This day in history: Spokane mayor opposed Davenport Hotel nomination for historic registration. Great Northern Railway unveiled plans for electrification

From 1975: Over the protests of Spokane Mayor David H. Rodgers, the Davenport Hotel was nominated by the state for listing on the National Register of Historic Places.

“Mayor Rodgers’ letter said the hotel’s financial condition was poor and the listing as a historic site would block demolition if it became necessary in future years,” The Spokesman-Review said.

The owners of the Davenport, the Lomas & Nettleton Financial Corp., said they had “not opposed or supported the proposed listing.” Their only concern “was to make certain such a historic listing did not restrict our operations or use of the hotel.”

The nomination by the state meant that the proposal would now go to Washington, D.C., for review by the Office of Archeology and Historic Preservation.

From 1925: The goal of the Great Northern Railway was planning to electrify the entire main line from Spokane to Puget Sound, according to The Spokesman-Review.

Electrification of the first unit, on the west slope of the Cascades, had already been announced.

The power for the line would be provided by The Washington Water Power Company, which would take over the railroad’s power site on Lake Chelan.

The Great Northern had also contracted for the construction of four electric locomotives, said to be “the largest ever built.”

This would not be the first electrified rail route in the region. Much of the Milwaukee Road’s main route from Montana to Tacoma had already been electrified.

Also on this day

(From onthisday.com)

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