100 years ago in Spokane: Firecrackers blamed for many 4th of July fires

The Spokane Fire Department responded to 30 fire calls – most of them due to firecrackers.

The biggest fire was centered at Hamilton Street and Carlisle Avenue, where one home was destroyed and two others badly damaged. A long list of other homes and garages were badly damaged by roof fires.

Eight large grass fires were reported around Spokane, also caused by firecrackers. Firefighters were able to control most of the grass fires, but two homes were damaged.

From the holiday celebration beat: In Yakima, “all Northwest records for parachute jumps were broken” at the fairgrounds. “Dare Devil” Kohls dropped 6,500 feet, thrilling thousands of spectators.

In Pullman, 7,000 gathered to watch a parade, a baseball game, a bucking horse contest and “confetti battles.”

In Plummer, Idaho, 5,000 gathered to watch baseball games, horse races and track-and-field contests.

“An Indian parade and the opening of the Indian village lent color to the scene,” reported a correspondent.

In Spokane, a crowd at the fairgrounds was treated to a thrill when Cliff Hills, trick motorcyclist, attempted to ride his motorcycle in front of the grandstand while standing on the seat.

On the first attempt, the stunt did not go well. He fell, but then “caught the license plate on the rear of the machine and hung on, dragging through the dust for 25 feet or more.”

On the next several attempts, he was able to pull off the stunt successfully.