Then and Now: Spokane’s first Catholic school

Father Joseph Cataldo bought a lot on Main Avenue between Washington and Bernard streets in 1881. The site was home to Spokane’s first Roman Catholic Church, and later its first Catholic school.

Section:Gallery

Mon., Nov. 11, 2019

Demolition appears to have started on the 1888 Catholic school building that served the children of Spokane’s first Catholic Church, later named the Our Lady of Lourdes church, in this 1966 photo. The church replaced the school around 1906 and this building was used as a convent before falling into disuse. The block, bounded by Main Avenue and Spokane Falls Blvd, Washington and Bernard Streets, had grown up around the old school building before most of the block was cleared before Expo ’74.

The Spokesman-Review Photo Archive Sr
The Davenport Grand Hotel, seen here in a Nov. 10, 2019 photo, covers the block bounded by Main Avenue, Bernard Street, Spokane Falls Boulevard and Washington Street, which was considered the seedy end of Spokane’s downtown in the late 1800s. The block was ringed with bars, pawnshops, Chinese restaurants and laundries. The block was the site of Spokane’s first Catholic church and school, which quickly moved away, possibly because of the seedy surroundings, in the early 20th century.

Jesse Tinsley The Spokesman-Review