Medical breakthrough

In the late 19th century, Andrew Lefevre, a failed French Canadian gold prospector, found his horses drinking from a lake on the West Plains.

After Lefevre bathed himself and his sheep in the lake, he found his rheumatism felt better and his sheep no longer had scabies, according to Edward J. Kowrach in an article on the historylink.org Web site.

Lefevre named the lake Lac de Medicine.

The city of Medical Lake has gone through many changes since Lefevre’s discovery. A 15-minute drive from Spokane, it’s a small town with a population of just under 4,500. But it’s one of the largest cities on the West Plains.

“It’s always been a great place to live,” said John Higgins, a longtime Medical Lake resident and the city’s mayor for the past year and a half.

To this day, Higgins still meets the guys he grew up with for coffee.

Another longtime resident, Alan “Bud” Glasgow, had a paper route in Medical Lake in the 1930s. The streets didn’t have names then, but it was no big deal because he knew where everyone lived anyway.

John Musser, another longtime resident, remembers when people herded cattle through town.

Even today, folks driving down Lefevre, the main stretch of road, can see horses right across the street from the softball field.

Higgins said there isn’t a lot of crime or drugs in the area, so the town is a pretty safe place to live.

“When I was a kid, you could walk downtown, and everyone knew you,” he said.

Joelean Copeland, executive director of the West Plains Chamber of Commerce, agrees.

“It sounds cheesy, but everyone knows your name and your business,” she said. “It’s a good example of how to do it right, but small.”

The Fire Department holds a fisherman’s breakfast every year on opening day of fishing season, brings Santa to town for the annual Christmas tree lighting and shows movies at the high school for the kids.

“We try to do as much as we can with limited resources,” Higgins said.

The town also honors its origins with its Founders Day celebration every June, hosting a parade, car shows, vendors and a softball tournament at Waterfront Park.

In August, the park opens up for camping for the Blue Waters Bluegrass Festival. Copeland said that last year, more than 1,000 people came to listen to music and have a good time.

She said the biggest business in town probably is Denny’s Harvest Foods on state Highway 902. Its deli has become a gathering place for locals, and the city recently completed upgrading sidewalks around the grocery store.

The major employers are Eastern State Hospital, Lakeland Village, Pine Lodge Correction Center for Women and nearby Fairchild Air Force Base. There also is Martin Hall juvenile detention facility, which houses youths from 13 counties in Washington state.

Eastern State Hospital, which began its life in Medical Lake as the Eastern Washington Hospital for the Insane, has been a big part of the community identity ever since.

Stanley Hallett, a town pioneer who profited from marketing Medical Lake soaps, salts and powders, served in the state House of Representatives in Olympia and helped establish the state hospital in the town, which had a growing reputation as a health spa and resort.

According to its Web site, the hospital was established in 1891 and now has 121 beds in the adult psychiatric unit, 101 beds in the geropsychiatric unit and 95 beds in the forensic services unit.

It has a budget for 750 employees, from psychiatrists to nurses to chaplains, who are supported by both clinical and administrative staff.

On average, 100 patients are admitted per month. Patients 18 years and older are accepted by court order or may be civilly committed.

Some of the major treatment options at the hospital include group and individual therapy, drug and alcohol treatment and psychotropic medications.

A history of tourism

The belief that the lake held curative properties brought tourists and nearby residents to the area by the trolley-load back in the town’s beginnings. Higgins said that at one time, Medical Lake was even bigger than Spokane.

Camp Comfort was the place to visit back in the day. The resort rented canoes and held dances. Visitors would come to swim in the waters, which supposedly cured their ailments.

“Records show that on one hot summer day during the Camp Comfort heyday, over 1,400 bathing suits were rented out,” reads a historical marker at the site of the old resort.

If the visitors wanted to keep enjoying the curative properties of the lake once their vacations were over, they could buy the Medical Lake Salt Co.’s soaps and tonics made from minerals extracted from the water.

But the lake became polluted and stagnant. The resorts closed and the tourists left.

Medical Lake today

The city has gone to great lengths to restore the lake by installing an aerator to increase oxygen levels and has banned motorized boats. Boating and fishing still are popular pastimes, but boaters must paddle themselves to their favorite spots.

A three-mile walking trail encircles the lake. Markers inform visitors of the history of the area and the wildlife that thrives there today. Picnic areas peek out along the trail, both near the water and tucked away in wooded copses.

The mayor said Medical Lake likely will be the location of a federal veterans cemetery, 80 acres irrigated with reclaimed water from the wastewater treatment plant.

The $7.8 million project would be paid for mostly by the federal government, with the state paying for maintenance.

In April, the City Council voted unanimously for a moratorium on building permits out of concern that new housing developments would harm the city’s water supply. The moratorium is to be in effect for six months to a year.

In the meantime, Copeland said, residents find the cost of living, quality school system and affordable housing very attractive.

Medical Lake “has everything it needs,” she said.