This day in history: Havermale Junior High School student was missing. Fashion parade endangered by snow

Fri., April 3, 2026

By Jim Kershner The Spokesman-Review

From 1976: Nanette Marie Martin, 13, disappeared while delivering The Spokesman-Review on her paper route, and searchers were combing her northside neighborhood.

Martin, a student at Havermale Junior High School, delivered about six papers but the remaining 100 papers were undelivered. Her parents called police about 8 a.m. when she failed to return to her home on West Spofford.

Nanette Marie Martin, 13, disappeared while delivering her The Spokesman-Review, and searchers were combing her northside neighborhood, the Spokane Daily Chronicle reported on April 3, 1926. (Spokesman-Review archives)

Police said they had no reason to believe she was a runaway.

From 1926: A white Christmas was common in Spokane, but in 1926, the city was preparing for a rare phenomenon: a white Easter.

“About three-quarters of an inch of snow is on the ground in the outlying parts of the city and in the country, and it is not melting,” said meteorologist E.M. Keyser on the afternoon before Easter.

The Spokane Chronicle noted that Spokane’s Easter “fashion parade” was in jeopardy.

“If there is any true companionship in misery, however, it may be of satisfaction to know that Walla Walla is getting it just nine times as hard as Spokane,” said the Spokane Chronicle.

Also on this day

(From onthisday.com)

1776: Harvard College votes to award George Washington an honorary Doctor of Laws degree.

1860: The Pony Express begins with mail delivered by horse and rider relay teams between St. Joseph, Missouri, and Sacramento, California.

1882: American outlaw Jesse James is shot in the back of the head and killed by fellow gang member Robert Ford at his home in St. Joseph, Missouri.

1953: American magazine “TV Guide” publishes its first issue.

Local journalism is essential.

Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Gifts processed in this system are tax deductible.

Meet Our Journalists

Jesse Tinsley

Meet Jesse Tinsley. As a certified drone pilot, this veteran Spokesman-Review photographer often can be seen capturing beautiful aerial photographs of our region. Sometimes though, the job requires getting down with the dogs.
Jim Meehan

Jim Meehan is no stranger to Zag Nation. As the lead writer covering the Gonzaga men’s basketball team, he tells the stories behind the game and gets fans a bit closer to their favorite players.
Molly Quinn

There is no artist in Spokane like Molly Quinn. Her whimsical style is instantly recognizable to readers of The Spokesman-Review. She has painted gorgeous illustrations that instantly elevate the journalism accompanying it. She brings to life the stories that defy photography. She makes our pages better.
Rob Curley

Spokesman-Review editor Rob Curley loves to talk with people and learn about their lives, whether it's a best-selling author or a stranger he meets downtown on his walk to lunch. It's that inquisitive nature combined with a playful sense of storytelling that helps make our newspaper different than most.