100 years ago in Spokane: Prominent citizens run two Japanese laundrymen out of Oroville

From our archives,

100 years ago

“An organized mob” of prominent citizens ran two Japanese laundrymen out of Oroville, Washington, wrecked their laundry with a fire hose and took the furnishings out into the street and burned them.

The two Japanese men took refuge in a nearby hotel and left the next morning for Spokane, along with George Devon, who owned the building.

The riot was apparently the culmination of a dispute between Devon, an Italian, and the other businesspeople of the town. They apparently expressed a “strong feeling against Orientals entering business.” They attempted to dissuade Devon from renting his building to the laundrymen, but Devon refused their demands.

So the mob took matters into its own hands. Witnesses estimated that 200 people took part in the riot, including local businesspeople and laborers working on the West Okanogan Ditch.

From the war beat: About 200 Jewish war refugees arrived in Seattle.

They were from all over Russia and Poland, and most were fleeing from the German advance. They had arrived by ship from Vladivostok. The immigrants were being housed in Seattle hotels for the time being, but many of them were planning to continue on to the East Coast, where they had relatives. The Jewish community of Seattle was providing for them.