the construction of many other prominent buildings that year. The building was designed by John K. Down, one of Spokane's pioneer architects and was the city's first fire proof structure. The original estimated price for the construction was $100,000, however the final construction cost was about $800,000. The rise in cost was largely because of the use of fine materials such as imported oak and marble. The rise in Carnegie steel and a shortage of bricks in Spokane due to a building boom in the Inland Empire also drove the price up. During the beginning of the 20th century the Empire State Building was the pride of the city. It was the second most photographed building, only surpassed by the Courthouse. The original lifts were fast for their time and thrilled visitors. Washington Water Power occupied the first floor of the building from its competition in 1900 until it was bought by Great Western Savings and Loan in 1958. When Great Western bought the building from Central Business Property, who had owned it since 1912, they moved into the ground floor.

The building is six stories and 96 feet tall. It has a steel frame and exterior brick facing. The building is lavishly covered with fine detail. The interior of the building is even more luxuriously decorated. Despite much interior renovation, much of the original ornamentation has been preserved. The exterior of the first floor has been modified to add large plate glass windows, but the upper floors have undergone little modification. However, the darkening of the terracotta over the years has obscured many of the fine details.

For more (including 5 images and 2 sound clips), view the original article.

Download the Spokane Historical app for Android and iPhone
Find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube

The city of Spokane began as a small cluster of buildings on the south side of the falls, focused around saw mills and and later flour mills. This is why the city was originally named Spokane Falls. After the 1889 fire had burned much of the city it was decided to build a new mill on the north side of the falls.

The mill was finished in 1895 but it wasn't put into operation until 1900. The reason for the delay was lawsuit over ownership of the mill. The previous owner, Simon Oppenheimer, went bankrupt and went off the grid. The ownership of this mill passed to James Glover and a series of complex lawsuits between him, the city of Spokane and A Dutch financial firm named Kantoor soon ensued. Eventually Kantoor won the suits and the mill was able to enter operation. This was one of the most spectacular and complex lawsuits in Spokane history.

The mill worked regularly until 1972 when it, after many years of service, closed its doors. This was not the end of the Flour Mill though. Soon, in 1973 the mill was converted into a shopping center in preparation for EXPO '74. This was one of the first examples in Spokane of a historic building being preserved and reused for a new function. Its location was directly next to the north entrance to the EXPO, which got it much publicity during the EXPO. It contains many interesting little shops including Tobacco World and Olde Joe Clark's Photography Studio which have been there since it was converted. At first, much of the original equipment was left in place, but was later removed.

The Flour Mill serves as a reminder of the industrial origins of Spokane and of the importance of water power throughout the history of Spokane. Its conversion to a shopping center has maintained the location's viability while allowing it to continue to serve as a reminder of the city's history.

For more (including 8 images and 1 video), view the original article.

Download the Spokane Historical app for Android and iPhone
Find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube

Riverfront Park's Looff Carrousel is one of America's most beautiful and well preserved, hand-carved wooden carousels. It has 54 houses, a giraffe, a tiger and two Chinese dragons, all of which are hand carved. Charles I. D. Looff built the carrousel and had it shipped to Spokane as a wedding gift for his daughter Emma Vogel and her husband Louis Vogel. The pair owned Natatorium Park, which was originally a trolley park and later grew into an amusement park. The carousel was installed in 1909, and was a favorite among the park's many visitors.

When Natatorium Park closed down in 1968, Expo '74 planners hoped to relocate the carousel for display at the upcoming world's fair. Unfortunately, restoration and moving costs made it impossible to move the carousel for Expo. Instead, the carousel moved in 1975 to its current home in the former Expo '74 German Beer Garden. The original organ, a 1900 Ruth & Sohn Band Organ, is still in place, but due to the deterioration of some of its parts, a digital recording is now used.

There have been a few changes to the carrousel over the years. In the 1960s, metal stirrups were added to the horses. Before this there was only a small peg for the rider to use and people would often use the legs of the horses to help them climb up. This caused a lot of damage and many of the horses had to have legs replaced. Between 1992 and 1996 all of the figures underwent restoration, without any interruption of service. Now there is a maintenance system in place, where animals are rotated out for upkeep work. Photo records of this process are kept.

Looff was an accomplished carousel and amusement ride builder. He build the first carousel at Coney Island and in the process developed a new style of carousel construction that came to be know as the Coney Island style. In all he constructed over 50 carousels. He also built several roller coasters and twelve amusement parks as well as California's famous Santa Monica Pier.

For more (including 6 images, 3 sound clips and 1 video), view the original article.

Download the Spokane Historical app for Android and iPhone
Find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube

You are looking at the City Ramp Garage. Built in 1928, this structure represents many firsts in Spokane history. It was Spokane's first mulit-level, staggered-floor, ramp-type parking garage. At the time of its construction, parking for private automobiles had become a growing problem in the city. It was also the first time in that local business owners had joined together to provide parking for costumers. The owners of the Paulsen Estate, Levi Hutton Estate, and the Old National Bank embarked on this joint enterprise. Because they owned the buildings around it, these men invested a large amount of money to make the building look nice. It was designed using the Art Deco style and was the first building in Spokane of this style. It was constructed using the slip-form method of concrete construction and was the also the first building in Spokane to be built this way.

The building was designed by the prominent Spokane architectural firm, Whitehous & Price. Harold Whitehouse is known for designing St. John's Episcopal Cathedral, that adorns Spokane's South Hill. The building is six stories tall and a basement, and is designed to hold more than 350 vehicles. It was constructed using fireproof reinforced concrete and has an L shape. The exterior has undergone almost no modification and the interior has only undergone minor changes. There are 6 commercial bays at street level. These have been extensively modified over the years as businesses have come and gone, however, this has had little effect on the architectural integrity of the building.

For more (including 9 images and 1 video), view the original article.

Download the Spokane Historical app for Android and iPhone
Find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube

Large department stores once ruled the centers of American cities. Macy's in New York, Nordstrom in Seattle, and the Crescent in Spokane sold everything needed for daily life and often many extras. The buildings that housed these stores were often designed to draw the attention of passers by. The stores would have large windows so that potential customers could easily see what they had for sale. The Crescent Building and the retail chain that built it exemplify this tradition.

The Crescent Building was completed in 1919 and is seven stories tall. The building was design by Loren L. Rand. The first floor is comprised of large bay windows, making window shopping an exciting tradition for visitors to the store. It also has windows on every floor, which was unusual for retail stores at the time. This gave the store an open an inviting feeling. People would eat lunch on the sixth floor and marvel at the view. It shares its historic traditions with such contemporary buildings as the Old City Hall, the US Bank Building, and the Smith Funeral Home. Constructed of reinforced concrete, it reflects Rand's emphasis on detail.

Rand moved to Spokane in 1888 just before the great fire. He built many buildings in downtown after the great fire of 1889. Some of his buildings include First Presbyterian Church, Marble Bank, Lewis and Clark High School, and many of the city's early grade schools.

This building is also a symbol for the company that built it. The original store was on West Riverside and opened on August 5, 1889, the day after the great fire. It was the only dry good store to survive the fire, because of this it sold out its entire stock on the first day. The owner, Robert B. Paterson, and his partner, Captain James M. Comstock, decided not to raise their prices to take advantage of the desperate situation. Soon the business had outgrown the little store and Paterson decided to open a new building. In 1914 they bought the property at the corner of Wall and Main for $125,000 with plans for another seven story building and in 1919 the building you see today was completed. Later they added escalators and were the first business in Spokane to have them. The police had to come to manage the crowds that showed up to try them out. In 1949 the Crescent purchased the Alexander Building directly south of the Crescent building on Wall Street. This extended the Crescent building by half a city block. At its peak the chain had seven stores in Washington and Oregon. In 1988 the Crescent ended its 99 year run and merged with a Seattle based company becoming Frederick and Nelson. However, the new company never caught on and soon went bankrupt in 1991 and the Crescent building officially closed in 1992.

For more (including 6 images and 1 video), view the original article.

Download the Spokane Historical app for Android and iPhone
Find us on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube