100 years ago: Storm brings white Christmas to Spokane, but destruction in Western Washington

Spokane children woke up to find 3 inches of new snow on the ground, enough to make Santa’s sleigh run smoothly.

The storm was not quite as welcome in Western Washington, where high winds wrecked a tug off the coast and sank a steamer at its dock on Lake Washington. Several other vessels were in distress.

High winds took down power lines and telephone lines and snarled streetcar traffic in Seattle and Tacoma.

From the court beat: Edward Spencer, aka Eddie Rivers, delivered his “Christmas wish” after being sentenced to life imprisonment as a habitual criminal.

“You cannot break the law and get away with it; you are one against a million, and a man is crazy to think he can beat justice in the long run,” he said. “I’m through, and if it were possible at this late date, I would begin over again, even if I had to work on the section. This is my Christmas wish, though it is hopeless.”

Spencer was a notorious burglar and yeggman (safecracker) who had been arrested several months earlier after a shootout at the Ritter Drug Store. An accomplice of Spencer shot a detective in the leg. The shooter escaped but Spencer, who was hiding inside the building, was captured.

A Spokane officer recognized him as a criminal who was wanted in several states.

Also on this date

(From onthisday.com)

1066: William the Conqueror is crowned King of England at Westminster Abbey, completing the Norman conquest of England.