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Local History
Summary
How things have changed
Every Monday in The Spokesman-Review we bring you a new installment of Then & Now, a photo feature showing historic and modern images of places around Spokane.
See more of Then & Now online.
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Jim Kershner’s ‘This day in history’
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This day in history: Expo expedited plans for riverfront. Man accused of killing man in drunken driving crash, dies in crash
From 1975: Spokane’s plan to reclaim its riverbanks “is moving faster than its developers thought possible and now stands at about 70 per cent.”
This day in history: Major leaguer Frank Howard returned to manage Spokane Indians. Accused bootlegger faces new allegation
From 1975: Frank Howard, the “gentle giant” of baseball, was named the new manager of the Spokane Indians minor league team.
This day in history: A fatal police shooting drew counter-protestors in support of the blue
From 1975: A small number of demonstrators gathered at the Spokane County Courthouse to “show police we are behind them.”
This day in history: Carl Maxey hinted at new details in the fatal police shooting stirring public outcry
From 1975: The Concerned Citizens of Spokane was asking Gov. Daniel Evans to intervene in the Craig S. Jordan fatal shooting case.
This day in history: NAACP called for coroner’s inquest in police shooting death of LC student. Men hadn’t given up hope for oil
From 1975: A number of parties, including Spokane civil right attorney Carl Maxey, demanded a coroner’s inquest into the fatal police shooting of Craig S. Jordan, a 17-year-old Lewis and …
This day in history: Police shooting of unarmed Lewis and Clark High School student sparked protests. New women’s club launched
From 1975: Dozens of protesters showed up at the Spokane County Courthouse and Spokane City Hall to ask for an independent investigation into the fatal police shooting of Craig S. …
This day in history: SPD officer shoots, kills unarmed teen. City assures it will crack down on ‘noodle cafes’
From 1975: A Spokane police officer shot and killed Craig S. Jordan, 17, when the officer saw him running out of a house on Spokane’s North Side.
This day in history: Davenport Hotel promoted a renovation. Explosion in St. John, Washington, destroyed a third of the business district
From 1975: A full page ad made this declaration: “The Grand Old Davenport: It’s the ‘newest’ place in Spokane.”
This day in history: Movie star Rhonda Fleming attends Fox Theater’s grand opening; Daredevil canoeist faces near-death experience
From 1975: Movie star Rhonda Fleming took time out from presiding over the “grand opening” of the Fox Theater (as a triplex) to give an interview about her experiences in …
This day in history: Film and TV star Rhonda Fleming attends grand opening of Fox Theater’s new triplex. Elk High accused of ‘dirty play’ after winning county football championships
From 1975: The Fox Theater held a “grand opening,” featuring a live appearance by “film, TV and stage star Miss Rhonda Fleming.”
This day in history: Spokane leaders pledged tough action against noodle cafes
From 1975: The search for the body of Joseph Hedger was still underway, and the suspect in the shooting, John C. Brannon, was not talking.
This day in history: Shooting, kidnapping spree that started in Liberty Lake ends in Stevens County. ‘Booze runner’ nabbed near Sandpoint
From 1975: A wild shooting and kidnapping spree, stretching from Liberty Lake to Stevens County, resulted in one arrest, one injury and one missing person presumed dead.
This day in history: City Council at odds over city-funded Spokane Arts Commission; Spokane war heroes honored on Armistice Day
From 1975: The Spokane City Council was in “sharp disagreement” over whether to launch a city-funded Spokane Arts Commission.
This day in history: Group lobbies for better Amtrak schedules in Spokane; Escaped convicts use beadsheets, springs to build ladder
From 1975: A citizens group called the Washington Association of Rail Passengers was lobbying for more convenient Amtrak schedules for Spokane.
This day in history: A freak accident with a rope nearly claimed a 6-year-old’s life, and a local football player wasn’t so lucky
From 1975: A Spokane woman was driving on the city’s west side when she saw a horrifying sight: a boy, 6, hanging from a tangle of rope in a garage.
This day in history: A real-time bank robbery and a sinister threat from a ‘physical wreck’
From 1975: An Old National Bank employee at the Country Homes branch was on the phone to the downtown office when she heard a gunshot and saw an overhead light …
This day in history: 12-year-old was acquitted in mother’s killing. Accused safecracker went on trial in brazen Paulsen Building burglaries
From 1975: A Liberty Lake Sewer District bond issue was defeated by voters, but now Spokane County was launching an investigation into whether opponents broke campaign laws.
This day in history: Spokane voters soundly voted out incumbents across a variety of races
From 1975: The Spokesman-Review editorial page conducted a post-mortem of the recent election results.
This day in history: Spokane’s election didn’t go to the dogs
From 1975: Election results were in, and Spokane voters made two things clear: They wanted evening council meetings, and they had no problem with selling stray dogs for veterinary research.
This day in history: Officials warned that more sewage would be dumped in Spokane River. East Central bank robber convicted
From 1975: More raw sewage would “almost certainly” be dumped into the Spokane River over the winter.
This day in history: Plane out of CdA goes missing in Glacier National Park; Spokane Municiple Band recognized as organization
From 1975: The search was on for a missing airplane out of Coeur d’Alene that disappeared two days earlier near Glacier National Park.
This day in history: Paving paradise? The question was up for consideration near the St. Joe River
From 1975: Should the St. Joe River road in North Idaho be paved?
This day in history: The great razor-blade scare for Halloween candy had begun
From 1975: About 30 members of the Spokane Treasure Hunters’ club were stationed at the city’s fire stations to scan trick-or-treat candy for metal.
This day in history: Opinions were still divided on a controversial proposal to sell stray dogs for medical research, but Spokane’s mayor was on board
From 1975: Mayor David H. Rodgers came out in full support of a controversial proposal to sell the city’s stray dogs to Washington State University’s veterinary school for medical research.
This day in history: Idaho’s newest attorney general contender decided to run after being acquitted of his wife’s murder
From 1975: Everett Hofmeister Jr. was acquitted on charges of murdering his wife – and immediately announced plans to run for Idaho attorney general.
This day in history: KHQ radio was about to take the airwaves. Polygraph test not allowed in murder trial
From 1975: Everett Hofmeister Jr., a former Bonner County prosecutor, was on trial in Lewiston for the murder of his first wife, Darlene Hofmeister.
This day in history: Idaho Catholic bishop was considering Coeur d’Alene Tribe’s request for mission. More robbers arrested
From 1975: The Coeur d’Alene Tribe was attempting to gain title to the Old Cataldo Mission, and Idaho’s Catholic bishop was “considering” the tribe’s request.
This day in history: American Freedom Train rolls into Spokane with historic items on display; Police take in alleged gang of robbers who burgled across region
From 1975: Here’s a few of the items on display on the American Freedom Train, which was in Spokane for a four-day visit.
This day in history: The American Freedom Train and a big, fat Serbian wedding
From 1975: The American Freedom Train was heading to Spokane, and 12,000 people had already signed up to tour it.
This day in history: A courtroom melee sent a detective to the hospital
From 1975: A defendant in a Spokane courtroom kicked Spokane County detective Lt. Larry V. Erickson in the jaw when the defendant lashed out at officers who were attempting to …
This day in history: Timber industry suffered under high interest rates. Woman accused of killing husband said she was abused and neglected
From 1975: The Inland Northwest’s timber industry was hurting in 1975, continuing a long-term downward trend.
This day in history: Thomas Creech, who claimed he killed 42, convicted of murdering 2. Proposed candy store near Roosevelt school sparked outrage
From 1975: A Wallace jury convicted Thomas E. Creech, 25, of two counts of first degree murder – yet his involvement in 42 other murders remained an open question.