Then & Now
Harold Skinner article from The CDA Press by Brad Sondahl:
In August of 1939, a forest fire started on Mt. Spokane and burned steadily for ten miles along the north shore of Spirit Lake. As it approached the town of Spirit Lake, and the Panhandle Lumber Mill, which was the town's chief employer, all available hands were encouraged to help fight the fire. One of those who volunteered was 15 year old Harold Skinner. His family had migrated to the area from a Nebraska farm in 1938. His first experience has stuck with him vividly until today. He rode up in the back of a pickup with a small crew to replace the current fire-line workers. When they parked near the top of the ridge overlooking the town, they set off on foot toward the fire-line. They met workers hurrying toward them, telling them a burning snag had fallen across the fire-line, and the fire was rapidly spreading. "Get the H--- out of here," Harold remembered them saying. They piled in the overcrowded pickup truck and went back to town. After that it was apparent that the last defense was at the edge of the lumber mill, which had a yard full of logs, and many stacks of finished lumber. Harold's job then was to help hold a fire hose that wetted down the brush adjacent to the mill yard. But sparks from the nearby forest fire descended on the lumber piles and the whole lumber yard burned up. The townspeople prepared to evacuate the community as the fire and mill were just a couple blocks from the main town. However the wind shifted just in time, and the fire burned more to the northeast before finally dying down short of Blanchard.
Today Harold Skinner is 98 years old, still living in his own home in Spokane, where he taught history at Lewis and Clark High School for many years. One skill he retains from his youth is playing old-time fiddle, which he learned from his father. Although he was isolated from other musicians during the Covid 19 outbreak, he kept his skills up by playing with Lawrence Welk reruns… He revived his public performances coming to the Spirit Lake Historical Museum ice cream social on Labor Day. He also recently joined a group of about 25 mostly retired fiddlers in Spokane Valley who call themselves Adult Group Therapy, and played the tunes as he remembered them to a rapt audience. One of the group had even had Harold as a teacher many years ago.
It is likely that Harold is one of a small group who remember the fire of 1939 in Spirit Lake, and more likely he is one of a few alive who helped fight the fire.
Chatauquas then and now. May 2023 Coeur D'Alene Press article by Brad Sondahl:
There was a “gold rush” to Spirit Lake in 1907, but the gold was timber—white pine and Douglas fir. Frederick Blackwell and a host of other entrepeneurs pushed in railroad, lumber mill, hotels, shops, and school within a couple of years. This boom town was high quality, with a downtown and school built of bricks, and electricity and piped heat provided in the city from the mill operation. While logging was the most profitable business, the natural beauty of Spirit Lake, as well as easy access to the Inland Empire through the new train service, provided for many tourists, and caught the eye of the Idaho Chatauqua (Sha TAW’ kwa) organization.
The Chatauquas were learning and faith events set in rural locations, starting at Chatauqua New York in 1874. Initially designed to educate Sunday School teachers, the outdoor leisure activities and traveling entertainments kept the program lively and fun.
When approached with the idea of having Spirit Lake as the home for the regional Chatauqua, local department store owner Henry Krech donated 10 acres of lake frontage across from what is now the Fish and Game access. There was no bridge to that area, so the one lane Chatauqua pole bridge was built by 1912, when the first two week long Chatauqua was held. The grounds included an assembly/dance hall, mess hall, bath house, tent platforms, and sanitary facilities.
The 1912 Chatauqua included noted preacher William Spurgeon of England, and national labor leader John Mitchell. There was also a music festival with orchestra and choral concerts, boating, swimming, and hiking to the top of Mt. Spokane and back in 24 hours. The next year the program was extended to three weeks, and included crew races, boxing, and tennis tournaments.
Like Vaudeville, the Chatauqua died out with the growing fads of movies, radio, and recorded music, as well as the down time of the Great Depression. Although the first half mile of shoreline was part of the Chatauqua grounds, the name locally only continues in the first resort along the lake. The one lane bridge served the community for 40 years before being replaced by the current bridge to the west of the old bridge.
Area residents might associate the name Chatauqua with the New Old-time Chatauqua which made numerous appearances at Art on the Green and at the Panida Theater in Sandpoint. They were a conscious revival of the original, but modernized… They might parade through the area with a 10 foot tall puppet while a ragtag marching band played with lots of vigor. The Flying Karamazovs juggled items from cabbages to chainsaws, and I remember an actual sword swallower, as well as magicians, slack rope walkers, and more. The Covid pandemic knocked the performing arts for a loop, but the New Old-time Chatauqua will be rising again with a performance at the Panida Theater in Sandpoint on June 10.
Frederick Blackwell and his Legacy Article by Brad Sondahl in 2023 Coeur D'Alene Press
With the phenomenal growth in this area in the last decade, many historic structures have been removed for more profitable purposes. Some of these, like Atlas Park, turn an historic lumber mill site into new fun memories for families to enjoy the Spokane River. More often run down buildings are razed and their histories forgotten.
The first decades of the 20th century saw a growth spurt similar to today, but fueled by mining and logging. During this time Frederick A. Blackwell came here with experience in logging, but saw many potentials for profit and left a lasting imprint on our area. He built an electric railroad linking Coeur D’Alene and Spokane, with a dam at 9 Mile Falls to generate power for it and the community as well. In 1904 he established Blackwell Park in Coeur D’Alene since he could see the recreational value of the lakes in the area. He founded the Idaho, Washington and Northern railroad to haul out lumber from Twin Lakes, Spirit Lake with flumes to carry the logs to the mill and trains and eventually to Spokane and the country at large. He founded Spirit Lake, Ione Washington (including another mill) , and Usk Washington. He extended the rail line to Metalline Falls Washington, where he was a major investor in the cement plant which produced much of the area’s concrete materials.
His main residence was in Coeur D’Alene, along with his son Russell who was in charge of the railways. In 1908, when Spirit Lake was founded, the railroad, the mill, the flumes, and the town of nearly 2000 all were built within a couple years. He got Spokane architect Kirtland Cutter to design a house for him there overlooking the mill, railroad, and mill pond.
Since he died in 1922, his influence has largely vanished from sight. 20 acre Blackwell Park was renamed Coeur D’Alene Park, with its lovely beach and band shell. His home in Coeur D’Alene is gone, replaced by a restaurant. His son’s house is now Blackwell House bed and breakfast.
Fortunately the Blackwell house in Spirit Lake has undergone renewal through ownership of local roofer Chuck Orr. A new roof and decorative lighting highlight the clean lines of the Kirtland Cutter design.
Other buildings in Spirit Lake are being renewed as well. The original Catholic church spent many years as an eyesore along Highway 41, with a hole in the roof and missing windows, before Steve Stoke bought and started a one man resurrection of it. He has added gables and Victorian facia wood work, but the essential exterior remains unchanged, and he plans to convert it to a bed and breakfast.
The old Spirit Lake school, a sturdy brick structure next to the elementary school, had been used as a headstart location, community library, and meeting rooms for Lions and other organizations, before it was shuttered in the last century. It was renamed the Brown Woolen building in honor of Jim Brown and Mildred Woolen, two locals who fought to preserve the school for public use. More recently volunteers have been gutting the damaged interior in preparation for new tenants when funding is found to complete the renovations.
A similar story is the Museum of North Idaho, preserving a fine old home as the museum’s new home. Museums serve as both repositories for relics and memorabilia of the community, and their buildings also can be a part of that history, as are all the historic buildings which survive. The Spirit Lake Museum is housed in the old Lutheran church, next to the lovely new one. Their congregation is happy to share it with the community as an homage to the past….
Even if you are new to the community, this is now your history—make a point to visit our local museums.