This day in history: A local former high school teacher qualified for the Indy 500, and Mother’s Day was on the minds of many men

Sun., May 11, 2025

R.J. Miles was killed when the “shack” he was in at 718 Hubbard Avenue in Coeur d’Alene exploded at 4 a.m. His wife, who had been staying the house on the front part of the lot, was under questioning, the Spokane Daily Chronicle reported on May 11, 1925. The newspaper also reported that Ellen Daly, 89, a mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, was chosen as “the crowned queen of the day” at an event along the Spokane River. And attorney Joe Albi was representing a Black man accused of killing his wife. The Chronicle reported that Albi questioned the jury to ensure that none of the jurors were members of the Ku Klux Klan.

By Jim Kershner The Spokesman-Review

From 1975: Spokane race car driver Tom Sneva, a former area high school teacher, blazed to a fourth-place finish in qualifying for the Indianapolis 500.

Sneva, 26, “caught the imagination of the crowd with his surprising run.”

“We had run only one lap in practice that was as fast as we qualified,” said Sneva. “We started out the week having a hard time staying above 180 mph.”

Sneva had no trouble breaking that barrier, qualifying at 190.094 mph. The field’s average was 185.5 mph.

Sneva had grabbed a place in the national spotlight a year earlier, when he became the fastest rookie in that year’s Indy 500 starting field.

He would go on to even greater glory at the Indy 500 over the next decade, winning it all in 1983. The 1975 race, however, would be dramatic for another reason, as we will see in upcoming days.

From 1925: An estimated 3,000 persons – mostly men – lined the banks of the Spokane River for a special Mother’s Day service next to the falls, presided over by the pastor of the Central Christian Church.

Ellen Daly, 89 – a mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother – was chosen as “the crowned queen of the day.” Tears streamed down her face as she “received the tribute offered her.”

The crowd had marched to the riverfront site from a downtown theater, where a Bible class had been conducted. The marchers picked up hundreds of other participants along the way.

“Moving picture cameramen” recorded the scene, which “will be shown through the film news service.”

From the crime beat: R.J. Miles was killed when the “shack” he was in at 718 Hubbard Avenue in Coeur d’Alene was “dynamited” about 4 a.m. His wife, who had been staying at the house on the front part of the lot, was under questioning, the Spokane Daily Chronicle reported.

From the court beat: Attorneys Joe Albi and Joe Lavin were part of a defense team representing William Jackson, a Black man accused of killing a woman.

Albi and Lavin questioned perspective members of the jury to ensure that none of the jurors were members of the Ku Klux Klan. Several potential jurors were dismissed for being prejudiced against Black people, but none said they were members of the KKK or similar group.