lewiston’s sesquicentennial

Lewiston’s sesquicentenniaL

Nez Perce Co. Historical SocietyOUT OF THE SAND SPRINGS A TOWN | The earliest-known photo of Lewiston is this view in 1862, of dirt streets, small wooden buildings and tents. Note the canvas-roofed Luna House Hotel (right) and the assay office (far left).

SUNDAY, JULY 3, 2011 SECTION G

A speciAl section looking At town’s eArly

history

STORIES INSIDE THIS

SECTION:

pierce stArted gold rush but

died brokePage 6

business booMed For

eArly FerriesPage 8

soMber seVenties: the

dArk yeArs3

the beginning oF the

green erAPage 18

drink Vs. thirst: the

bloody FirstPage 34

they hAd to push but

nobody cAredPage 36

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 >

Lewiston’s transformation from a crude beginning to a modern city began

with an unpromising and ugly chrysalis.

This was “Ragtown,” the nickname for Lewiston in its earliest years, and an accurate one.

Most of its camping thousands lived in tents weatherbeaten by the suns and sands of California. One of its first hotels began as a flapping tent left by a stranded circus. Merchants stored their liquors, food staples and mining tools in tentlike structures made by nailing brown drill — a durable cotton twilled fabric — over a framework of rough lumber. Lean-to sheds were attached to shelter pack animals and hay.

During the first year, log cabins were few and suggested a permanence and stability that the tents belied.

In early Lewiston a man was rated an old-timer after three years. Of the 10,000 or so who followed the lure of gold to Lewiston from 1861 to ’63, only about 300 remained to form the nucleus of a permanent community.

The plat of streets of the original townsite — the northwest corner of downtown Lewiston where the riv-ers come together — hasn’t changed much, but the area’s appearance has.

In the early 1860s, this downtown section was thickly scattered with rough lumber buildings — dwellings, saloons, tents, barns, packer sheds — and with corrals, hay stacks, fenced lots and a few log cabins.

The streets were nature-made and man-damaged. They were either deep

in mud or dust, depending upon the rains, and studded with rocks. Sometimes there were scattering lake-lets of muddy water and high spots.

At night the only light was from flickering candles or kerosene lamps shining through the drill walls of flimsy buildings.

There was no paint to cover the rough boards and no signs over the stores nor on the streets. There were no sidewalks, street lamps, lawns,

shrubbery, trees or flowers. The tall Lombardy poplars were still to be planted.

Households lucky enough to have shallow wells saved daily trips to one of the rivers for the family water supply. A barrel to catch rainwater stood near every dwelling. In time a larger well was sunk at the intersection of Third and D streets whence most of the busi-ness section drew a daily supply.

no sAnitAtionFew worried about sanitation, and

no one cared if dead and decaying animals lay on the streets for months. Occasionally a butcher neglected to clear off the remains of his carcasses, or indignantly declined to do so until his neighbors went to court with a nuisance charge against him.

In those years Lewiston was a gath-

ho, For the Mines! And A city is born

ering place of restless, venture-some and nonconformists of many lands. Some were of the French nobility who had fled to the New World to escape perse-cution. There were Jewish trad-ers from Poland, Switzerland and Germany; dark Spaniards who had wandered north from Mexico; and much-traveled Scandinavians. There were fugitives from justice from a dozen eastern states.

Among the earliest com-ers were restless brilliants as well as shiftless misfits. There were literary geniuses such as Joaquin Miller and W.A Goulder; highly trained and skillful medical men such as Dr. Madison A. Kelly and Dr. Henry W. Stainton, clever financiers such as Levi Ankeny and John P. Vollmer and pro-motional wizards such as Alonzo Leland.

Let the timid Stay BehindAll were led by the lure of gold,

profit or adventure. Timid shirkers were left behind.

An atmosphere of optimism prevailed. Faith that the placer gold fields were inexhaustible was almost universal.

Those who were lucky enough to dis-cover rich diggings for themselves could

usually help some more fortu-nate prospector with his, work-ing at wages about eight times what one could have expected to receive “back home.”

Almost daily rumors of new mining discoveries kept the tent community in a flurry of excitement.

Perhaps equally thrilling was the whistles of the stern-wheel steamer as it churned up the Snake River for a landing. Nearly everyone flocked to the dock, for the steamer brought news of the latest battles of the Civil War.

Sometimes there were let-ters from home and always there were fresh supplies of liquor and other goods for the stores. Sometimes newspapers only two or three weeks old could be purchased for $1 to $2.50 per copy. And always there were more eager pros-pectors.

an age of SpeedThe Lewistonians of 150 years ago

considered themselves progressive. They believed they were living in a age of speed and marvelous modern inventions — such as steam engines, railroads and telegraphs. They mar-veled at the wonders of the last 100 years, during which Americans had won their independence from Great

Britain, and wondered what the next 100 years would bring.

The talked of the coming Pony Express, which would cover 1,800 miles over the mountains in just 15 days, and of cannons that could shoot 100 balls per minute to a distance of half a mile.

The white men wished they could move the Nez Perce and other Indians to a distant part of uninhabited east-ern Washington where they could hunt to their heart’s content and not interfere with the search for gold.

The Luna House, built of logs, rated as the leading hotel of Lewiston in the 1860s. Second, and longer last-ing was the Hotel DeFrance, with its skilled Parisian chef. The Globe, a German-style hostelry, and the What Cheer House and Alta House were short lived.

Pack outfits, boat docks and express services did thriving business. The stagecoach came into its own starting about 1863.

Within a year or so, certain mer-chants began specializing in pack train service and those who did began con-solidating their packing sheds. The

packing shed area was just east of the early city limits, between the present 500 and 600 blocks of Main Street.

What the traffic WiLL BearOperators charged what they

pleased — or dared — until competi-tion forced reasonable prices by the second or third year.

These prices were still about three times what a traveler would have paid in the states.

Board and room was available at

$12 a week, single meals were 75 cents and a night’s lodging 50 cents. On the river steamers, fares and freight charg-es were swollen enough to bring in as much as $10,000 on a single trip.

The Lewiston of 1862 had its drug-gists, dentists and physicians as well as its general merchandise stores, harness shops and livery stables, where the hors-es of travelers could be cared for at what stable owners called reasonable rates. Now and then a traveling photographer took “ambrotypes and melaineotypes” for those willing to pay the price. There were occasional touring magicians for theatrical or musical troupes. A circus in

L E W I S T O N ’ S S E S Q U I C E N T E N N I A L S U N D A Y, J U L Y 3 , 2 0 1 12

> CONTINUED frOm PAGE 1

Miller

Stainton

Ankeny

the Lewistonians of 150 years ago considered themselves progressive. they believed they were living in a age of speed and marvelous modern inventions — such as

steam engines, railroads and telegraphs.

Contact us at Celebrate150years@cityo ewiston.org or visit www.cityo ewiston.org for calendar of events.

Logo used by permission of Nez Perce County Historical Society.

Other key dates to put on your calendar . . . . . . • Jul 21—Lecture Series: On the Leading Edge, LCSC• Jul 23—E.A.A & Stout Flying Service Air Fair/Fly In, Lewiston Airport • Aug 4—Lecture Series: Lewiston and the Great Seal, LCSC• Aug 11 to Aug 15—Vietnam Traveling Wall, NPC Fairgrounds• Aug 18—Lecture Series: From Log Benches to Laptops, LCSC• Sept 1—Lecture Series: Gold Brought Them All, LCSC• Sept 7 to Sept 11—Lewiston Roundup• Sept 15—Lecture Series: That Abyss Where Sight Is Lost, LCSC• Oct 1—Oktoberfest, Pioneer Park• Oct 14 & 15—Dining with the Spirits, Downtown• Oct 15—Pumpkin Palooza, Downtown• Nov 8—150 Years & Counting, Lewiston High School Auditorium • Nov 11 @ 11:11am—Veteran’s Day Parade, Downtown• Dec 31— Lewis-Clark Chamber of Commerce Gala Night

Walking with Ancestors July 4th—9am to 11:30am

Normal Hill CemeteryLearn about 12 Lewiston

pioneers who passed between 1872 to 1937. Portrayers dressed in

period clothing. Brought to you by

Twin Rivers Genealogy Society

Commemorative Coin is a great piece to have as a keepsake.

Cost $10 available at Community Development

215 ‘D’ Street and Lewiston Community Center

1424 Main Street

Monday July 4th Pioneer Park ~ 203 5th St.

12 noon to 4:00pmFun for the whole family

(FREE admission) Parade of Wheels

(Check in starts at 11:30am)

Old Fashioned

Celebration4th of JULY

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1861

of 1863. Newer and possibly richer diggings had been discov-ered in the Boise Basin, and the fluid population of Lewiston drained off rapidly.

The establishment of the first territorial capital at Lewiston gave the community a new burst of life, but the boom was short-lived.

Within a year the shrunken community was in a life-or-death struggle to hold onto the capital. On March 30, 1865, the seal and territorial

archives were taken by mili-tary force and carried off to Boise, and Lewiston settled into a torpor that lasted for several years. n

a tent which measured 48 feet in diameter “folded up” here in 1862.

Merchants carried miscel-laneous wares, bringing in whatever they thought would tempt miners to part with their precious gold dust.

Nearly half of them oper-ated saloons, and nearly every grocer, druggist, dry goods or hardware store stocked liquor in addition to other items.

One outfit announced the ambitious program of “whole-sale groceries, ready made clothing, blankets, boots, brooms, vinegar, clocks, pat-ent medicines, and dyestuffs.”

The first dance halls were the decks of river steamers. The first meeting places were the lobby of the Luna House and Clark’s Hall, where now stands the Bollinger Financial Center.

In February of 1862, Lewiston organized its first government. Robert Dyson was elected president of the board of the first city council.

In early fall of that year Lewiston formed a vigilance committee for the self-pres-ervation of the law-abiding majority of the people.

The gold rush was begin-ning to ebb by the time Idaho Territory was organized in July

S U N D A Y, J U L Y 3 , 2 0 1 1 L E W I S T O N ’ S S E S Q U I C E N T E N N I A L 3

THE TOWN’S FIRST HUB | The Luna House hotel, shown here circa 1870, was one of the first public meeting places.

1880

7th & 8th graders with teacher, Miss CorneliusLewiston Public School – 1010 Main Street

c. 1889

The development of Lewiston’s early schools culminated on December 30, 1880, when the 11th Territorial Legis-lature chartered Independent School District No. 1, Idaho’s fi rst. The fi rst subscription school in Lewiston opened its door in 1863 in a log storefront at 3rd and Capitol Streets. Students shielded themselves from the breezes sailing through unsealed cracks between the logs. Crude wood-burning stoves gave the only heat, and the only light was from the sun. Teachers did not use blackboard and chalk until 1867. The school year was anything but regular, with three-month sessions being the norm, if a “qualifi ed” itinerant teacher happened to stop in

Lewiston. According to the territorial superintendent’s report for 1869, the average term was only two months. Few early teachers stayed for more than one term.

The city constructed its fi rst public school in 1872, raising $2,000 with a levy and various community events. Visitors rated the structure as “the best school building in Idaho.” Students attended for their fi rst nine-month school year in 1878-1879, when textbooks were adopted. The District created Lew-iston High School, Idaho’s second, in 1888.

Idaho’s First School District Chartered

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Thanks, Ladd.

And thanks to a cast of oth-ers, too.

Today’s special Tribune edi-tion in commemoration of

Lewiston’s 150th birthday continues a yearlong remembrance of the found-ing of this city in 1861, some 31 years before Texas brothers Eugene L. Alford and Albert H. Alford arrived to start the Lewiston Tribune.

Tribune readers in 2011 have had daily vignettes, more than 180 so far, of the significance of the day’s date in Lewiston history. On Mondays, all year long, you’ve had articles that first appeared in the Tribune’s seven Lewiston centennial editions in 1961.

Who was the mainstay of the Tribune’s centennial edi-tions in 1961, now 50 years ago? It was Ladd Hamilton, a Tribune reporter and editor from 1948 until his retirement in 1987, and today still a Lewiston resident. Hamilton held virtually every Tribune news

staff position over those four decades, from reporter (even sports early on) to editorial writing to being manag-ing editor, finishing with a stretch as this newspaper’s senior editor.

So, when it came time to recount Lewiston’s birth and early years, how

best to do it?The wise answer: Use what

our 1960-1961 news staff already created.

Would you rewrite the Bible? “Treasure Island”? “Tom Sawyer”? Any of your favorite books from years past? No.

Hamilton spent 18 months on special assignment in 1960 and 1961. Sure, Hamilton recalled a couple of days ago, he still was called on to do some daily reporting and to toss out his occasional vintage and pointed editorials. But the main job was the Tribune’s

Lewiston centennial editions.It must have been something like

this: Today (with a fresh cup of perco-lated coffee in hand, and in those days probably a Chesterfield or Pall Mall,

too), I’ll start the process of writing about the founding of Lewiston, its pioneer characters, its leaders of the initial decade or two. And I’ll do that for the 500 or so days ahead.

“It seems like a long time ago,” Hamilton recounted. “It was a busy, busy time. Yes, it was a good time. But we were glad to get it done.”

It wasn’t just Hamilton, either. His first mate on the centennial vessel was Margaret D. Allen, a reporter and later the librarian in a Tribune career that started in 1945 and ended in retirement in 1979. Allen died in 1993 at the age of 94.

Hamilton’s research on Lewiston

history helped inspire him to write two books based on the Lewiston area’s earlier days. One was “This Bloody Deed: the Magruder Incident,” a re-creation of the famous Bitterroot Mountains 1863 gold rush murder of Lewiston merchant Lloyd Magruder. The New York Times praised it as “an admirable job of re-creating the gritty lives and times of these historical characters.” The other was “Snowbound,” the story of the 1893 Carlin Party in the Selway River country, a group of five men trapped by an early storm and confronted with an ethical dilemma when one of them is seriously ill.

Allen and Hamilton teamed up to produce “Lewiston Country: An Armchair History.” It was Hamilton’s expert editing and assistance that made it possible for Allen to turn her collected tidbits of Lewiston history into a full book.

(“Lewiston Country” can be pur-chased at the Luna House in down-town Lewiston for $15.95.)

The 1961 centennial editions were during the managing editor days of the

No Sense in Rewriting HistoryL E W I S T O N ’ S S E S Q U I C E N T E N N I A L S U N D A Y, J U L Y 3 , 2 0 1 14

AllenHamilton

Co m m en ta ry

A.L. (Butch)

Alford Jr.

1885

Proud to be a part of Lewiston History since 1885...

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1884

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late William F. Johnston, an Orofino native and University of Idaho gradu-ate, who was lured to the Tribune from The Associated Press, and who moved on to a journalism professor position at the University of Washington.

This young reporter, who joined the Tribune staff full time in January 1961, had no hand in the spe-cial editions. Instead, I was start-ing two years in the Clarkston and Asotin County office, which seemed far from the Lewiston newsroom.

But the stories you’re about to read are a reminder of great reporters from our years past: Sylvia Harrell, Thomas W. Campbell, William E. (Johnny) Johnson, and more. Today, they’re all deceased, with the excep-tion of Hamilton, whom I’ve already thanked.

———Alford is the semi-retired former

publisher of the Lewiston Tribune. He may be contacted at [email protected] or (208) 848-2250.

LEFT: The cover of “Lewiston Country: An Armchair History” by Margaret Day Allen. RIGHT: The cover of “This Bloody Deed” by Ladd Hamilton.

1889

Member FDIC

1885

Thank you for 30 years of success!

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That would have been sometime in June or July of 1861, when Pierce made a short-lived visit to the mining fields he had discovered the year before. On his previous treks between Walla Walla and the Nez Perce Reservation he had crossed the Snake River at its junction with the Clearwater, but there was nothing there then but a sand bar and ribbon of flat between the river and the sage-topped bluffs.

The Native Americans are said to have spurned the place as a most unlikely habitation, and the white intruders of 1861 probably would not have settled there if the steamer Colonel Wright had been able to push her way farther

upstream on her initial trip.Fortunately or not, the Colonel

Wright’s skipper deemed it wise to snub his craft ashore near the place where the rivers meet, and on that spot the hustlers, the prospectors, the merchants, the renegades and the rogues piled out and created a town.

There can be no doubt that it was Captain Pierce’s town. He had founded it when he discovered gold in the streams of the upper Clearwater drainage in 1860.

Here In 1852Pierce had come into the region for

the first time in 1852 on the advice of

Pierce Started The rush But He Died Dead BrokeCapt. E.D. Pierce, a footloose Irish horse trader, was the

real father of the city of Lewiston, although he prob-ably saw his offspring briefly and only once.

MAN ON THE MOVE |

Capt. Elias D. Pierce helped

found the town of Lewiston but

his ambitions did not allow

him to stay.

l m t r i b u n e . c o m

No matter the address, Lewiston is our home.

1892

Present location: 505 Capital Street

2nd location: Erb Hardware Building1st location: Third Street

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Th e Owl Drug Co. opened in 1896 on Lewiston’s Main Street. Gene and Mike Auer purchased the business in the 1950’s. Th e Owl now includes four locations, Th e Owl Home Medical, Th e Owl Valley Medical, and Th e Owl Southway and Tri State which are also Hallmark Gold Crown Gift Stores. Brian and Jon Auer and Kristen Auer Adams are continuing the family owned tradition of off ering personal service and quality products.

Th e Owl, serving the valley for 115 years.

1896

THE OWLSouthway

720 16th Ave., Lewiston (208) 743-5528

Tri-State1275 Highland Ave., Clarkston

(509) 758-5533

Valley Medical 2315 8th St. Grade, Lewiston

750-1444Owl Home Medical

312 St. John’s Way, Lewiston(208) 743-7766

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an old Hudson’s Bay Co. man, Charles Adams, to trade with the Nez Perce for ponies. Pierce and Adams reached the reservation in August of 1852, spent an apparently pleasant winter among the Nez Perces, and left in the fol-lowing spring with 100 head of fine Appaloosa horses.

Pierce returned to the reservation four years later, spent four months there, and went back to Walla Walla with another drove of horses. War erupted on the res-ervation then — there had been trouble between the natives and some white men — and Pierce remained safely at Walla Walla until 1860.

His fateful return to the reserva-tion in the early part of that year had a double purpose. He was still in a mood to trade for horses, but he also had reason to believe there might be gold in some of the streams near the forks of the Clearwater. His plan was to use his horse-trading activities as a cover for a prospecting venture, and with this in mind Pierce and a friend name Seth Ferrell reached the Nez Perce Reservation in February.

They did some panning in the Clearwater and its feeder streams and found enough metal to justify a more thorough search. So they returned to Walla Walla and then traveled to The Dalles, Ore., to buy mining equip-ment, and with this arrived back on the Clearwater with supplies enough to last for four months.

The weather was bad, however, and

Pierce and Ferrell did not linger. They elected to wait at Walla Walla until sum-mer, and did so, meanwhile passing the word that the prospects were promising on the Clearwater. When they rode out of Walla Walla in August they had with them a party of around a dozen men.

They had embarked on an illegal expedition. The Nez Perce Reservation, created by the Treaty of 1855, extend-

ed over a vast area — including much of the mining country — and it was closed by law to white intrusion.

The Indian agent, A.J. Cain, had warned that war could result from a prospectors’ invasion of the territory, but Pierce and his party considered the prize worth the risk and set out for the forbidden lands anyhow.

They met hostile Indians on the Snake River a few miles west of the mouth of the Clearwater, near the present site of Alpowa. The warriors refused to permit the party to proceed and so the white men, unable to find a way to sneak past, set up camp and prepared to spend the winter.

However, it did not take long for

Pierce to induce the daughter of a local chief, Timothy, to guide his party around the Nez Perce sentries — or so the story goes — and after a long, arduous and round-about trek to the north, the white men arrived at Canal Gulch, an Orofino Creek north of the Clearwater River.

Wilber Bassett, by trade a carpenter, is believed to have been the man who panned the first gold there. According

to an account he wrote years later:“We made camp that afternoon a

little before sunset, down the gulch about 100 yards, where sunk a pros-pect hole in the gravel about two feet deep and panned out about 3 cents in the first pan, with which returned to the camp and exhibited the prospect to the balance of the party around the camp fire.”

Subsequent pans delivered gold flakes which were 3 to 30 cents each, and the next morning the prospectors discovered they could do the same all over the area.

Back to Walla WallaThe party prospected there for less

than a week, then broke camp and head-ed for Walla Walla and more supplies.

That was in early October. By early winter, Bassett and 26 other men were back at Canal Gulch with camping gear, horses, and enough provisions to feed them through the winter. This was the party that established Pierce City in that winter of 1860-61, formed a min-ers’ government of sorts, cut lumber for shacks and placer boxes, and awaited the golden promises of spring.

Pierce was not among them. He had gone to Olympia, then the ter-ritorial capital, to lobby the legislature for a wagon road from Walla Walla to the mines. He was at Portland in May, making arrangements to move a sawmill to Pierce City, and he was seen once more at the scene of the big strike between May and July.

Pierce did no more mining there; it is not clear why. He went off looking for new gold on the Powder River, later showed up in Idaho City, Walla Walla, and Wyoming, and eventually went home to Indiana and married.

The diggings he had left behind in the Clearwater country poured out mil-lions of dollars in gold dust in the next few years, established vast fortunes, and caused a rise at Lewiston, a city to serve as the jumping spot for the mines.

But Capt. Pierce could never seem to hit it again.

Thirty-seven years after rocking the pan that built a city and a region, Capt. Pierce died broke. n


the diggings Pierce left behind in the clearwater country poured out millions of dollars in gold dust in the next few

years, established vast fortunes, and caused a rise at lewiston, a city to serve as the jumping spot for the mines.

2101 Main StreetLewiston, IdahoLewiston, Idaho

Since 1898

1898 Hahn Supply Company established by Charles Hahn at 5th and B Streets in Lewiston, Idaho.1906 A daughter named Catherine (Katie) Hahn was born to Charles and Catherine Hahn.1931 Catherine (Katie) Hahn married A.L. Alford.1959 Hahn Supply builds a new of ce/warehouse at 21st and Main Street. 1964 Catherine Hahn Alford passes away, leaving the business to Charles and Albert L. Alford Jr.1989 Hahn Supply purchased Wade Tool Center and is operated as Hahn Tool Center.1989 Hahn Supply purchases South Center Rental and is operated as Hahn Rental Center.1992 Hahn Rental opens a downtown Lewiston location at its Supply HQ location at 21st and Main Streets.1993 Hahn Rental opens a rental yard in Kamiah, Idaho.1996 Hahn Rental opens a rental yard in Moscow, Idaho.2002 Hahn Supply added HVAC equipment/supplies to its extensive inventory of trade building materials.2010 Hahn Rental opened a new 14,000 sq. ft. Rental Center in Moscow, Idaho.

DOWNTOWN RENTAL

MOSCOW RENTAL

KAMIAH RENTAL

ORCHARDS RENTAL

HAHN SUPPLY

1898

Starting back in 1896 E.P. Doris moved his small stock of hardware from Farmington, Washington, to Lewiston, Idaho, and opened a store under the name of “Cash Hardware”. In 1910 Bob Erb took over management and incorporated the store under the new name

of “Erb Hardware Company”. Erb Hardware Company af liated with Ace Hardware, the largest international buying hardware co-operative in the world, in 1970. In 1996 Erb Hardware proudly celebrated its 100th anniversary! Shortly thereafter in 1998 the store was relocated to the Lewiston Orchards in order to better serve customers with a more convenient location. The team here at Erb’s Ace Hardware continues the relentless pursuit of superior customer service started all those years ago, always remembering to put you rst and to have fun doing so. So come to our store for our fresh popcorn and some friendly service that you will appreciate -- we look forward to being your helpful hardware place.

141 Thain Rd, Lewiston Orchards 208-746-0441

1896


Hooo, the ferry!”

A grimy traveler and a grimy mule stand on the shore of the Clearwater, the traveler peering across the stream in the twilight. He raises his cupped

hands to his mouth again and cries out:“Hooo, the ferry!”In its good time the ferry comes out of the

dusk, winding itself in on a cable strung over-head. When it reaches the landing, almost at dark, the traveler and his mule get on, and as they do two other travelers ride up on horses and clatter aboard, too.

A lantern swings in the ferryman’s hand and the ferry is away, sliding slowly into the stream. The ferryman has collected for this one-way trip $4.50 — a dollar and a half for each man with a single animal.

This was John Silcott’s Lewiston ferry, plying between Silcott’s place on the north shore of the Clearwater River to a spot on the Lewiston bank where Fifth Street met the shore. It was a busy boat; it sometimes made as much as $250 in a single day, for it then enjoyed a virtual monopoly on all the traffic entering Lewiston from the north and west.

One could get to Lewiston from Fort Walla Walla in 1862 by crossing the river in a canoe or a rowboat, as many had done before the ferry was built.

But that meant unpacking the horses, load-

Lewiston TribuneTHE ONLY WAY TO CROSS | Ferries like this one on the Snake River kept the people and commerce moving in the early days, before several bridges were constructed to make it easier.

Business Boomed For Early Ferries

W e at Vassar-Rawls Funeral Home & Crematory are proud of our long-standing service in the valley and the neighboring communities and are

proud to be a part of this historical project. Our roots in the Lewis-Clark Valley go back to 1898, so we feel it is appropriate to support this beautiful publication.

Looking ahead – as Lewiston celebrates its sesquicentennial in 2011 – we see a future where we continue to say: “We are a proud part of this community and are pleased to provide meaningful and personalized funeral services for families and loved ones of the Lewis-Clark Valley and surrounding areas.”

While the roots of the Vassar family in the L-C Valley go back to 1898, it was in 1900 that Clyde Vassar moved his furniture and undertaking business from Pullman to Lewiston and set up a new business – Lewiston Furniture and Undertaking – the first mortuary in the region. The location was near the present site of the YWCA on Main Street.

Soon afterwards, the business was moved to a new location in the I.O.O.F. hall on the north side of the street in the 500 block of Main. The store was just east of what is now

Brackenbury Square.In 1907 Clyde Vassar and Joseph Vassar bought the

residence of Robert Grostein, one of Lewiston’s early merchandise princes, at 608 Main Street – a splendid structure from which several items are still in use in the present Vassar-Rawls mortuary. The family operated the mortuary there until 1912. At that time the building was cut in half and moved to a new location at 141 Ninth Street where it still stands.

At first the funeral home just sold caskets and the preparation for burial was done by the family. As time went by the funeral home took on more duties, including dressing and cleaning the bodies, providing transportation to cemeteries and arranging services.

As the services increased, it became apparent there was a need for an ambulance. The first one was horse drawn. In 1913, Clyde decided to motorize the ambulance business. He and Mr. Studebaker negotiated by handwritten letter and finally came to an agreement that led to three vehicles being shipped directly from the Studebaker Wagon Works to Lewiston. The fleet included a family touring car, a hearse and an ambulance. Interestingly, the ambulance did not have a siren so, in times of emergency one of the Vassar crew would stand on the running board, wave his hat and holler to clear traffic.

In the early 1970s brothers John Vassar and Richard Vassar joined the business (in 1971 and 1972, respectively) with their dad Vincent and uncle Andy, then in December 1975 Vassar-Rawls moved to its present location at 920 21st Ave. Vincent passed away in 1976. In 2007, Jeff Seipert, Jason Harwick and Dennis

Vassar-Rawls Funeral Home & CrematoryOur family, serving yours, for over a century.

920 21st Ave., Lewiston 743.6541.www.vassar-rawls.com 311239GC-11

1900

Hastings took over as owners and operators of the business. Prior to that time Jeff, Jason and

Dennis were co-owners and shareholders. John and Richard Vassar still

provide inspiration and occasional consulting services for the funeral home.

Today Vassar-Rawls Funeral Home & Crematory serves all denominations and provides complete funeral services including pre-planning, funerals

and cremation.The owners of Vassar-Rawls

Funeral Home & Crematory believe a properly planned ceremony or ritual can

help the natural grief process. Vassar-Rawls Funeral Home’s licensed staff will assist in creating a

meaningful and dignified funeral or memorial service.


ing the stuff into the canoe, then shoving off with the horses swimming behind at the end of a rope. It was a lot of trouble, and risky, because the Clearwater was a fast river and some-times the swimming horses would balk or panic and upset the boat.

Blessing and BonanzaSo John Silcott’s ferry was both a

blessing and a bonanza.Prospectors and entrepeneurs head-

ing to Lewiston from Walla Walla actually had two ferries to board. The first was down the Snake a few miles at a place now called Alpowa, which was built in 1861 by the same John Silcott and his partner, D.M. White.

The traveler crossed the Snake at that point, and traveled eastward to Lewiston along the north bank before reaching the confluence of the Snake and Clearwater, and then crossed the Clearwater south to Lewiston.

A third ferry was established on the Snake River between Lewiston and the present city of Clarkston, but that came later.

Silcott and White built their first ferry, at Alpowa, from handsawed tim-ber cut from huge logs floated down the river and rolled out on 4-foot supports. One man worked each end of the saw, one on top of the log and one under it, slicking off the heavy planks.

It took the two of them about three months to build that ferry, with the

help of an occasional dead-broke trav-eler in need of a day’s work.

The cable came on a sailing ship around Cape Horn, then was shipped north from San Francisco to Portland and hauled across the Cascades on the backs of two mules, half the long iron rope on one mule, half on the other, with the connecting length running from the first mule’s back, between the ears of the second mule and into the bale on the second mule’s back.

On the first effort to string the cable across, in winter at low water, the line fell into the stream and fouled on the boulders. The second time, the cable was laid out along one bank of the stream and placed across equally spaced rowboats. At a signal, the boat-men shoved off, paddling furiously against the current, and swung the free end of the cable around to the snubbing post on the other shore.

in BusinessThe ferry was in business, and

from the start it was a financial suc-cess. White and Silcott were doing so well, in fact, that they decided to build another at Lewiston. While it was under construction, Silcott sold his interest in the Alpowa ferry to White and bought the new one on the Clearwater. This one was in business by the middle of 1862.

Before the end of that year another ferry had been built on the Snake at Lewiston, near where the Interstate

Bridge stands now, and it continued to operate until 1913.

The Snake River Lewiston ferry was built by E.D. Pearcy, Joseph L. Davis, Gilman Hays, and George Woods, incorporated as the Walla Walla and Clearwater Road Co.

They apparently were not doing too well at the start, for they were peti-tioning for a rate increase in the fall of 1862. They complained that the tolls allowed in their franchise were too low to grant just compensation.

These rates allowed them “but $3 for one wagon and two horses, $4 for each wagon and four horses and $5 for each wagon and six horses, at which rate your petitioners do represent that they cannot afford to run a ferry ... ”

They asked the toll to be doubled for each wagon and two horses, and the request was granted.

A ferry was built at Greer in 1861 or 1862 (the records are a little con-fusing on this point) for use of miners going into and out of the gold fields at Pierce. The Greer ferry was burned by hostile Native Americans during the Nez Perce War of 1877 and later rebuilt, and it continued to operate until the Greer bridge was built in 1914.

Riding on the Greer ferry in the early days was an extra crew member: a boy with a bucket, whose job it was to splash cold water on the hot hubs and iron rims of wagon wheels.

The descent to the river down the steep side of the mountain there was so bad that wagon drivers would stop at the top and tie a log to the back axle to serve as a brake.

Even so, with the brakes locked and the log dragging, the wagons would rumble onto the ferry with rims so hot they burned the planks.

Then the boy would douse the rims with river water to keep the deck from catching fire.

Construction of the Lewiston-Concord bridge — they called Clarkston Concord in those days — did not put the ferry out of business there. It was a private toll bridge and the rates were high enough to permit the ferry to compete.

The Snake River ferry at Lewiston continued to operate until shortly after construction of the old and unla-mented 18th Street Bridge in 1913.

Ice was a hazard to ferries in the wintertime. Once the Spalding ferry became entangled in floating ice while attempting to cross the Clearwater and was carried all the way to Alpowa, passengers and all.

Men and horses pulled the ferry back up the Snake and Clearwater riv-ers to Spalding.

D.M. White’s Alpowa ferry eventu-ally was sold to M.L. Goldsmith, but the ferry later was put out of business. Ed Pearcy, operator of the Snake River


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ferry at Lewiston, built a wagon road over the hill to Alpowa so that it was possible to drive all the way to Concord by land and reach Lewiston by using one ferry instead of two. That cut into the Alpowa ferry’s trade so deeply that the operation died.

John Silcott’s Fifth Street ferry was not the only one on the Clearwater at Lewiston.

In 1881 Fred Viles established a ferry a half mile below the old Clearwater River dam — it became known as the Central Ferry — and in 1904 Fred Newman put a ferry in the river a quarter of a mile east of the pres-ent city water plant.

In 1885, Nathan (Kentuck) Tallent established a ferry at Hatwai Creek with Sam Lewiston in charge. Its business collapsed after 1898, when a new road was built there and the ferry became waterlogged and sank.

Newman’s ferry later was owned by Clyde Stranahan, and it operated until the opening of the 18th Street bridge, after which it was sold to new owners near Riparia.

The old Central Ferry sank before it could be put out of busi-ness.

The ferries plied waters that

sometimes were swift and always dangerous, and yet history has recorded only one drowning — and a doubtful one at that.

This involved a man near Uniontown who had married a widow, advised her to put her property in his name, and quar-reled with her when she refused. One day in summer he rode down the hill, waited until dark, and boarded Silcott’s ferry, evidently drunk.

When the ferry reached mid-stream, the man climbed upon the railing, posed for a moment with a long face, intoned a mel-liflorous “Goodbye” and jumped into the river.

The event went into the record as suicide. Later, however, an old friend of the man reported he had seen him in Seattle, well and happy and boasting about his swimming ability.

Ferries operated at Lewiston for altogether 70 years — from 1861 to 1931 — and they were years that encompassed the birth and growth of a city and a region.

Getting places was faster and easier when the last of them was broken up, but crossing the river has never been quite the same since that last cry set the echoes flying:

“Hooooo, the ferry!” n


The man who lit the fuse that exploded into the great gold rush of 1861 was a Portland, Ore., newspaper editor named Alonzo Leland.

From a desk in Portland he directed one of the greatest publicity campaigns in the history of the West. Later, from a newspaper office in Lewiston, he led a raw community to eager hopes and a harvest of disillusionment.

Gold had been seen in Idaho before 1860, but the first finds were kept secret. By contrast, the gold strike at Pierce in the fall of 1860 was broadcast to the world. Alonzo Leland, then in a key position as editor of the Portland Times, was the self-appointed and inspired pub-licity director.

Accounts of the marvels and richness of the new gold fields, as they appeared in the Times, echoed around the world, and the magnet of gold drew thousands to the Lewiston area.

Leland himself succumbed to the fever and hurried to the Clearwater mining

Alonzo Leland: Eternal Optimist

Nez Perce Co. Historical SocietyCATALYST | Alonzo Leland helped spark the start of the gold rush in north cen-tral Idaho, and then worked for years promoting Lewiston and the region.

1903

743-2471 [email protected]

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From our beginning on Main Street in Downtown Lewiston in 1903, when

Teddy Roosevelt was President, and Lewiston’s population was 3,510, to

almost 109 years later....Our professional memorialists have been working here in the valley to assure the

fi nest craftsmanship and customer service.

Some things can go on forever.

Th e Tradition Continues...

1223 Main - 1903


country in 1862.From the first, Leland envisioned

Lewiston as the center of a vast area of inexhaustible mines and forest and expanses of fertile lands and an ever-increasing trade.

Through the thin years, between the playing out of the mines and the beginnings of extensive agriculture, Leland never lost sight of that vision.

Even the exodus to southern Idaho in the middle 1860s Leland chose to regard as a temporary shift to the jackrabbit country.

Intolerable lossLeland’s sublime faith in the future

of Lewiston fitted aptly with the choice of Lewiston as capital of the Idaho territory. To him the loss of the capital was intolerable.

In adopting the Organic Act which created Idaho Territory on March 3, 1863, Congress left the choice of a temporary capital to the first governor, William H. Wallace. The territorial legislature was designated to name a permanent capital.

Wallace chose Lewiston as the tem-porary capital. But by the time the legislature assembled on Dec. 7, 1863, nearly nine-tenths of the population had shifted to the rich gold diggings of southern Idaho. Most of the legislators protested against a capital so far from the center of population as Lewiston.

As a member of that legislature, Leland, almost single-handedly, man-

aged to stall the removal.In the second legislature, which

started Nov. 14, 1864, at Lewiston, a much larger majority of the legislators favored changing the capital to Boise City.

This time Leland used his knowl-edge of law. By appealing to the courts he succeeded in stalling the loss of the capital to Lewiston for three more months.

Largely because of Leland’s leader-ship, northern Idaho then revived a movement to create another new ter-ritory. This proposed territory, some-times called Lafayette, sometimes Columbia, would have included all of Washington east of the Columbia River, northern Idaho and eastern Montana. Lewiston would have been the capital by geographic necessity,

Failing in their efforts to organize a new territory, Leland and his fellow workers began working to get north-ern Idaho its political freedom from the Boise ring. They started a move-ment to re-annex northern Idaho to Washington.

Starting immediately after the loss of the capital, Leland threw his all into this cause — his genius for crusading, his editorial skills, his time, and his capital.

He founded two newspapers dedi-cated to annexation. They were the North-Idaho Radiator, begun in

CONTINUED ON PAGE 12 > 3 1 0 9 2 2 G C _ 1 1

1914

1440 Main St, Lewiston

(208) 743-4573

We have been, “Saying it with Flowers”

since 1914.

Mr. & Mrs. P.F. Stillings founded the business in 1914. In 1916 Mr. C.T. Embry was taken into the business as a partner.

Mr. & Mrs. Melvin White purchased the shop from the Stillings and then sold the shop to Joe and Imogene Vassar January 1, 1959. The Vassar’s

sold the shop to Gordon and Sharla Hubbard February 1, 1988.

Stillings & Embry is Lewiston’s oldest remaining Florist.

January 1865, and the Lewiston Journal, started in January 1867.

Both publications were short-lived. But the annexation movement grew until it overshadowed all other political issues. Staunch politicians desert-ed their parties to support annexationist candidates. In 1888 Nez Perce County voted 1,675 to 28 for annexation.

The movement was so nearly successful that its backers reached the rejoic-ing stage in March 1887. Both houses of Congress had approved the measure and only the signature of President Grover Cleveland was needed to make it a law. Lewiston began plan-ning a celebration.

A pocket veto by the president stopped the rejoicing.

Interference by Idaho’s governor, E.A. Stevenson, opposition of south-ern Idaho, admission of Washington state without the Panhandle of Idaho annexed, and a full-fledged movement for statehood for Idaho combined to block Lewiston’s hopes. The cause to which Leland had devoted a quarter century of his life was doomed.

In 1889 Leland wrote that he “qui-etly acquiesced” to the inevitable.

After his death on Oct. 24, 1891, Carl A. Foresman, editor of the Lewiston Teller, wrote: “Lewiston has had no citizen who has worked

harder for the interest of the community than did Mr. Leland. It seemed a cruel fate that prevented him from seeing a fuller fruition of his labors.”

Leland was born July 12, 1818, at North Springfield, Vt., and orphaned at an early age. He was brought up by an uncle and aunt. At 16, he managed to qual-ify for teaching and also to complete an apprentice-ship in carpentry.

By working as a car-penter, he completed his college education and was graduated from Brown University with honors in 1843. After teaching in Maryland

and Massachusetts he came west to Oregon in 1850. As a civil engineer he helped plan the city of Portland and also served as probate judge and postmaster there.

Then he found a more influential field in journalism and edited several Portland newspapers before following the gold craze to Lewiston. n



Starting immediately after the loss

of the capital, Leland threw

his all into this cause — his genius for

crusading, his editorial skills, his time, and his capital.

“Health Officer Harris called attention to the advisability of correcting usages at the City dumping grounds on the Clearwater River at the north end of 5th Street and

suggested that something should be done for improvement.”City of Lewiston. Meeting of City Council of Lewiston. 2 October 1922.

Improvements have been made in sanitation and other public works services since 1922, and what a difference they have made. In fact, the City of Lewiston’s Public Works Department is Idaho’s first and only Public Works Department accredited by

the National Public Works Association. Health Officer Harris would be amazed. Lewiston’s Public Works Department: serving you all day, everyday, 24/7.

5th Street Dumping Grounds in 1922

1919Ywca

Did you know....• By 1940 the ywca was offering employment classes, residency rooms, childcare and raising funds for unwed mothers.

• In 1953 the Y asked the Lewiston City Council to close the taverns surrounding the Y. They didn’t.• In 1954 we offered the first driver’s training courses.• In 1964 the Teen Canteen was opened, sponsoring teen dances and activities.• In 1965 the Y offered the first sex education classes (possibly in response to the Teen Canteen activities?).

ywca- 92 years of social activism promoting

DIGNITY, JUSTICE and RESPECT

Early 1920’s meeting of the Lewiston/Clarkston ywca

Photo Courtesy of the Nez Perce County Historical Society.

In the early 1870s the sparkle of the gold rush had faded, leaving a sense of vast emptiness.

The temporary, unpainted shacks of Lewiston’s business district were beginning to fall into grimy dilapidation. Leading business firms operated from slightly renovated log cab-ins. The once lucrative trade with the mining camps had dwindled to a trickle.

Lewiston was hungry — hungry for the profits it had lost, hungry for companionship, hungry for lumber for home building, even hungry for food.

Of the 10,000 gold seekers who swarmed into Lewiston in its first exciting days, all but a few had slipped off to richer strikes, mostly to the Boise Basin of southern Idaho. Of the 300 or so who remained, only a handful were inspired with the dream of developing a new


By Margaret D. allen

The 1870s were Lewiston’s darkest years. The decade was opened in discouragement, as the placer gold mines played

out, and closed with a paralyzing case of Indian jitters after the Nez Perce War of 1877.

Lewiston Tribunea COMMUnItY In tranSItIOn | Lewiston, circa 1880, when the town was experiencing growing pains, in its evolution from a stopover for miners into a permanent town with its own identity.

Somber Seventies: The Dark Years

CONTiNued ON PAGe 14 >

LEWISTON55 Southway Ave.

746-9646

MOSCOW203 East 3rd St.

882-8544

Four Generations of Insurance Service1922

Frank W. Sullivan1946 Photo

Retired President

John SullivanPresident

Agent Since 1977

Shawn SullivanVice-President

Agent Since 1994

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1 AUTO • HOME • BUSINESS • FARM

WORK COMP • BONDS • MEDICAL • LIFE

In 1922 American Insurance was established in Lewiston in conjunction with the American Bank and Trust Co. at 622 Main Street. Th en in 1927 Dr. O.C. Carssow built a new offi ce building at 9th & Main Streets (pictured left) as a new home for the bank, American Insurance and other tenants.

By 1928 the demands of running the bank increased to the point that they decided to sell the insurance business. On August 15, 1928 Harry W. Christy and his wife, Blanche (Sullivan) Christy, purchased American Insurance. Th e business has been in the family since that day and was located at 9th and Main for 76 years until we dedicated our new building at 55 Southway (pictured below) on April 15th, 2004.

One year later, with the purchase of Remington Insurance, a Moscow branch offi ce was established to serve the Palouse area. Th en, in 2008 service was further expanded to the Kendrick/Juliaetta area with the purchase of Magnuson Insurance.

Serving the Lewiston Clarkston valley since 1922...

Harry W. Christy1928 Photo

Founder

Quotes, Policy Service & more 24/7.Visit us at: www.Am-Ins. com

country.

Alone on A Strip of lAndLewiston was alone on a narrow

strip of land along the Clearwater River, surrounded by bald and thirsty plateaus where no one ven-tured to live.

Agriculture was getting off to a slow start. Grist mills had to be built to turn wheat into flour, other-wise the people had to pay crushing freight charges for imported food.

The imaginative began to invent and import new types of pumps and wind-mills. Orchards were being nursed from seeds, and planted on irrigated slopes near the river.

Herds of second-rate horses and cattle roamed over the miles of unfenced range land, caring for them-selves through all kinds of weather. The cattleman had to take a chance that by mere numbers the herds would sur-vive occasional deep snows and sub-zero winters.

The Lewiston ditch began winding its way into the life of the community in 1874, gradually transforming it from barren sands into a green oasis.

The rows of tall Lombardy poplars, which gave early Lewiston its distinc-tive setting, were beginning to grow.

Fresh vegetables and fruits could be bought only in season, eggs usu-ally were scarce and butter was often strong or not to be had. Sometimes there were even flour famines, when

the grist mill wheels were stopped for long periods because of too little or too much water in the rivers or because owners were wait-ing for parts.

CAndleS replACedBy 1870, most of the

candles had been replaced by kerosene lamps. Eastern-made furniture was replac-ing the hand-cut tables and chairs, and the better homes had acquired tacked-down, woolen wall-to-wall carpet-ing.

The religious life of the community was limited to an occasional sermon by a visiting pastor or an irregu-larly spaced Mass celebrated by the area Catholic priest

on his rounds.A Catholic house of worship, built

during the gold era, was the only church in the community. It was without a suggestion of a spire, then




the imaginitive

began to invent and import new types of pumps and windmills. Orchards were

being nursed from seed, and

planted on irrigate slopes near the river.

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WASEM’S800 6th St, Clarkston 758-2565 • 1-800-548-2804

Open ‘til 7pm weekdays; Saturday ‘til 5pm; Sunday ‘til 4pm www.wasems.com

Picture taken in 1928. Across from Valley Art Center on 6th Street.

Weldon Wasem 1899-1993 started the drug store in 1924, it changed locations and names a few times until 1966 where the current store is today. His son, Cliff, 1928-2009 joined his father in 1951 after graduating in pharmacy from WSU. Cliff’s son, Rick, joined his father and grandfather in 1980, after graduating from WSU pharmacy school. Cliff’s son ,Jon, ran the photo department until 2008 when he retired, but still owns a part of the business. Cliff’s daughter, Katie, a WSU Pharmacy graduate 1997, also has worked in the store until 2002. Now Rick Wasem solely runs the stores day to day operations.

Wasem’s has a coffee shop/restaurant, with home made pies made every day, prescriptions, I.V.s for in home use, specialty compounding of drug formulas, weekly med box or bubble pack service, delivery service, home medical supplies and equipment, vitamin and nutritional products, portrait studio, photo finishing, photo restoration, video transfer to DVD, art supplies, beer and wine making supplies, interior design center with floor and furniture sales,

Wasem’s has grown from a store with one employee to over fifty employees. We look forward to serving the people of the Lewiston and Clarkston area for

many years to come.

Weldon Wasem on far left, E.N. Clark in suit was manager of the State Bank of Clarkston, on right in suit is Bob Kidwell owner of Lee Morris dry goods store.

1924

WASEM’S DRUG

Nick’s Welding is a family owned business and is proud to have been a part of the Lewiston business community for the past approximately 87 years.

In 1924, (the oldest records found), founder Nick Ellan, (who passed away in 1956), established the original welding shop at 9th and Main (back of old Willett’s building), under the name Nick’s Welding Works.

In 1941 Nick’s relocated to its present location and ran the business with his wife Edith. Then in 1948 Ray Moore (brother of Edith), joined the fi rm and retired in 1985.

In 1964 his son, Larry Moore, joined the fi rm. Nick’s Welding today is owned and operated by Larry Moore and his son Steve Moore who joined the fi rm in 1993.

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1924

1625 Main St, Lewiston

Picture Circa 1945

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(208) 743-4578 1711 18th Street, Lewiston, Idaho 83501www.malcomsfuneralhome.com

Malcom’s Brower-Wann Funeral Home & Cremation

1924

Eugene M. Brower and Loren B. Wann founded the Brower-Wann Funeral Home in the old F.W. Kettenbach house at 1434 Main Street, in 1924.

Th e home had been built in 1878 by riverboat Capt. William Smith. Wann later bought out Brower. During WWII Mr. Wann became ill and his daughter, Betty Wann Malcom, managed the business while her husband, Kermit H. Malcom, served in the Navy. Aft er the war he went to college and became manager in 1948.

A fi re broke out in the funeral home in 1951 and destroyed the landmark building. Th e company relocated to it’s present location at 1711 18th Street, Lewiston, Idaho.

Serving Lewiston & Clarkston area for over 85 years.


Eighty Five

Providing Top Quality Products at Exceptional Values

700 Main St. • Lewiston, ID • thediamondshop.com • 746-2649 • 1-800-837-GEMS

The Diamond Shop was established in 1926 when Bill Haines fell in love with the beauty of the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley. Since inception, The Diamond Shop has been a family owned company. Founder Bill Haines sold the business to his son Bob, and many years later Bob sold to his son, current owner, Michael Haines. Since 1926 their mission has been to provide the best customer service, the finest products and the best values. The Diamond Shop gives each customer a unique and incredible experience that will be with them for a lifetime.The Diamond Shop, when you want to say I love you!

Bill Haines - 1926 Bob Haines - 1956 Mike Haines - 2005


considered so important to a church and the structure was unpainted and falling into disrepair.

A fastidious Frenchman named Andrew Roux contrived to build a public bath at his barbershop by hav-ing a small room lined with zinc. But in the homes families had to make do with a wash tub.

For the children there were usu-ally three months of school in the late fall. The teacher expected his pupils to bring suitable books from

home. More important still, he hoped there would be enough money to pay his salary. He joined those who had begun to advocate some sort of tax to pay school expenses.

In the 1870s there were still as many saloons as all other business houses combined. But there was a trend to more elegant names like the Bank Exchange, the Senate, the Palace and the N.P.R.R. Station.

Besides saloons, there were general merchandise stores where a lady could buy her bonnet ribbon, and a shoe-maker’s shop where new shoes could

be purchased and old ones repaired.The tin smith, who sold stoves,

called his shop a hardware store. The drug store sold kerosene in bulk as well as patent medicines. And there was the assay office, where one could get a loan at 10 to 12 percent interest, and blacksmith shops, a baker-grocery and two livery stables.

Charles G. Kress, the watch repair-man, also sold new jewelry.

During this decade the Clearwater dock area had started to slip off into the river, and the sternwheelers were stopping at new docks about a quarter

of a mile upstream on the Snake.

A Foreign FlAvorThe business area still had a foreign

flavor, with its various nationalities celebrating French Bastille Day, the Jewish Day of Atonement and the Chinese New Year.

Downtown there was usually some agitation for building a new wagon road to some neighboring community. It was a service designed, of course, to draw in the trade. Businessmen solicited contributions for the road because all the tax money went for

PREFERRED METHOD OF HAULING | Horse- and mule-drawn wagons were the main means of transporting goods inland from Lewiston in the 1870s.


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LOLO SPORTING GOODS1026 Main St. Lewiston • 208-743-1031www.LoloSportingGoods.com • Mon-Sat 10-6

1927

Lolo Sporting Goods is located in historic downtown Lewiston, Idaho in a building constructed in 1927. The store opened as Rich’s grocery, with rooms for rent upstairs – now the Pistol Palace. In 1955 Paul Nolt and Hugh Helpman converted the building to Lolo Sporting Goods and operated continually until Paul died in November of 2004. The family sold to Lori Lohman, who reopened it in May of 2005. She sold the store to Dave Howell, a local businessman, in August 2009.

Manager Mike Thomas supplies outdoorsmen with new and used guns, ammunition and reloading equipment and components. They buy used guns and have the lowest consignment fees of any store in the area. A highly quali ed gunsmith is on hand at Lolo Sporting Goods to take care of any gunsmithing needs or wants. Need Idaho Fish and Game licenses? They have that too.

Lolo wants to be your rst and last stop for all your shooting needs – and that means making sure you are completely satis ed with their products and services.

Newly restored piece of Lewiston history, located above Lolo Sporting Goods

1028 Main Street • Lewiston

Pistol Palace

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Amystery surrounds the Pistol Palace, built in

1927 and located above Lolo Sporting Goods. While the story varies in some parts, the upstairs was built to be a brothel, some say it never was and others say different. You interpret the worn marks on the wooden oors.

Lori Lohman reopened the Pistol Palace in 2008 so now you can now stay in a piece of Lewiston history. While some

1927

208-798-0909 • www.thepistolpalace.com

updating has taken place it still holds the charm of yester-year. The beds and dressers in each room are the ones that were there when the building was constructed, but of course the springs and mattresses have been replaced.

A great alternative to a hotel, the Pistol Palace has seven bedrooms, three baths, a sitting area and a bar that seats eighteen. There is a kitchen and laundry room for your use as well.

Whether you just need a weekend away or a place for family reunions, the Pistol Palace is the perfect place.


necessities.More stages were on the road

and drivers were usually striving for greater speed. For the first time a driver made the run from Walla Walla in a single day.

Toward the close of the decade, a new hotel man, Raymond Saux, was drawing plans for the Raymond House. Meanwhile, the Hotel De France and the Luna House were the leading hotels of the community.

Throughout these 10 years, Lewiston social life remained gay, with frequent public danc-es and parties, which every-one attended — excepting the Chinese and Indians.

Lots of LawyersThe entire community, led by

attorneys — of which Lewiston always had a goodly number — turned out for literary meetings and debate societies. There were several ventures into amateur dramatic entertainments.

Everybody, more or less, also was on hand for the occasional traveling stage troupe, minstrel show, rope artist, magician, opera company or ventriloquist. These travelers frequently came as a surprise without previous booking; they evidently were willing to take their chances. n

Courtesy Al KnittelEARLY LODGING | The Hotel De France in downtown Lewiston, as depicted on a postcard from the late 1800s.

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1933

Tom Woods Insurance308 Main Street, Lewiston743-8548

This advertisement ran in the Lewiston Tribune in December 1953.


The emigrants brought a reassuring American outlook, though the com-plexion of the community retained a foreign cast for many years.

Financial leaders were now most-ly German or English extraction. The French kept the leading hotels,

while Scandinavian blood predomi-nated among the homesteaders. The Spanish, who had wandered up through California with the prospec-tors, chose various fields of endeavor.

Most of the business houses contin-ued to observe Jewish holidays.

1880: The Beginning of the Green EraTo Lewiston, the 1880s brought the dawning of a

new light. That decade brought a wave of emi-grants, mostly from the middle West. It brought the first small building boom, the first banks, the beginnings of churches, the first graded public

schools, the first noticeable interest in music, arts and fra-ternal groups.

Celebrating 73 Years of Service to Members

Starting in 1938, Credit Union business was rst handled from

the trunk of a car.

This photo was taken in October of 1955 of the Credit Union’s rst of ce on mill property, the old Fuel Of ce Building.

Southway BranchOpened 1995

Clarkston BranchOpened 2007

Clarkston Walmart BranchOpened 2009

Remember When? The Credit Union has grown tremendously from our rst “of ce” of a brief case in the trunk of a car, to the modern and comfortable branches we have today. Potlatch No. 1 Federal Credit Union is a nonpro t, member owned nancial institution. Our purpose is to promote thrift and offer a wide range of nancial services at

competitive costs, while ensuring the nancial stability of the Credit Union.

208-746-8900 • 800-843-7128www.p1fcu.org

1938

Orchards BranchOpened 2000

In May of 1965 we moved into a new of ce on East Main, adding additional

of ce space later. P1FCU used the of ce on East Main until 2000.

In 1935, Harley Steiner founded Steiner Radio in downtown

Lewiston. Harley specialized in repair and installation of home and car radios. After World War II, Steiner Radio expanded its product offerings to include appliances, becoming Steiner Radioand Appliance.In 1953 Harley’s oldest son Bert became the general manager of Steiner Radio and TV. As stereo components became more available, Bert expanded the store at 1323 F Street to include space to sell stereo records and to have a space to demonstrate

component stereo equipment and speakers.In 1960, we incorporated and changed our name once again to “Steiner Electronics, Inc.” Bert and his wife Carol became the sole owners shortly thereafter. In 1976, we opened an installation center in an old gas station at 18th and Main where car stereo and CB radios were sold and installed.In 1977 Bert and Carol purchased the lot where our present location is, 1328 Main Street in Lewiston, allowing for a larger sales floor, warehous-ing and installation all in one location. In 1985, Bert and Carol’s son Bill became the general manager. His wife

Audrey joined the business in the accounting department. In the 1990’s Bill and Audrey were joined in the business by their sons Scott and Andrew.Nobody knows more about audio and video than our family. At Steiner’s, we choose what we carry for products, with our goal being to offer the best products available and to sell them at competitive prices. Our name is on the front of the building and we realize that with every encounter with the public our reputation is on the line. We approach every customer with the Golden Rule in mind: To always treat others as we would like to be treated.

1328 Main St. Lewiston, ID 83501 • 746-3381 • SteinerElectronics.com

In 1935, HarleySteiner founded Steiner Radio in downtown

Lewiston. Harley specializedin repair and installation ofhome and car radios. AfterWorld War II, Steiner Radio expanded its product offeringsto include appliances,becoming Steiner Radioand Appliance.In 1953 Harley’s oldest son

pIn 1960, we incorchanged our namto “Steiner ElectroBert and his wife became the soleshortly thereafteropened an installan old gas stationMain where car sradios were sold

eo equipment component stereand speakers.

Audrey joined the businesent

Harley Steiner Bert Steiner Bill Steiner

FAMILYOWNEDSINCE 1935


The Chinese were called upon for day labors and oper-ated the hand laundries.

Like any other new act, the decade of the 1880s had its pre-curtain scenes, its forecasts of things to come.

In the late 1870s, J.B. Mcnomy kiln-baked the first brick for the erection of the new California Brewery, the first brick build-ing at Lewiston. Raymond Saux built his Raymond House and the first Masonic Hall was built in 1879.

In the 1880s waves of emi-grants were founding new towns. More wagon roads were planned and dug out. Lewiston’s leading merchants opened branch stores in sur-rounding settlements. There was a gradual expansion of business everywhere.

Ferry rates DropA movement for a bridge

across the Clearwater River resulted in a sharp reduction in high ferry rates.

Gradually more money was available for business and farm devel-opment, but there was no lowering of the interest rates. Ten to 12 percent might not have sounded high, but it was a struggle for many to pay.

In the 1880s, men learned that wells could put water on the dry plateaus

between here and Craig Mountain. The land was rapidly staked off into claims and more and more fields were cleared and planted to wheat.

The sternwheel steamers were find-ing burdensome the task of haul-ing off an ever-increasing tonnage of sacked grain.

Only a railroad could bring full development of the area, and the assurance that all its crops would reach the market.

In the 1870s men began dreaming of a railroad. By the 1880s rail trans-portation was regarded as a necessity. Railroad prospects was the most fre-

quent subject of conversation, and nearly every newspaper carried columns of specula-tion as to when the iron horse would come.

Surveying parties passed through Lewiston in every direction. As early as 1885 there were annual predictions that the railroad would be here in time to carry off the next crop.

Surrounding settlements — Riparia, Moscow, Genesee, Pomeroy — all had rail ser-vice before 1888. But Lewiston waited for 10 more years. A right of way across the reserva-tion and the deep canyon in which Lewiston was located proved to be stumbling blocks, but the panic of 1893 was the insurmountable obstacle.

The Lewiston valley fruit orchards along the Clearwater were coming into full bearing and more were being plant-ed. In the spring, the farmers brought their early vegetables into town by the wagonload and sold them from the street

corners or peddled their produce from door to door.

Four Protestant churches were founded here in the ’80s — The Universalist, Presbyterian, Episcopal,


TOWN TERMINAL | Stagecoaches made daily stops at the Raymond House in Lewiston.

1504 8th Street, Lewiston, Idaho

(208) 743-9426

3 1 1 5 9 4 G C _ 1 1

1941Established in 1941Rognstad’s Insurance by Vern Rognstad

In 1979 James Sattler joins Rognstad’s Ins.

1995 he purchased Rognstad’s Ins. which became Sattler Insurance.

and Methodist. Each started as a gath-ering of the devout under leadership of a pastor. Then each organized a hard-fought campaign for a church build-ing. The ladies aid societies served big dinners on all the holidays and there was a constant whirl of programs, lec-tures and sociables.

The churches soon took over a community Christmas tree program, which during the 1870s had generally been held at the school house.

Church groups began to insist on Sunday closing of stores, and the busi-nessmen fell into line — on paper. The store keepers signed pledges but it was hard to make their resolutions stick. Sometimes they agreed to close



Nez Perce County Historical Societythespians | These Lewiston actors performed a play in 1885 that raised $100 for a library, also making trips to perform in Asotin and Pomeroy.

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Lewiston PRE-MIX Concrete, Inc.BOX 646 • LEWISTON, IDAHO 83501

1945

1402 Snake River Avenue, Lewiston 743-3333 Open 6:00a.m. to 4:30p.m. Monday - Friday

Lewiston Pre-Mix Concrete, Inc.Celebrating Our 66th Year in Business

Lewiston Pre-Mix is an L-C Valley tradition, serving the community since 1945. Lewiston Pre-Mix is the “Only” computerized central batch plant in the area, specializing in all aspects of residential and commercial building.

1945

743-8600

815 Main StreetDOWNTOWN LEWISTON

Good ol’ Smiling Sylvan

Really Saves You More!

www.sylvanfurniture.net

Nez Perce County Fair, an important part of our community since 1944.

Over the course of the last 67 years, the Nez Perce County Fair has endured many changes.From 1898 to 1912, the Valley’s rst fair was held in Clarkston, known as the Lewiston-Clarkston Interstate Fair, primarily a produce show. In 1912, the event moved to the Potlatch Corp. site. 1923-1944; Leadership committee was established, 4-H clubs were organized, a building was constructed for the fair at the location of the Lewiston Roundup grounds and was held in conjunction with the rodeo. In 1959, the Nez Perce County Fair acquired in its present location. September 23, 1960 marks the dedication of the new fairgrounds and buildings with grand opening ceremonies at its current location. 2011 marks the 67th Annual Nez Perce County Fair. More than 25,000 people come to experience icons of country life, the pride & tradition of the agricultural way of life and the sense of what’s best for us all.

Much of the fair and all of its accomplishments are history. And the newer generation has the inspiration and ingredients for equal and even greater achievements. Every facet of the fair even today might be considered an avenue to what continues to be its main purpose — information and education.

Beneath all the fun, auctions, and show ribbons the serious business of learning how to make a living off the land continues like an underground river. (Baxter Black)

Congratulations Lewiston, we are proud to be a part of this community.

1944

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shop for say a part of New Year’s Day or a part of the Fourth of July.

SickneSS PrevailedLewiston boosters continued to

brag of the city’s healthful climate, but they did so with tongue in cheek. Nearly every Lewiston newspaper had a long list of the ill.

Once the editor of the Teller speculated that fully two-thirds of the inhabit-ants were on the sick list.

The Board of Health was scolding about filthy pools on the main streets, but little was said about the shallow wells from which most families drew their drinking water.

Not until the late 1880s was there a general objection to springs and wells at the base of the “plateau south of town” (Normal Hill). The water seeped down through the community burial ground, for the cemetery was at the present site of Pioneer Park.

But the awakening was soon in full swing. Land for a new cemetery, far out in the country, had been pur-chased. Persistent movements for a new courthouse and a library prom-ised to bear fruit.

In the 1880s, Lewiston established its reputation as one of the best lodge

towns in IdahoThe Masonic Lodge was first estab-

lished during the gold rush of 1863. Though it folded two years later, a fresh start was made in 1874.

The Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Knights of Pythias and others followed.

Veterans of the Civil War rallied to form Lewiston’s first patriotic organization, the Grand Army of the Republic, in 1883. They G.A.R. traditionally cele-brated Memorial Day.

For years the city dads and others had wished a shorter road to the top of the pla-teau south of town. Digging began in the gulch at the head of Fifth Street to form Fifth Street Grade in the ’80s.

In 1880, Lewiston had its first nine-month school term. Pupils were in grades for the first time. A sys-tem of examining a teacher before class work began was now well established, pupils

no longer had to study out of books they found at home, and the teacher could usually expect to be paid.

Lewiston had survived the rowdy excitement of the gold rush, endured the depression of the ’70s and expe-rienced an awakening in the ’80s. Its people looked forward to the ’90s full of new plans and confidence. n

Boosters continued to brag of the

city’s healthful climate, but they did so

with tongue in cheek. nearly every lewiston newspaper had a long list of

the ill.

1950

• Accounting & Auditing• Business Consulting• Tax Services• Personal Financial Planning• Business Valuations

Celebrating our 61st Year

www.presnellgage.com

Lewiston208-746-8281

Oro no208-476-3012

Moscow208-882-2211Grangeville208-983-1254

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1951

Kirk StedmanInland Auto Glass225 7th St., Lewisotn | 746-3644 | www.inlandautoglass.com

Lewiston Deserves the Best!

Preserving Lewiston’s Architecture One Building At A Time

Grostein Mansion Knights of PithiusBusinesses Since• Vasar-Rawls• Bill’s Second Hand• Care Connection Home Care

Businesses Since• C.O.D Laundry• Twin City Glass• Probation & Parole

1916 , Company F of he 2nd Idaho Infantry, in front of the armory at 9th & F Street, downtown Lewiston.

Nez Perce County Historical Museum


E.W. Hanson photofair lasses | Three young women pose for an undated group portrait in a Lewiston photo studio. The chalkboards at right say, “Too late for school.”

1955 1957 Deep Roots and A Long History

Rudolph’s Service Department502 B. St., Lewiston • (208) 743-8072

Service Hours: 8-5 Mon-Fri

Rudolph Motors has a long history serving the valley. Known today for out-standing automotive service, the business can trace it’s roots back to 1957 as Gray Buick GMC. Prior to becoming an Automotive Service Center, Rudolph Motors was a Buick, Pontiac and GMC dealership. Prior to becoming Gray Buick, the dealership went by the name Gray Webb Buick.

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Lewiston Veterinary Clinicis pleased to announce

their induction into theAmerican Veterinary History Society

Registry of Heritage Veterinary Practiceshaving served residents and their animalsin the Lewis Clark Valley and surrounding

areas for fifty eight years.

1953

421 22nd Street North • Lewiston208.743.6361 | Farm Animals208.743.6553 | Small Animals

Boarding | Farm Calls | On-Call Emergency Service

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POPLARS MARK THE STREETS | A view of downtown Lewiston from what is now Normal Hill, taken at the turn of the 20th century.

1959

Orchard Lanes 208-743-7822Strike & Spare Bar and Grill 208-743-4742

244 Thain Road, Lewiston • www.orchardlanesbowling.com

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Orchard Lanes – Strike & Spare. We’ve been here for more than half a century bringing to the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley excellence in bowling and fabulous food.

Mike and Fran Fitzpatrick opened the doors to Orchard Lanes in 1959 and the Strike & Spare, famous for its jumbo turkey sandwiches debuted in 1962. Their son Tom joined the management team in 1979 and has continued to expand and grow the family business with the latest addition coming this August with new Qubica AMF SPL Synthetic lanes!

Join us as we help celebrate the history of our valley. We offer:16-lane bowling center Thunder Alley Friday and Saturday Colorama Friday nights – prizes

and jackpots! Kids Bowl Free! – all summer long Penny A Pin Mondays Pizza Pins and Pop Tuesday nights League action Birthday and Corporate parties

Strike & Spare Famous Jumbo Sandwiches Prime Rib Tuesday and Friday’s Our legendary Bite-size Steak Full-service lounge Daily Happy Hour from 3-6 p.m.

ARCADE – POOL – DARTS

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John’s Saw ServiceProudly Serving You Since 1960

John & Florence Tackett

Satisified Customer

John Tackett

John tackett & Dudley Jackson

John Tackett opened his saw shop in 1960 in downtown Lewiston. Customer service has been the key to the business’s success, specializing in Stihl sales and service.

John passed away in 1992, his son, Steve Swanson, now owns and operates the business.

106 16th St, Lewiston743-8982

1960


Steamboat going round the bend,Goodbye my lover goodbye;Her decks are full of steamboat

men,Goodbye my lover goodbye!

Over a period of 80 years, from the first steamboat to the last, the excitement of arrival and departure was the same. And

over those years the names of the boats became etched into the history of Lewiston.

There was, for example, the Colonel George Wright, the first steamer on the upper Columbia and the Snake, which was built in 1858.

She was built at the mouth of the Deschutes by R.R. Thompson and E.F. Coe, who had been carrying freight

by bateaux from Celilo to Fort Walla Walla, a distance of about 120 miles. With the money they had made in this venture, they built the Colonel Wright, naming her after the hero of Steptoe Butte, a famous Indian fight-er.

She was put on the run from Celilo to Wallula in 1859, carrying freight at $80 a ton, and within a few years she had made a fortune.

In May 1861, the Colonel Wright churned up the Snake River loaded with freight and passengers for the Pierce City mines. She managed to get

up the Clearwater almost as far as the present town of Orofino before the swift cur-rent slowed her to a stop, and her pilot, Capt. Leonard White, had been unable in all the distance to find a safe place to unload.

So Capt. White maneu-vered the steamer back down-river to the confluence of the Clearwater and the Snake and unloaded her there.

That was on May 13, 1861. That day the city of Lewiston was born.

And from that day forward steam-boats were an important part of life at Lewiston. They provided her chief link

with the bustling ports of the lower Columbia; they brought the newspapers that made it possible for Lewiston to fol-low the course of the Civil War and they carried word of the death of Lincoln; they transported hopeful seekers after the glittering gold of the Bitterroots and carried too many of them back down the river still broke.

They were the great pump, throbbing with the beat of massive engines driving big sternwheels, that kept the blood of commerce flowing between this world and the Coast.

And how beautiful they were!The mere sound of their names sug-

gests some of the romance they brought to the Snake and the Columbia.

The Spray was built in the summer of 1862 at the mouth of the Deschutes by A.P. Ankeny, W.H. Corbet, Dr. D.S. Baker, and Capt. E.W. Baughman. A relatively small boat, she was put on the Lewiston-Celilo run and paid for herself

five times over in the first five months she was in service.

The Oregon Steam Navigation Co. bought the Spray in March of 1863 and shortly after that dismantled her.

The Casadilla, another small stern-wheeler, was built at Celilo in 1862 by Capt. W.H. Gray and operated on the Clearwater between Lewiston and Spalding.

The Nez Perce Chief was built in 1863 by Capt. Gray and put into ser-vice on the Lewiston-Celilo run. She was fast but too light for freight service and in 1870 she was taken down to the lower river.

The Nez Perce Chief holds the record for the most valuable cargo ever brought down the river in a single trip — $382,000 in gold dust on Oct. 29, 1863.

Capt. Thomas Stump was her last pilot on the upper river.

The Tenino and the Okanogan were added to the fleet on the upper river in

1862.The Tenino was the second boat on

the river, larger than the Colonel Wright and also extremely profitable. She was rebuilt in 1867 and rechristened the New Tenino.

The Okanogan ran on the upper river until 1866, when Capt. Stump established a new first in the Columbia River navigation by taking her over Celilo Falls.

The Yakima and the Owyhee began to be seen at Lewiston in 1864. The Yakima, the speediest vessel on the upper river, was a handsome craft with 26 staterooms sumptuously furnished and with a freight capacity of 200 tons.

She set a record time of 41 hours and 36 minutes from Celilo to Lewiston.

Until the opening of the Celilo Canal in 1915, it was necessary to portage around the falls between the upper and lower rivers. At first these portages were made by horse and wagon, later by a

short-line railway.In May of 1869, according to old

records, passengers could leave Portland on Friday morning, catch the Yakima at Celilo in the evening, pass Umatilla at 6 a.m. Saturday, and reach Lewiston at noon Sunday.

In the summer months of good water, the trip could be made once a week. In winter, when the water was low, it could not be made at all. Then the wharves at Lewiston would be quiet and deserted, the landing bleak.

But then one day in spring, usually in March or April, a whistle would echo among the greening hills and a tall feather of smoke would come marking up the Snake.

“Steamboat ’round the bend!” some-one would shout, and there she’d be, white and shiny and proud — and loaded. n

when steamboats plied the rivers | The Lewiston Commercial Fleet, circa 1900, was a busy and important part of life in the Lewis-Clark Valley, supplying freight from the coast.

The Glamour Never Lost Its ShineY

ears afterward, a woman who had grown up on Snake River Avenue remembered how it used to be when she was a child and the steamboats pulled away.

The children would watch her go, off toward the elbow in the Snake River, smoke pluming from her

stacks, and using a little song that never changed:

Capt. Leonard White


Steamboat going round the bend,Goodbye my lover goodbye;Her decks are full of steamboat

men,Goodbye my lover goodbye!

Over a period of 80 years, from the first steamboat to the last, the excitement of arrival and departure was the same. And

over those years the names of the boats became etched into the history of Lewiston.

There was, for example, the Colonel George Wright, the first steamer on the upper Columbia and the Snake, which was built in 1858.

She was built at the mouth of the Deschutes by R.R. Thompson and E.F. Coe, who had been carrying freight

by bateaux from Celilo to Fort Walla Walla, a distance of about 120 miles. With the money they had made in this venture, they built the Colonel Wright, naming her after the hero of Steptoe Butte, a famous Indian fight-er.

She was put on the run from Celilo to Wallula in 1859, carrying freight at $80 a ton, and within a few years she had made a fortune.

In May 1861, the Colonel Wright churned up the Snake River loaded with freight and passengers for the Pierce City mines. She managed to get

up the Clearwater almost as far as the present town of Orofino before the swift cur-rent slowed her to a stop, and her pilot, Capt. Leonard White, had been unable in all the distance to find a safe place to unload.

So Capt. White maneu-vered the steamer back down-river to the confluence of the Clearwater and the Snake and unloaded her there.

That was on May 13, 1861. That day the city of Lewiston was born.

And from that day forward steam-boats were an important part of life at Lewiston. They provided her chief link

with the bustling ports of the lower Columbia; they brought the newspapers that made it possible for Lewiston to fol-low the course of the Civil War and they carried word of the death of Lincoln; they transported hopeful seekers after the glittering gold of the Bitterroots and carried too many of them back down the river still broke.

They were the great pump, throbbing with the beat of massive engines driving big sternwheels, that kept the blood of commerce flowing between this world and the Coast.

And how beautiful they were!The mere sound of their names sug-

gests some of the romance they brought to the Snake and the Columbia.

The Spray was built in the summer of 1862 at the mouth of the Deschutes by A.P. Ankeny, W.H. Corbet, Dr. D.S. Baker, and Capt. E.W. Baughman. A relatively small boat, she was put on the Lewiston-Celilo run and paid for herself

five times over in the first five months she was in service.

The Oregon Steam Navigation Co. bought the Spray in March of 1863 and shortly after that dismantled her.

The Casadilla, another small stern-wheeler, was built at Celilo in 1862 by Capt. W.H. Gray and operated on the Clearwater between Lewiston and Spalding.

The Nez Perce Chief was built in 1863 by Capt. Gray and put into ser-vice on the Lewiston-Celilo run. She was fast but too light for freight service and in 1870 she was taken down to the lower river.

The Nez Perce Chief holds the record for the most valuable cargo ever brought down the river in a single trip — $382,000 in gold dust on Oct. 29, 1863.

Capt. Thomas Stump was her last pilot on the upper river.

The Tenino and the Okanogan were added to the fleet on the upper river in

1862.The Tenino was the second boat on

the river, larger than the Colonel Wright and also extremely profitable. She was rebuilt in 1867 and rechristened the New Tenino.

The Okanogan ran on the upper river until 1866, when Capt. Stump established a new first in the Columbia River navigation by taking her over Celilo Falls.

The Yakima and the Owyhee began to be seen at Lewiston in 1864. The Yakima, the speediest vessel on the upper river, was a handsome craft with 26 staterooms sumptuously furnished and with a freight capacity of 200 tons.

She set a record time of 41 hours and 36 minutes from Celilo to Lewiston.

Until the opening of the Celilo Canal in 1915, it was necessary to portage around the falls between the upper and lower rivers. At first these portages were made by horse and wagon, later by a

short-line railway.In May of 1869, according to old

records, passengers could leave Portland on Friday morning, catch the Yakima at Celilo in the evening, pass Umatilla at 6 a.m. Saturday, and reach Lewiston at noon Sunday.

In the summer months of good water, the trip could be made once a week. In winter, when the water was low, it could not be made at all. Then the wharves at Lewiston would be quiet and deserted, the landing bleak.

But then one day in spring, usually in March or April, a whistle would echo among the greening hills and a tall feather of smoke would come marking up the Snake.

“Steamboat ’round the bend!” some-one would shout, and there she’d be, white and shiny and proud — and loaded. n

when steamboats plied the rivers | The Lewiston Commercial Fleet, circa 1900, was a busy and important part of life in the Lewis-Clark Valley, supplying freight from the coast.


The decade began with high hopes that swelled into a boom. Yet there were dark days, too. At Lewiston, as elsewhere, there was no money dur-ing the panic of 1893, and there were more hard times in 1899.

Financially, Lewiston had passed the turning point by 1900. The marks of the ghost town, which were pres-ent in 1870, had vanished. In their place were sure economic foundations — the coming of the railroad, the opening of the Nez Perce Reservation, the building of the water ditch onto

Clarkston Flat, the acquisition of the Lewiston State Normal School and a new bridge across the Snake River.

More important still were the boat-loads and trainloads of new settlers. Each new arrival brought energy and determination, as well as all his earthly goods, to enrich the country.

Henceforth the community had only to continue its growth.

Roads ImpRovedRoads to neighboring communities

were being improved. More and more

1890: a Butterfly opens Its Wings

By Margaret D. allen

The 1890s were the flowing years at Lewiston. Then the seeds of encouragement and culture that were planted in the 1880s came into full bloom.

For the first time the community had a charm of its own, with its new brick buildings, new homes and gar-dens and rows of white picket fences against the tall poplar trees. This beauty was independent of the setting at the confluence of two rivers.

since 1961 ....

low prices huge selectionexpert advice large inventory

appliances video | audio mattresses

Moscow 882-7016217 Warbonnet Drive

Lewiston 743-84321901 19th Avenue

deranleaus.com

1961

“The One Stop Pet & Pond Shop!”Bob’s Pet & Pond has provided the valley with a complete pet and

pond supplies store since 1961. Bob’s Pet & Pond is family owned and operated and the staff has over 150 years of combined knowledge and service – they really know the pet business.

One of Bob’s main message centers on the most basic facet of animal care: food. All pet foods are not created equal and the experts at Bob’s are here to explain the difference for the health and longevity of your dog, cat, small furry friend or even your sh.

Bob’s Pet & Pond currently employs 11 people. Come meet the specialists, such as Bob, the pond guy; Bobby, the saltwater expert; Chris, the animal consultant and buyer; Ruth and Kerri, the bookkeepers; or one of the other six knowledgeable and friendly employees. Stop by today for advice; to visit Ruby, the store dog; Beamer, the cat; or take home happiness of your own with a new pet!

Bob’s is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday thru Saturday.

1035 21st St., Lewiston(208) 743-7477

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Bernard’s Towing and Central Grade Auto Parts is a third generation owned and operated valley business. We have a computerized inventory system of used parts for your vehicle and friendly, courteous crew is ready to meet your automotive needs. If we don’t stock it, our nationwide search system can locate what you are looking for.Our towing professionals can recover, transport or tow you car, pickup, truck, RV, boat, motorcycle in town – out of the mountains – or out of the water 24 hours a day. We can direct bill most insurance companies.Our parts offi ce is open 8am to 5pm Monday through Friday.

26195 Central Grade Road, Lewiston IDParts: 208-743-9505 Towing: 208-743-9504

www.centralgradeautoparts.com • email – [email protected]

L to R: Justin, Bernard, Brook, Lonnye, Don, Tym and Rod

Linda

1961 Bernard’s Repair & Towing and Central Grade Auto Parts

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orchards and wheat fields were being planted. New towns were springing up on all sides. Breeded cattle were replacing the scrub stock on the ranges. Fences and shelters were being built and cattlemen were win-ter-feeding their stock.

The Lewiston cemetery was moved from the hill just over the town, the present Pioneer Park, and taken far out into the country. A sewer system had been installed through much of the town.

Suitable water for table use was being pumped in under pressure. Electric lights were turned on in the streets and in many of the homes. Many of the business houses and a few of the homes had telephones. Some of the more progressive citizens were looking longing-ly at pictures of new horseless carriages.

The human TouchSalvation Army workers

made their first appearance in 1896. The Army brought more than a new church. With it came a human touch in relief for the indigent. This helped lay the foundation for such movements as Boy Nez Perce Co. Historical Society/Don Mathison collection

IT WAS A TIME OF GROWTH | In the last decade of the 19th century, the wide streets of Lewiston were lined with tall poplar trees and graced with wooden sidewalks and white picket fences, signs of its urban maturity. CONTINUED ON PAGE 28 >

Get your tickets at lctheatre.org or call the Box Of ce at 208-746-3401 Tuesday through Friday 3 –6pm

“2011 - 2012 Season”

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1961 Celebrating 50 years!

3 1 1 4 0 1 G C _ 1 1

1962The Valley’s Oldest

Used Car Dealership

1801 Main Street, Lewiston, ID 83501

Over 100 Cars, Pickups and SUVs in Stock!

208-743-9371

VALLEYCAR SALES

Busiest Corner in the Valley

28 S U N D A Y, J U L Y 3 , 2 0 1 1L E W I S T O N ’ S S E S Q U I C E N T E N N I A L S U N D A Y, J U L Y 3 , 2 0 1 128

Scouts and Camp Fire Girls.At least two additional churches

were organized and opened campaigns for building funds. The Lewiston First Christian Church was formed in 1897. That same year Christian Scientists began holding meetings which led to the organization of Lewiston First Church of Christ, Scientist.

The Lewiston First Baptist Church had its formal beginning in 1898.

The day of the stagecoach and pranc-ing horses was nearing an end. Service continued to the smaller communities which had not yet been reached by the iron horse, but the railway had brought an end to much of the bounc-ing discomfort on dusty roads.

The Tsceminicum Club, the first women’s study club, was organized in 1898. By 1900 it had achieved the begin-ning of the Lewiston Public Library.

Fraternal Groups FlourishedThe Lewiston Commandery of

Knights Templar, York Rite Masonic group, was just getting a start, as were the Rainbow Circle No. 1 of the Order of Chosen Friends and the Ancient Order of United Workmen, while the Scottish Rite groups and the Shrine were in the offing.

In the 1890s the Fraternal Order of Woodmen, the Independent Order of Good Templars and the Knights of Maccabees and the first Eastern Star

chapter, known as the Gem Chapter OES, also were organized.

For a time the goat-riding stunts indulged in after the formal, secret and solemn initiations were more boister-ous than ever. Electricity was added to the torture when candidates would be placed in a cage with a slight electrical charge. There they would dance for the entertainment of the member-ship. Gradually the hazing became less severe and finally it was dropped.

Showy fashions, for the women, rich ornamentation in the homes, ginger-bread on the housetops and handlebar moustaches combined to bring about the term, “The Gay Nineties.” But those who lived through the decade emphatically deny that there was any excess of joy in those anxious years.

There was a surge of interest in the arts, especially music. An Ed Smith, new in the community from Spokane Falls, enrolled several groups for lessons

in painting and photograph tinting.Drama clubs flourished. Their pro-

ductions were well attended and at least one amateur star received a bid from professional companies. Drama clubs of neighboring communities exchanged some of their best productions with apparent interest and success.

always a Brass BandLewiston traditionally had a brass

band, the first one being formed before 1865. Annual balls for the support of the band and for the pur-pose of instruments were held on Thanksgiving night starting in 1884.

Minstrel shows, apparently very popular, were also staged as benefits.

The band played for church “socia-bles,” Fourth of July celebrations, and parades. It paraded and played on Christmas night, played for dances and even for funerals. Band leaders in the ’90s were Kay Thompson, Leslie Thompson and Prof. Orion.

Lewiston had several music teach-ers. Previous to the coming of the railroad in 1898, pianos had to be carted and guided by hand down the steep north hill.

Through the years the town drew music teachers of outstanding abil-ity, including the daughters of the Rev. and Mrs. Levi Tarr, Miss Essie Phillips, Miss Eleanor Truax, Prof. Jean Holtbuer, Miss Nettie Woods, and Mrs. A.S. Stacy. In the 20th century others came to take their places. n


THESPIANS | The cast of the play “Down by the Sea” poses for a snapshot on March 1, 1890. Top row, left to right: Leslie Thompson, Mark Moans, Harry Thatcher, Bernie Rice and George Leland. Bottom row: Sonny Gibson, S.L. Thompson, Myrtle Smith, Ida Gordan, Lon Rice and Clade Parker.

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(208) 743-0222Monday & Thursday 10-5pm

ORCHARDS455 Thain Rd, Lewiston

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1963

WE’RE OPEN ALL YEAR LONG. BECAUSE TAX QUESTIONS CAN POP

UP AT ANY TIME.

In the mid 1960’s, Frank Bruneel and a partner operated a re business in the Boise area. Both partners wished to own the business solely but neither wanted to sell his share. The ma er was resolved by a literal ip of the coin leaving Frank Bruneel to sell his half and promp ng him to make a move to Lewiston with his wife Sharon and 5 children (three more children were born in Lewiston).

In Lewiston he managed Evergreen Tire (a well known Goodyear Dealer) for a period of me and, in 1966, saw an opportunity to open his own re business. Bruneel Tire Service had its humble beginnings at 1832 “G”

Street with Frank and two employees, Kermit Yochum and Al Staples, taking care of resident’s re and auto service needs. The Bruneel Tire Service quickly earned a reputa on for providing high quality service, solid warran es and value pricing.

In 1988, Frank’s oldest son, Craig, joined the business he grew up in a er gradua ng from the University of Utah. In 1994, when Frank Bruneel re red and began a new life of service as an Idaho State legislator, Craig took over as president of Bruneel Tire Service, ul mately taking

over ownership as well. In February of 2000 the business a liated with Northwest Tire Factory Group which consists of nearly 200 stores in 10 western states. The buying power and mul ple loca ons of the Tire Factory Group provide customers with service and warranty advantages as well as compe ve, money-saving re prices.

Bruneel Tire Factory has a long-term commitment to Idaho local communi es and patrons which is summed up in one slogan: “We go the extra mile.”

1966

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$1966

29S U N D A Y, J U L Y 3 , 2 0 1 1S U N D A Y, J U L Y 3 , 2 0 1 1 L E W I S T O N ’ S S E S Q U I C E N T E N N I A L 29

Genevieve Vollmer Bonner, a member of one of Lewiston’s first families, wrote a long and knowl-edgeable account of the city’s gar-dening history for the Lewiston Morning Tribune about 80 years ago. The following is an excerpt from Mrs. Bonner’s article.

By Genevieve v. Bonner

In 1861, Lewiston was a point of shipping to and from the mining country of the interior. It was then almost entirely a tent city but even then we could lay claim to a certain degree of charm, for one of our first woman travelers reported that in 1861 Lewiston by night was an exquisite sight, for “when the candles and lanterns were lighted in the tents the town looked like a marble city.”

Even our famous hotel, the Luna House, was in 1862 still a tent-house ...

You who today see Lewiston brightened by its wealth of

Lewiston TribuneA CArPeT oF TreeS | The Schleicher Vineyards cover the East Lewiston area that is now occupied by Clearwater Paper.

Out Of The Sand, A Bit Of Beauty


701 Bridge, ClarkstonMon.-Sat. 8:00am-7:00pm;

Sun. 10:00am-6:00pm758-6662

1968

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Hay's Produce and Garden Center has been serving the LC Valley and surrounding area since 1968. They specialize in fresh produce and top quality plants.

Hay's carries a large variety of specialty foods including Cougar cheese, gluten free products, bulk grains, pickled asparagus and their famous Hay's Huckleberry jam.

Let one of their friendly staff help you personalize a gift basket for that special someone. You choose the items... they'll customize it for you! Bring the family and enjoy their Pumpkin Patch every October and fresh cut Christmas trees every December.

Stop by today!

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Orchards Pharmacy and Gifts, established in 1968 by Dennis Smith, offers unique gifts for all occasions: home decor in various styles and themes, jewelry, greeting cards, McCall candles, Webkinz, and free gift wrapping.

The pharmacy offers a full-service pharmacy with friendly service, prescription delivery, and billing to most insurance companies.

Dennis Smith purchased the pharmacy in 1968 and moved it to its present location in 1973. Pharmacist Laura Heitzman began working at Orchards Pharmacy in 1992. Laura became business partners with Dennis Smith in 2000. Laura and her husband Steve Heitzman took over the business in 2005.

Orchards Pharmacy and Gifts provides friendly, personal customer service to each and every person that comes through the door. It is very important to the entire staff at Orchards Pharmacy that every customer leaves the store satis ed with the quick and friendly service they receive. Orchards Pharmacy and Gifts, "Where YOU are always our #1 priority!"

1968

523 Thain Road, Lewiston • 208-743-5515HOURS: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday.

beautiful flowers, coolly shaded by luxuriant trees, and unconcernedly watch fountains throw lavish jets of water into the air can scarcely real-ize what excruciating agony was put into the making of that completed picture.

An arid waste of land above two mag-nificent streams greeted the eye of the early settler, not a brook or a creek cut through the sandy waste, not a sign of any vegetation other than wild grass and sagebrush, with sand, sand, sand every-where, filling every nook and cranny.

What a vision was that to confront the women who had followed their menfolk into this new land of prom-ise. Today the sight of that hot sand and the heat of shriveling sun would bake our gardening impulses into a fine alkali of despair.

But not so those indomitable pio-neer women from the South and the West. They had a mission to fulfill and the courage with which to fulfill it. They were the makers and the keep-ers of homes, the guardians of beauty and culture, and they would not be defeated by lowering their standards.

What if water did have to be hauled from the Clearwater and a barrel outside the door the only reservoir? Couldn’t they spare a few drops of the precious liquid to water the cherished cuttings they had brought with them.

If I were asked to name the most prolific crop in Lewiston in the 1860s, I would unhesitatingly say “the blue cove oyster and tomato cans.”

Every home proudly displayed from one to a dozen of these in the front window, boasting a few straggly shoots of Wandering Jew and geranium.

“Hope springs eternal,” they said, but I venture to say that the Lewiston man was something of a joker who first thought of placing a rain barrel outside the front door. But there it stood, one every stoop, wistfully waiting to be filled; while the potential gardener hope-fully scanned the skies for one tiny cloud that might portend a cooling drink to the thirsting plants. We have all learned how vain is the hope in August.

The front lawns of these homes were of wild grass and one day one of these landscape artists, when tenderly caring for her plants, saw a beautiful cat coming toward her. She loved ani-mals and longed for a pet. Just at that moment her husband came out of the house and the cat disappeared, never to return. It was a lynx.

This home later became known as the Ankeny home and was one of the best known in the country. A silver poplar tree grew there in the first days of Lewiston.

Portulacas In the sandMrs. Levi Ankeny, who had former-

ly lived in Portland, Ore., attempting to have flowers in her front dooryard, planted portulacas in the sand, but

nothing happened. A year later, with water, the seeds sprang into flower and the whole place was ablaze, to the joy and delight of all.

One day a well was dug and a new epoch in gardening began. Those for-tunate ones who had wells upon their places could indulge their love for flowers just as ardently as their arms were strong enough to pump the water to sprinkle the plants, or just as long as the faithful Chinese immigrant could be induced to work.

In a short time no man who had a home dared face his wife if he didn’t at least attempt to dig a well.

Thus the flower season began in Lewiston. Water cans were at a pre-mium. Dingee, Conard & Co., Peter Henderson and Mahl catalogues were pored over for the latest offerings in portulaca, verbena and petunia.

The front dooryard bloomed and the faithful followers of the creed “beauty” now had multi-colored cans filled with the finest varieties of abu-tilon, amaryllis, fuschias, begonia, and calla lilies.

In the middle of the ’60s it is said that a freighter brought with him from Walla Walla a switch from a poplar tree. He stuck it in the sand in front of the store before which he was unloading.

The rain fell, the miracle happened. The switch took root.

More switches were brought and planted. Again the women tenderly nursed them. Water was brought in cans and fences were built about the frail twigs to protect them from the wandering village cows. The village merchants also cooperated and after


> CONTINUED frOm PAGE 29 As Lewiston grew, so did the extent of flower gardens around the residential areas and commericial gardens on the flats of East Lewis-ton and other areas.

Nez Perce Co. Historical Society

the ditch was dug trap doors were made so that buckets could be let down to draw water for the thirsty, struggling poplars.

The trees returned thanks by throw-ing out a gracious shade from the sweltering sun and by their dignity and beauty lifted our village from the ranks of mediocrity into those of unusual dignity.

For two miles the main street of Lewiston was a vaulted arch of green formed by these superb trees; and Lewiston became known, up and down the coast, as the “city of poplars.”

‘Progress’ WInsImagine the consternation of the

men and women who had slaved and sacrificed for this blessed shade to hear, years later, that the city coun-cil had ordered these trees to be cut down. They were classed as “a menace to life and limb and an obstruction in the march of progress.”

Do you doubt that these city fathers were in disfavor for years? For at that moment Lewiston’s claim to distinc-tion faded into oblivion.

In the earliest days of Lewiston there came a man and his wife who had energy unsurpassed, who took up


1966


1922

Edward D. Jones Co.St. Louis

Celebrating Lewiston’s150th Anniversary

Edward Jones Founded 1922

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Financial Advisor 740 5th Street

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Larry KopczynskiFinancial Advisor

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a homestead about two miles out of town. Their names were Mr. and Mrs. Wesley Mulkey — and we later knew the place as the J.N. Lindsay place.

Now this sounds incredible, but they planted an orchard of apples almost entirely from seed. Think of it. An orchard grew in tree and fruit until the apples were sought after through-out this country.

This orchard, lying on the banks of the Clearwater River and irrigated by what is now called Lindsay Creek, contained the finest varieties of apples: Yellow Newtowns, Pearmains, golden russets, winesaps, etc. Mr. Mulkey also planted some pear seeds and one tree was later developed as the Idaho pear.

The crops of this orchard were first sent by pack train to Montana and sold for 5 cents a pound. This was a lucrative business but the crickets came in hordes and for four years dur-ing the early ’70s the orchardist fought them every spring for six weeks. It was necessary to dig great trenches all about the orchard, covering the upper edges with tin, so the insects would be exterminated for that year.

By the end of the fourth year Mr. Mulkey became discouraged and sold his place for $4,000 to Mr. Lindsay. The place paid for itself in one year and, strange to relate, was never again infested by any plague except a grass-hopper invasion one year.

Mr. Mulkey continued his activities in town and put it in an orchard which was later the J.W. Poe place, lying at the foot of the hill below Vollmer Bowl. Again his apple orchard became famous and his lilies and watermel-ons were the mecca of all Lewiston youngsters.

This is a mooted question, but the oldest settlers say Mr. Mulkey put in the first irrigation ditch. It was built primarily for his mill but it served a double purpose. It was later acquired and enlarged by John Brearly.

This was the beginning of the real cultivation of land on east Main Street. The properties there were deep, extending from Main Street back to the hill. The ditch ran at the back of these lots and each property owner had a waterwheel which raised the water into troughs from which the gardens and lawns could be irrigated.

Profusion of BerriesThe line of the ditch was marked by

berry bushes — wonderful ones of all varieties grew here in rank profusion, while fine vegetables filled the space between the ditch and the house.

Near and around the house the space was reserved for the flowers. There all the old-fashioned favorites grew in glorious confusion — peo-nies, Canterbury bells, roses, flags, all the old perennials, with some of the hardy annuals; white roses, climbing roses, moss roses, the Eloise de Dijon

and the Empress of Clives and coral honeysuckles covered the houses and chicken-yard fences.

The lawn extended only a short distance in front of the house. The rest of the yard was generally of wild grass under the lovely fruit trees and extended down to the front fence along Main Street.

By this time flowering shrubs began to brighten the picture and to fill the air with perfume. No sight could have been more refreshing to the jaded travelers than our lovely Main Street at this time.

Lofty poplar trees lined both sides of the street; back of the trim pocket fences of each of those cozy homes one glimpsed the barrel-staved ham-mock stretched invitingly under the widespread apple tree, while nearby the well with its bucket and commu-nity dipper offered hospitable refresh-ment.

By this time the floral decoration had taken on quite a magnificence.

Tin Cans rePlaCedFlower pots of clay and china had

replaced the memorable tin can, and plants stood upon iron stands or on pieces of furniture built for that spe-cial purpose, a kind of whatnot, while hanging baskets of ferns hung in the window and every home had canar-ies that warbled joyously all day long. The bay window became a miniature hot house and harbored the most exotic of plants.

A member of one of our oldest families had a century plant in a tub on rollers. She tenderly rolled it in and out of the sun, nursing it like a baby for 15 years, and then one night it inconsiderately froze to death.

Nez Perce County Historical Society/Fair Thompson photo/FlorenIn this photo taken in 1904, the East Lewiston area is blanketed by large orchards and pasture land.

‘The loveliesT Thing’Oleanders then came into fame.

Rubber plants and lemon and orange trees grew to great size. I remember being taken to see a night-blooming cereus, the loveliest thing that had ever

happened in Lewiston, and all of the schoolchildren were allowed to stay up that night long enough to see the wonder of the town.

How grieved we were when no more marvels of nature broke our regular routine of life! n


1973 Wendt Pottery

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In five local option elections, the so-called wets and the so-called drys each won two, as I recall, and when the fifth election occurred the drys were again victors.

The county commissioners declined to issue licenses in 1916 and this spelled the doom of legalized saloons here before the advent of statewide and national prohibition.

Such a battle!Families were divided. The propo-

nents for and against engaged in heated arguments. Fights often resulted. Both sides were organized and determined.

The first ward — including the district in Lewiston west of Fifth Street — was the battleground. Workers favoring legal-

ized saloons controlled the ward, but the “antis” always staged a lively scrap.

Fistic encounters were not unusual.

challengeS commonChallenging of votes was common-

place, spurring the prohibitionists to greater activity. This resulted in No. 1 being dubbed “The Bloody First.” The wets held their own and, if I properly recall, always claimed the Bloody First.

The biggest thorn in the side of the wet cause was Lafe Williams. Lafe then was well along in years. He hated liquor and he had many ardent supporters.

I always spent considerable time on election days in the Bloody First. I knew one or more stories would be produced before voting was over. And

Drink Vs. thirst: ‘the bloody First’

By Thomas CampBell

Starting in 1908 and through 1916, voters of Lewiston and other towns in Nez Perce County went to the polls almost biennially to ballot on whether the dis-tribution and sale of intoxicating liquor should be

legalized or outlawed.

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1975

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I was never disappointed.On one election day the drys staged

a parade. Hundreds of children were in line, girls wearing white dresses and boys white waists and trousers. A band headed the march. The wets, of course, learned in advance the parade would take place in early afternoon.

Several wet workers were dispatched to assemble boxes, barrels, cordwood and other inflammable material, and pile it near the top of Fifth Street Grade.

The parade started, the band tooting.About the time the march-

ers reached Third Street, someone touched a match to the pile and a few minutes later a fire alarm was turned in. The parade by this time had almost reached Fifth Street. The fire truck tore up Fifth Street Grade. Smoke was billowing from the blaze. The parad-ers saw the fire and the children broke ranks and rushed up the grade. The parade was over.

In 1916, when the drys won, Dr. Susan Bruce, later the city health officer and opposed to prohibition, appeared on Main Street carrying an umbrella.

Its covering had been removed, leav-ing only the handle and ribs. She was besieged with inquiries.

“Why,” explained Dr. Bruce, “it’s going to be dry for two years. So why any protection against moisture?”

So bitter was the feeling in each election that several violent squabbles between women broke out downtown.

Lewiston Tribune/Greenburg ColleOLD-TIME HOSPITALITY | Bartender Al Anderson and customer Bill Ander-son pose in Hank Trimble’s Saloon at Lewiston, circa 1880s.

‘Mother takes In WashIng’In another parade sponsored by the

prohibitionists, children were provided large printed signs attached to staffs. The sentiments expressed irked many wets. For example: “My father is a drunkard,” and on the reverse side, “My mother takes in washing;” “Beware of the black bottle;” “Where is my wan-dering boy tonight?” and so on.

As the parade passed the old White Front saloon someone suggested to the boy carrying the placard reading “My father is a drunkard” and “My mother takes in washing” that he carry it into the saloon. He did. In less time than it takes to tell, the banner flew through the door and the boy followed.

When Lewiston went legally dry the Trader & Todd Saloon opposite the Masonic Temple on Main Street held a

license which did not expire until two weeks after expiration of all the other licenses.

This was a bonanza for the owners. They had visioned a land-office busi-ness and stocked up accordingly.

I never witnessed such scenes.From the time the saloon opened

until it closed, about midnight, the room was packed. Bartenders had been increased from one to eight. The bar, 25 feet long, was extended to the rear of the building.

If you wanted a drink you had to fight for it. Bottled goods went like hot-cakes in preparation for the impending drought. Police were called to clear the sidewalk and to quell disturbances.

others had troublesWhile all this was going on in

Lewiston, the county outside was hav-ing its prohibition troubles. Lapwai and Spalding were the scenes of great-est dispute. It was the contention of the wets that Indians did not hold the right of suffrage. But the prosecuting attorney ruled Indians over the age of 21 were citizens of the United States and if properly registered could vote.

They voted in large numbers and helped carry the election for the drys in 1914.

One may hear the “hot” elections for national, state, county and munici-pal offices nowadays. But none can compare with those wet-dry elections when The Bloody First was the battle-ground. n

604 12th Street North at the Port of Lewiston 208-743-2181 • 1-888-455-3598 • www.pacific-steel.com

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acific’s road to becoming a steel and recycling giant began as a one-man operation in Spokane, Wash. Joe Thiebes immigrated from Germany in the 1880s and followed his family’s business

tradition of trading hides and furs. Soon, Thiebes sent his son, also named Joe, to the wilds of Montana. And in the early 1920s, the younger Thiebes officially founded Pacific Hide & Fur Depot in Great Falls.

During World War I, the company expanded beyond furs and hides into collecting ferrous and nonferrous scrap. And this scrap metals venture eventually led the firm to branch out in the 1950s into sales of new steel products. The Thiebes family business continued into the third

generation, with another son - again named Joe - joining forces with his father as the company steadily opened additional locations under the Pacific Hide & Fur name.

The Thiebes family owned the company and the senior Joe Thiebes continued to serve as chairman of the board until his death in 1988, though he wasn’t involved in Pacific’s day-to-day management. The end of daily family

involvement in the business came with the death of the younger Joe Thiebes in 1982. However, Pacific is dedicated to carrying on the Thiebes family tradition of “shooting straight”.

Today, Pacific is an employee-owned corporation with 42 branch offices in Washington, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Wyoming, South Dakota, North Dakota, Colorado, and Montana.

The Lewiston operation was established in 1975 and employs 21 people. The retail business sells all types of steel, livestock handling equipment, culvert, hardware and much, much more. They are a full scale recycling division as well, accepting commercial, industrial and residential material.

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~The Pacific Team~

Introducing our team: Sam Atchely, Wayne Bergman, Randal Brensdal, Shane Butts, Denise Carson, Ben Couch, Greg Deimler, Slim DeWitt, Cory Fletcher, Dave Geiger, Bill Hart, Dave Jackson, John Kolb, Jason Ludin, Mike Pauley, Jake Sessions, Cody Sessions, Russ Taylor, Dave Vincent, Nick Weber, & Colton Wynn.


The trolley line was begun in an era of expansion and with the promise of prosperity. Every town of any consequence had one or was striving to get one, and Lewiston and Clarkston were fast becoming a community of consequence.

The officials of the new trolley line worried a great deal about get-ting cars and other supplies on time. They did not lose a wink of sleep over a possible lack of patronage.

The Lewiston-Clarkston Transit Co., which had organized itself to give trolley service to the valley, had been invited to come here by Robert A. Foster, president of the Lewiston-Clarkston Improvement Co., “the company” that was pro-moting Clarkston. It had been endorsed by both Lewiston and Clarkston businessmen.

As a special inducement, the new street railway managers had been offered the franchise of a previous company, the Lewiston Terminal

Co. That firm had offered $40,000 in stock for the sale and for a time had operated a noisy gasoline motor car up Main Street before making a financial exit in 1913.

Tracks already laidLewiston business leaders had

the foresight to install streetcar tracks when Main Street was paved in 1909. That track and the fran-chise were worth trying for.

“With experienced and qualified street railway men at the helm, the new Lewiston-Clarkston Transit Co. was confident. But the com-pany was hard pressed for time. If it expected to capitalize on the failure of the Lewiston Terminal Co., cars would have to be running by July 1, 1915. It was a race to get the full line in by the deadline. To get cars to run on the line in time was even more difficult.

“The streetcar industry was enjoying its greatest boom that

Nez Perce County Historical Society/Bonnie & Irv Faling collecPUBLIC TRANSPORTATION | An electric streetcar travels along the west end of Main Street, near the Lewis-Clark Hotel, circa 1915.

They Had To Push But Nobody caredThey had to push it over the bridge the first time

out, but nobody cared. On the third of May, 1915, Lewiston and Clarkston had a streetcar to ride and just about everybody was riding it.

Congratulations Lewiston, we are proud to be a part of the the Quad City Community

In April of 1976, Bill and Carol Chipman purchased Brown & Holter Chev-Olds Co. (Pullman Location) from brothers Martin (Crick) Brown and Bob Brown. The dealership was located on the corner of Main and Grand Avenue, now the site of Square of Antique Mall.

Bill Chipman changed the name of the dealership to Chipman & Brown Chev-Olds Co. and in 1986, built the new facility at SE 250 Bishop Blvd. The same year, he took on a partner, Tom Taylor, and renamed the dealership Chipman & Taylow Chev-Olds. Co.

Bill and Tom had worked through the ranks of the automobile industry together. Bill graduated in accounting from University of Idaho in 1968 and worked as a Business Manager. Tom began his automotive career in the technical eld, rather than in sales. He worked several years as a heavy equipment mechanic, and later as a technician.

Bill and Tom’s working relationship was successful because they both had an in depth understanding of their respective strengths. Bill enjoyed the challenge of working with people, while Tom had an excellent technical knowledge of the operation of a vehicle. Their unique blend of expertise caused the dealership to prosper.

Bill Chipman died January 1996 of an unfortunate accident. Carol Chipman sold all but 10% of her holdings to Tom Taylor in October 1997. Both Tom and Carol are deter-mined to continue the traditions and policies put in place years ago which have guided the success of this dealership.

1976

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The business started in 1976 by Chuck Shoemaker under the name Chuck’s Radiator. Chuck added muf er and exhaust repair a couple years later changing the name to Chuck’s Radiator and Muf er. It remained Chuck’s until 1986 when Rogers Motors purchased the business. It ran under the Rogers Motors ag until 1996 when it was purchased by Jim Peterson. It is now Peterson Radiator, Muf er & Transmission. Today, Jim is proud to be celebrating his 16th year in business. He offers transmission, differential and radiator repair, brakes, tune-ups, cooling system repair and diagnostics, anything that will keep your vehicle running smoothly! Jim’s employees have more than 100 years of combined automotive experience. Congratulations Lewiston! We are proud to be a part of this community. “Shop the rest, come to the best.”

Mon. — Fri. 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.1014 Bryden Ave. Lewiston • (208) 743-5887 31

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year ... It was just impossible to secure cars,” the late Henry C. Hartung, superintendent of the trolley com-pany, once recalled.

“We tried to get them from the Pullman Company and all the large and small manufacturers in the East, but orders were booked for months ahead. Finally we induced Spokane United Railways to sell us three of its old cars. They cost us $300 each.

“The cars were already old and almost worn out, and too heavy and large for our needs, but they served the purposes until we were able to secure new ones in April 1916. Later these cars were replaced by one-man steel cars operated by a combination conductor-motorman.”

A second reason why the trolley company was in a hurry: It wanted to be part of a big celebration planned by Lewiston-Clarkston for May 3, hon-oring the opening of the Celilo Canal and “an open river to the sea.”

By starting with a shorter line than planned, from Sixth and Sycamore in Clarkston to 13th and Main streets in Lewiston, and taking the heavy old cars, the company made its May 3 aim. Of the estimated 25,000 out to attend the celebration that day, 4,780 rode on the streetcars.

Superintendent Hartung himself drove the first carload.

Stalled on BridgeThe car stalled in trying to climb

the incline over the high arched canti-lever bridge. The wheel flanges lacked traction on the new rails.

Finally it was necessary for John Dean, a company employee, to shovel

sand on the rails from a wheelbarrow, throwing sand in front of the car until it reached the top of the arch.

The street trolley made a good start. Hundreds rode the cars to and

from their work morning and eve-ning. Within a year the company had extended its line from 13th and

TROLLEY ROLLING | This shot of Main Street looking east shows the various means of transportation, circa 1910.


1927 Idaho St., Lewiston, ID (208) 746-8547

1981

This past spring Mark and Diana Banks purchased the business and has been remodeling the building and offi ce. Watch for other changes in the hearing aid industry coming soon.

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We have been proudly serving the LC Valley for over 30 years.

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Highland, Clarkston, to 21st Street in East Lewiston. Business increased until 1920.

There was even talk, for a time, of extending the line to Asotin and building a network of tracks on Normal Hill.

In its best year the company claimed a gross return of $30,000 and employed as many as 14 men.

Cars ran every 20 minutes, begin-ning at 6:10 a.m. and making the last trip at 11:40 p.m. Three cars were regularly used and a fourth was kept in reserve. A fifth car eventually was purchased.

There were turnout switches for passing at Sixth and Poplar at Clarkston and in front of the Temple Theatre at Lewiston. It required one hour to make the entire run of four miles and 400 feet.

In the years when automobiles were few, unreliable and relatively more expensive than today, many went joy riding on the trolley, just for the outing, in the evenings and on Sundays.

STUCK TO SCHEDULES“The streetcars served well and

rarely was service interrupted,” according to the late Henry True, first employee of the transit com-

As the years passed and the streets filled with automobiles, the trolley line served fewer and fewer

customers. It was already on the skids in 1925, when a motor bus began making runs on Normal Hill.

> CONTINUED FROM PAGE 37 pany and long-time conductor.“Once, however, during the winter

of 1918, four feet of snow fell in the valley. One of the cars became stalled in a drift at the approach to the bridge on the Lewiston side. There it remained five days before company employees were able to free it.

“It was always necessary after a snow to place salt on the tracks to get traction. This was done by a man or boy standing on the track in front of the car. Sometimes, following a

severe storm, it was necessary to use two or three tons.”

A bag of sand was standard equip-ment on all cars, E.J. Hill, one of the two remaining conductors of the line, said recently. The sand was used to assure traction on frosty mornings and when the rails were wet.

An occasion when he carried the largest load on record was recalled by Hill. It was a circus day at Lewiston. The show was over and everyone was eager to get back home to Clarkston,

he said.Into a car with 50 seats he man-

aged to pack 108 men and women.As the car crawled up the incline in

front of the car barns at the Lewiston approach to the present interstate bridge, Hartung ran out and in his excitement slipped into the German accent he had long outgrown.

“My God, Eddie, how many you got on?” he called from the front fender. On getting the answer, he said, “For goodness sake, take it

easy.”“Maybe you think I haven’t been

taking it easy!” Hill responded.Hill recalled several near misses

but no tragedies in his nine years as conductor. Once he kept calm when a youngster on a bicycle fell directly in front of the car he was operating.

A passenger on the front seat exclaimed, “How did you stop?”

After it was all over, Hill said, he trembled with fear for hours.

As the years passed and the streets

filled with automobiles, the trolley line served fewer and fewer custom-ers. It was already on the skids in 1925, when a motor bus began mak-ing runs on Normal Hill.

Finally the competition became too severe, and the Lewiston-Clarkston Transit Co. threw in the towel. The last trolley pulled into the barns on Aug. 3, 1929. A motor bus immediately took its place.

CARS PUT TO USESome of the cars were purchased

years later by an enterprising busi-nessman and served as cabins in a Clarkston trailer court.

The tracks were removed over a period of years as sections of the street were resurfaced, and the car barn was dismantled when the approach to the new Interstate Bridge was built in 1939.

Superintendent Hartung became an orchardist and was elected to the Washington State Legislature. Hill operated a bus for several years and then joined the sales force of a large Lewiston mercantile company.

Some other employees of the tran-sit company were V.A. Bilderback, who was in charge of the mechani-cal department, and S.L. Fowler, Milo Gipson, William Doran, J.A. Morrow, and Ed Parks.

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He had the parts all over the kitchen,” a Lewiston

woman once said of an auto owner she knew in the early days. “He had more fun with his automobile than anyone I have ever known.”

In those days, almost any-body’s car was more often all over the kitchen than out on the road. Even so, motoring was fun. It was an adventure during which anything could happen, on roads which were not only poor but unmarked, in snorting, wheezing, explod-ing contraptions that might get you there and might not.

“Get Out and Get Under” was the name of a song popu-lar around 1910.

So temperamental and unpredictable were the auto-mobiles of that day that a pru-dent man used his for pleasure only; to keep an appointment, he drove his horse.

The first car owners had to be their own mechanics; there were no garages to come to the rescue.

Among the early Lewiston auto owners was Charlie Dowd,

of a wealthy farm family in the Tammany area. Matt Dowd, his brother, operated what may have been the first garage.

Physicians were slow to turn down the faithful old dobbin

for a chance at making bet-ter speed under motor power. Those who did usually hired a chauffeur. Anyone applying for such a position knew he must be an expert mechanic

for he would be required to fix his own auto in an emergency.

High power was not the word for the early two-cylin-der automobiles.

By 1905 a few of them, with flickering lights and wobbly wheels, were running about on Normal Hill. Several drivers also tried their luck on the flat downtown, whenever the mud was not too deep.

Few ventured on the steep grades. Climbs to Normal Hill were steeper then than now, for grades were built so the horse and buggy could get on top in a hurry. The grades have since been flattened by

GOIN’ BUGGY | The Woods family is ready for what looks like a Sunday drive around 1910. John Woods is driving, with sons Earl J., left, and Leonard, middle, riding in back. Note the family dog wearing goggles.

‘Get Out & Get Under Again’


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extending the inclines.Among the early automobiles here

was a White Steamer, owned by W. F. Kettenbach around 1904. Kettenbach’s experiences did not promote a quick acceptance of automobiles in general.

Disaster in the CountryWhile on an outing in the country

Kettenbach stopped to refill his gaso-line tank, with the help of an assistant. The highly inflammable quality of the gasoline was not realized by the assistant, and soon the White Steamer and owner were surrounded by fire.

Kettenbach had the pres-ence of mind to roll down the hill in the sand and extinguish the fire. But the adventure destroyed his original delight in the car.

This auto operated on steam, generated by heat from a gasoline fire. Car mechanics say the scheme had its advantages, but it kept the owner in search of both water and gasoline.

Lights were operated by a carbide generator, usually on the running board. Water dripping on the carbide would generate a gas which would be carried in tubes to the headlights.

The operator would raise each head-

light lid separately and strike a match, then close the lid quickly to keep the wind from blowing out the flame.

The first horns — more correctly warning sounds — were produced by pulling a cord over a hole in the spark plug. The result was a shrill whistle which would startle every horse for blocks around.

Another warning device was the coax-le horn, which produced a loud squawk. More common was the bulb horn,

which made a blat like a sick calf.

tires Were PoorTires were small and

the rubber thin and of poor quality.

A high air pressure of 60 to 70 pounds was used, which also helped build the reputation of insecuri-ty. Tires were forever going flat, sometimes on the most embarrassing occasions.

Motoring was a costume event. Both the men and women wore long linen and linen-colored dusters which covered them from head to foot. The women

also wore giant veils which covered hats, heads and all and tied down securely. The men wore gauntlet gloves.

They were all protections against the racing open air, as well as the dust. The winds were often like a hurricane,


Motoring was a costume

event. Both the men and women wore long linen

and linen-colored dusters

which covered them from head

to foot.

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1992

Elm View Chiropractic ClinicOwned by Terri J. Drury, DC

Celebrating 19 years in practice in Clarkston! Dr. Drury offers a family environment with chiropractic care for all ages. She utilizes several adjusting techniques, some are manual hand adjustments and others use adjusting instruments. She also offers cold laser therapy which helps with the healing process. This technology is providing exciting results. Dr. Drury is certifi ed in the Webster Technique which is safe and specifi c for pregnancy care. And to keep your growing family healthy, her pediatric certifi cation helps with the needs of your children from birth on.

Most insurance is accepted including Medicare, Workers Compensation and Auto Injury. Laurie McMasters, our offi ce manager, can assist you with your fi nancial questions. Don't hesitate to call with your questions or to schedule an appointment. We are accepting new patients.

Monday and Wednesday 8:30-5:30pm; Thursday 9:30-6:30pm; Friday 8-12 noon. Clarkston offi ce is closed on Tuesdays.

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even when the cars were not.By 1909, automobiles were

becoming more common among the Lewiston profes-sional and business men. The Commercial Club sponsored a two-day excursion into the country, that September.

John P. Vollmer and Curtis Thatcher owned electric cars in the second decade of the century. The Vollmer electric, a Baker model, was known as a ladies’ car partly because of the elegant upholstery, a cone-shaped case for flowers and its quiet operation.

The seats were arranged facing each other in conversa-tional style. Steering was by a tiller. Power was furnished by two banks of storage batteries, one each at the rear and front of the car.

Frank Thompson owned one of the early automobiles about 1910, a Franklin which operated with side gears. It was considered dependable enough to make the trip to Lake Waha for Sunday outings.

About the same time, Dr. Charles Phillips had invest-ed in a Hudson. His young partner, Dr. E.L. White, who had arrived from Spokane in 1910, rode or drove a quarter horse. When the horse died,

Dr. White took up his cour-age and his $700 and invested in an Overland with a plan-etary transmission. It shifted gears by friction. The theory may have been all right, but the transmission was always wearing out, Dr. White said. He had little but trouble with that first automobile.

More expensive thenThough the cost of those

automobiles may sound low nowadays, they were propor-tionately more expensive than today’s models.

Motoring was by no means comfortable for many years.

Before 1918, when the self-starter became standard equipment, drivers frequently wore arm bandages. They had forgotten to make sure the car was not in gear when they turned the starter. The kick-back was terrific.

Not until after the World War I did automobile owner-ship become really common-place in the Lewiston area. Even then all roads off the main thoroughfares were poor and practically unmarked. A cautious man allowed as much as eight hours to make a trip to Spokane. n

had arrived, and Lewiston was teeming with excitement.

President Taft was due at 2 p.m. at the railroad depot in his private car, “The Ideal.” Accompanying him were Secret Service men and various dignitaries.

The president had intended to extend his tour only as far as Kansas, but as his tour progressed his trip had been expanded.

“The Ideal” was en route to Lewiston now from Walla Walla. Soon the only president actually in office to visit Lewiston before or since would arrive in person. The fever of expectancy quickened as the hours passed by. A waiting caravan of 15 convertible cars had assembled at the depot to escort the president along a parade en route to Pioneer Park, where he would deliver a short address.

Among the officials was Mayor L.F. Perkins, who would ride with President Taft to the

park. Also there was the largest police con-tingent ever assembled at Lewiston. Heading the force was Seth Jones, a stockman specially deputized for the event. Big Seth weighed 365 pounds. Others included W.J. Green, 290 pounds, and John Gertje, 290 pounds.

The weather was perfect, even a little hot. All week long people had been pour-ing into Lewiston to see the president. They came from Wallowa, Pomeroy, Uniontown, Genesee. State Sen. Mitchell of Nezperce alone made the journey to Lewiston. The Clearwater crowd was 400.

All of Clarkston had crossed the interstate bridge to welcome the chief executive.

indians on handEarlier in the week a band of 200 Nez

Lewiston’s one and only presidentThere was never a day quite like the day that President William

Howard Taft visited Lewiston. It was October 7, 1911.Elaborate preparations to greet the 27th chief executive of the

United States had been under way for weeks. And now the day


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Perce Indians, including many papooses and squaws, had come off the reserva-tion and had pitched a camp at the Lewiston-Clarkston Fairgrounds to await the arrival of “The Great White Chief.” An urgent call was issued for emergency housing to provide for the travelers. A committee sent special pleas to 800 to 900 private homes to open their doors.

Finally, the day had come. Between 15,000 and 18,000 people awaited the president.

Then, on schedule, the first wisps of smoke could be seen in the distance. The presi-dent would arrive in minutes. The long presidential train chugged slowly to a halt and all eyes were on “The Ideal.”

“Hello, Bill,” the first shouts rang out. The president waved at the swollen crowd, obvi-ously delighted by the throng.

After a short greeting cer-emony the president was hur-riedly escorted to the lead car. No time must be wasted, as Taft had barely an hour to spend at Lewiston.

The caravan swung west on Main Street, up the Snake

River Grade, then turned east on Third Avenue, to enter the park from the west side near Sixth Street. It continued along the back of the street toward the library, where it turned in before unloading.

Along the way thousands yelled their greetings to the president. Both sides of Main Street were jammed to capac-ity. The car sped rapidly through the crowd to the park and as it did the spectators broke for the park where the president would speak.

Children SingAs his car proceeded a col-

umn of school children sang “America the Beautiful.” The band played “Hail Columbia.”

Along the way the presi-dent shed his overcoat. He remarked to mayor Perkins

that he could understand such hot weather at this season of the year in a country so far north. He called it the “remarkable climate of the Lewiston Valley.”

As he entered the park he was saluted by a Boy Scout troop and “the honored blue

of the old army fast passing away.”

In the crowd were James Stuart of Kamiah, half breed Nez Perce who signed the first agreement to open the Nez Perce reservation; Chief Peo Peo Tholekt and Silas Whitman, his interpreter;

plus senators, men from fac-tory, business and farm.

A young girl, Miss Neill Barnett, presented the presi-dent with a bouquet with the remark, “And, Mr. President, they were grown outdoors.” Taft responded with a delight-ed smile.


Nez Perce County Historical SocietyTAFT DRAWS A cRoWD | President William Howard Taft speaks from the original bandshell in Lewiston’s Pioneer Park on Oct. 7, 1911. The 27th president traveled by train to make the only visit to Lewiston by a U.S. president.

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In the crowd were 1,000 children. The president said, “I’m glad to see the school children here. I hope they got a half holiday. No, they didn’t, today is Saturday.” The crowd roared with laughter at the great man’s sense of humor.

A GreAt SucceSSHe was a great success

with the women, who had waited hours to see and hear him, when he referred to them as “handsome.”

A special section for the press had been roped off in front of the president’s stand and the reporters were busily at work.

After a brief address the president’s entourage pre-pared to retrace the route back to the train station. The crowd scrambled back down the hill to see Taft pass through town again and to follow him into the depot.

Police reports reveal that not a single incident marred the day. Main Street had been roped off to traffic from 1 to 3 p.m.

The crowd, festive now, eagerly anticipated an eve-ning of street dancing and theater going. Thousands

danced until early in the morning on D Street between Fourth and Fifth. At the Temple Theater, “Jim the Penman” was playing with Florence Robert and Theodore Roberts in the starring roles.

At the station the presi-dent was surprised to find baskets of grapes, straw-berries, peaches and apples waiting for him, all gath-ered from the orchard near-by. The grapes came from the vineyards of Robert Schleicher, the strawberries from Charles Brown of East Lewiston, the peaches from the Wawawai ranch of White Bros. & Crum, the Jonathon apples from the Lewiston-Clarkston Improvement Co.

‘Goodbye, bill’Taft said his good-byes in

a clear, strong voice which all could hear. Then he walked back into “The Ideal.”

“Goodbye, Bill,” shouted the crowd.

The president waved once more. The train gave a sud-den lurch, then slowly pulled away.

The crowd watched it until it could be seen no more. n

Springfield rifles.And they were going off to

war.On Feb. 15, 1898, the U.S.

battleship Maine, had been resting quietly in Havana har-bor when a bomb exploded and sank the vessel.

“Remember the Maine,” the nation declared. Congress declared war against Spain on April 21. The Spanish-American War, which President McKinley had tried to avoid, had begun by popu-lar demand.

The Lewiston men, mem-bers of company B, first regi-ment, Idaho volunteer infan-try, had gathered for final review and inspection by their

neighbors, relatives and sweet-hearts before trudging up the loading plank of the Almota for a voyage down to Pasco. From there they traveled by train to Boise to be organized for service in the insurrection in the Philippine Islands.

Some of these gallant young men, smiling and waving as they boarded the historic Almota, wouldn’t be back.

The casualties: Corp. Frank R. Caldwell and Pvts. James H. Fraser and George W. Hall, killed in action. Sgts. Ernest Scot and William M. Keller and Pvts. Richard B. Jones, Frank McCall and John W. Luitjens, wounded on the field.

Joined by compAny cThe volunteers from

Lewiston were joined by com-pany C from Grangeville.

After the Lewiston company was mustered into federal ser-vice at Camp Stevenson at Boise, on May 12 1898, it left by train for San Francisco and proceeded into Camp Merritt.

On June 27 the compa-ny shipped out on the S.S. Morgan City for Honolulu harbor and on July 31 it reached the Philippines.

The Spanish-American War had been brought about by reaction in the U.S. toward concentration camps set up in Cuba by the government of Spain to bring Cuban insurgents into line. Across the Pacific a similar insurrec-tion against Spain had been going on in the Philippines for two years.

Just Watch those idahos; ‘they’re Fighting devils’

It was May 5, 1889, and the cream of Lewiston’s sons were boarding the steam-boat Almota.

They were dressed in blue woolen uni-forms and equipped with .45 caliber


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Two battalions of Idaho soldiers made up the 1st Idaho Infantry, U.S. Volunteers. The second of these was commanded by Maj. Edward McConville of Lewiston.

The campaigns in the Philippines were wet and dismal, and rations were poor.

There was a standing joke among the Idaho men that they sometimes found old friends when the opened their “canned horse,” claiming to recognize Idaho brands on the meat.

Fighting BeginsOn Aug. 9 the Idahoans

began their march toward Manila and their first actual fighting. The battle was won and for the next few months the regiments stood guard in the city.

Then, on Feb. 5, during the battle of Santa Ana, a small town about three miles east of Manila, the Idaho soldiers earned a reputation for all time as one of the fightingest units in the war.


Nez Perce County Historical SocietyHEADED FOR FOREIGN BATTLEFIELDS | In 1898, National Guardsmen from Lewiston shipped out to the Spanish-American War aboard the steamboat Almota, leaving on May 5, less than three months after the battleship USS Maine was blown up in Cuba. By late July they were in the Phillipines after a three-month journey by boat, trains and ships.

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As the battle raged the Idahos, under fire from sharpshooters, advanced to Paco. During the night units from Washington and California had moved forward to occupy exposed positions in rice fields. In order to reach them the Idahos had to advance under a heavy cross-fire and wade across a stream 20 feet wide.

According to historian C.F. Baker, the following action took plate:

‘CAN’T STOP THEM’“When they arrived on

the firing line they were received with cheers by their comrades. They were not content to remain there long, firing at the enemy 600 yards away. The men could not be restrained but rushed forward toward the trenches. Gen. Charles King, the brigade com-mander, exclaimed: “There go the Idaho savages, and all hell can’t stop them.’

“When within 200 yards of the trenches they gave a yell and went over the top, the enemy retiring with considerable loss in killed and captured.”

Company B from Lewiston had kept the Idaho colors flying on

the advance line. These men were attacking a fort, which was heavily defended. In the final charge on the fort Maj. McConville, the battal-ion commander from Lewiston, was

killed.His body was brought

home for burial and he was given one of the largest funerals ever held in Nez Perce County. His grave is marked by a government monument in Normal Hill cemetery.

Later in the campaign, the Idahos were ordered to the San Pedro Macati district where there was consider-able fighting. They guarded the flank of the army at Malabon under heavy fire and the 2nd battalion sup-ported the Montanas in a long charge up a slope in skirmish line.

When the war ended, company B sailed from the islands aboard the transport

and arrived at San Francisco on Aug. 29, 1899. The men were mustered out at the Presidio on Sept. 25 and from there they came home to Lewiston.

But not all of them. Of the entire Idaho regiment, eight were killed in action, 22 wounded and 15 died of disease.

“There go the Idaho

savages, and all hell can’t stop them.”

— GEN. CHARLES KING

The community’s blood center. Proudly helping to save lives since 1994 and the sole supplier of blood to our area hospitals.

Thank you so much to our blood donors for their support of our Valley Wide Blood Drive.

Give blood and find the hero in you.

800-423-0151 www.inbcsaves.org

1994 WYSUP1720 21st Street, Lewiston

2006

Hyundai Arrives In The Lewis-Clark Valley November 2006

Michael Wysup and his wife, Shelley, owners of Wysup Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge in Pullman, WA saw an opportunity and the potential Hyundai had in the Lewis Clark Valley. They applied for and were granted the Hyundai franchise for Lewiston and the Quad Cities.

The employees at Wysup Hyundai on 21st street in Lewiston are excited to represent Hyundai, the world’s 5th largest car maker, because today’s Hyundai meets and surpasses the changing needs of today’s car buyer.

Starting with the 40 mpg all-new Accent and Elantra, as well as the 200 hp, 35 mpg all-new Sonata, Hyundai leads the way with unsurpassed reliability, backed by America’s best warranty. The new, European-designed Tucson sets the pace in the small SUV segment with cutting-edge style and features at a surprisingly competetive price.

The Genesis coupe and sedan offer class-leading features and performance, while the Azera sedan, Santa Fe and Veracruz SUVs show that world-class comfort and room don’t have to come at a premium price. Coming this sum-mer is the Veloster, a new kind of sports car that combines economy, style and perormance like no car before! Stop by today and see why at Wysup Hyundai we mean it when we say WE CAN’T WAIT TO SEE YOU !!!

We want to join all the other businesses in congratulating Lewiston for 150 years. Thank you for welcoming us to the Valley.

10 YEAR/100,000 MILE POWERTRAIN PROTECTION 5 YEAR/60,000 MILE BUMPER TO BUMPER

5 YEAR UNLIMITED MILES 24 HR. ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE

AWARD WINNING HYUNDAI QUALITY BACKED BY AMERICA’S BEST WARRANTY TM

Sales Hours: Mon-Sat 9:00 - 7:00 • Sun 10:00 - 5:00

208-743-2700www.wysupcars.com

311240GC-11

Lewiston’s Sesquicentennialwill be available for

purchase at the Tribune for only

$1.00 each(while supplies last)

of this Keepsake EditionAdditional Copies

•These would make a great read for out-of-area family members and friends.

•Also great to save additional copies for kids and grandkids.


They used to say there was noth-ing you couldn’t carry on a mule,

and that must have been the case here in the 1860s. For on a pack train tip to Elk City in those days, according to an old tale, one mule trudged all the way with “a lady riding on one side and her cook stove on the other.”

Almost all of the freight of the region was carried on the backs of mules and horses — and, in winter, on the backs of men — before the wagon roads were built.

Even after that, well into the 1890s, mule trains competed with the freight wagons.

At Lewiston, long lines of mules, carrying up to 300 pounds each, would carry food, liquor, miners’ supplies, and other goods to mining camps at Pierce, Orofino, Warren, Florence and Elk City.

Merchants such as Lloyd

Magruder would pack mer-chandise by muleback from Lewiston to points as far away as the Virginia City mining camps of Montana — then a part of Idaho Territory — making journeys of up to 400

miles each way.A typical pack train, made

up at Lewiston, might include between 40 and 70 mules and up to a dozen or more men on horses to care for the animals, handle packs, cook, and guard

the goods.They would have to spend

as much as three weeks on the trail, but pay was fairly good because the profits were high. Prospectors needing a new grubstake often would

show up at the packer sheds at Lewiston where the trains were fitted out and hire on with some outgoing train.

The first packer sheds were in the old part of town, near the confluence of the rivers, but later, they were moved to place on the south side of Main Street between the pres-ent 500 and 600 blocks.

Here the merchandise brought upriver by steamer was stored before being moved out to the mining camps, and here the mules were mustered together and loaded.

The first pack trains into the mountains usually depart-ed Lewiston in April, and the mules continued trudging the trains until they were closed by snow sometime in October.

In the winter months, when the snow was too deep for horses and mules, the freight was carried on men’s backs, on the long, cold snowshoe trails that later became wagon roads and later still smooth highways. n

Nez Perce County Historical Society/Ruth Woefel CollectionMULE POWER | A long train of mules is photographed standing on Lewiston’s Main Street.

Everything Moved on Backs of Mules

Each Offi ce Independently Owned & Operated

(208) 799-2100 920 Main Street • Lewiston 21PRICERIGHT.COM

330+ YEARS OF EXPERIENCE COME UNDER ONE ROOF IN 2010!We have Modern, Classic and Antique experience.

What type are you looking for in a REALTOR? We fi t your style! Happy Birthday Lewiston!


To learn more, visit www.selinc.com/possibilities.

Twenty-nine years ago, in Pullman, Washington, Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories invented the world’s fi rst digital distance relay improving the delivery of electric power. SEL continues to invent, design, and manufacture innovative products, solutions, and services that help keep the power on in 140 countries worldwide. Our mission is simple—to make electric power safer, more reliable, and more economical.

We look forward to extending this tradition of innovation to Lewiston, Idaho, with the opening of our new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility. We are proud to become part of your community.

www.selinc.com | +1.509.332.1890

SEL is coming to Lewiston!


3 1 0 7 0 1 G C _ 1 1

Traditional Funerals • Memorial Services • Memorial Receptions Graveside Services • Simple Cremation • Simple Burial • Crematory

Mausoleum • Columbarium • Cemetery

MOUNTAIN VIEW FUNERAL HOME & CREMATORYLEWIS CLARK MEMORIAL GARDENS

MERCHANT FUNERAL HOMERICHARDSON-BROWN FUNERAL HOME

Although funeral customs have changed over the years, our dedication to serving the grieving families of our area remains as strong as Henry Merchant’s was when he founded his fi rst funeral

home in Asotin in 1898. Henry went on to open Clarkston Furniture & Undertaking in 1909.

Traditions have changed. Our philosophy hasn’t.

1898

lewiston’s sesquicentennial

Documents