USA > Washington > Spokane County > Spokane > History of the city of Spokane and Spokane County, Washington : from its earliest settlement to the present time, Volume I > Part 37
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Roads. ferries and bridges, better mail facilities-these were the crying needs of the Spokane country half a century ago. The okl order has passed away, and the brave. hardy men who were engaged then in the inspiring work of empire building, have, most of them, gone on the long, long journey which needs no bridge or ferry; but the spirit of their times we find expressed in the time-worn and age-stained volumes of legislative lore.
Passing on to the session of '61-2 we discover the appointment, by an act passed January 1. of J. L. Henck, John Wynn and John Drumheller, "to locate and estab- lish a territorial road from Fort Walla Walla to Fort Colville, on the Columbia river in Spokane county. For this service they were to receive "a compensation of three dollars per day while actually employed in the viewing and locating of said road. to be paid out of the county treasuries of their respective counties."
And at the same session J. R. Bates was authorized to build a toll bridge "across the Spokane river at a point where the territorial road leading from Walla Walla to Colville on the Columbia river crosses or may cross said river;" and
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pending the building of the bridge, "the said J. R. Bates, his heirs or assigns, shall scenre a good and sufficient flatboat with sufficient hands to work the same, for the transportation of all persons and their property, across said river without delay." The tolls ranged from fifty cents for a footman to $3 for "each pleasure, car- riage, coach or vechiele for conveyance of persons." Automobiling in the vicinity of Spokane would have been expensive recreation in those times.
Gold dust was the prevailing medium of exchange. Hence the adoption of the following law by the territorial solons that winter at Olympia:
"That if any person shall counterfeit any kind or species of gold dust, gold bullion or bars, Inmps, pieces or nuggets of gold, or any description whatsoever of uncoined gold, currently passing in this territory, or shall alter or put off any kind of uncoined gold mentioned in this section, for the purpose of defrauding any person or persons, body politie or corporate; every such person so offend- ing, or any person or persons aiding and abetting in said offense or offenses, shall be deemed guilty of counterfeiting, and upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by imprisonment in the penitentiary for a term not less than one year nor more than fourteen years."
Men were now invading the Inland Empire by the thousand, Jured by the search for the "golden flecce." The fame of the new "diggings" had spread afar, and experienced gold miners hastened here from California, from British Columbia, from southern Oregon, from the Willamette valley and the Puget Sound country. In large part they were home-owning citizens; many of them left families down below ; others were young men with sweethearts and mothers in the places of their bringing-up, and in every mining camp the hastily assembled population was eager for news from home, and grew elamorous for better mail service. This agitation found expression in a memorial, passed, January 6. 1862, the legislature at Olym- pia "respectfully representing" to the postmaster-general "that the people now living in the eastern portion of this territory are laboring under great inconvenience and expense from the fact of there being no mail facilities to the northward and cast- ward of the town of Walla Walla.
"The great extent and richness of our gold fields," so runs the memorial. "to- gether with the unequaled grazing and farming lands east of the Cascade range of mountains, justifies the belief that there will be soon many thousand perma- nent settlers engaged in farming and mining in that portion of our territory. In view of these facts, your memorialists would pray that a weekly mail route be established between the town of Walla Walla and Fort Colville, and also a weekly mail route be established between Walla Walla and Pierce City, via Lewiston. A weekly mail should also be established between Lewiston and Florence City. situ- . ated in the far-famed Salmon river mines.
"We would also respectfully request that a daily mail route be established be- tween Vancouver City and Walla Walla, thus connecting with the overland daily mail between Sacramento City. Cal., and Olympia. W. T."
A week later a still more pressing memorial was addressed to "the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives in Congress assembled," "respectfully repre- senting that in view of the faet of the rich deposits of gold in the country lying east of the Cascade mountains in this territory, which country has now within its limits more than five thousand men engaged in gold mining, which number will
SPOKANE AND THE INLAND EMPIRE
be increased to more than 50,000 men during the ensuing summer, which popula- tion have no facilities whatever for the delivery of the United States mail amongst them ;
"We. your memorialists, would respectfully request your honorable body to establish the following mail routes :
"A mail route from Walla Walla, via Lewiston and Pierce City. to Elk City, distance about 200 miles, weekly service.
"A branch route from Lewiston to Florence City, about 85 miles, weekly service.
"A route from Walla Walla, via Antoine Plant's and the Coeur d'Alene mis- sion, to Hell Gate Ronde, distance 350 miles, semi-weekly service."
In yet another memorial, the legislature protested to the postmaster-general against the discontinuance of mail service between Walla Walla and Colville. and presented the following facts for his consideration:
Walla Walla county has now about 1,000 inhabitants. There are 5.000 men in the country north of Colville, whose only American office is that of Colville.
That there will be 50,000 people in the country east of the Cascade mountains before the close of the ensuing summer.
There has been a semi-weekly line of steamers running with through connec- tions between Portland and Walla Walla, which semi-weekly line is to be increased to a daily line on the reopening of navigation on the Columbia in February.
In view of these facts. a daily mail service was asked between Portland and Walla Walla, and the legislature repeated its request for the new lines proposed in the foregoing memorials.
Another memorial to congress represented that "there are vast tracts of agri- cultural lands within the county boundaries of Spokane and Missoula. over which the public surveys of the government have not been extended. Upon these lands a large number of our citizens are located, who have erected houses and opened farms. We therefore ask congress to make an appropriation which will be suffi- ciently large to extend this much needed survey over the counties to which we refer."
The legislature was certainly busy writing and passing memorials that winter. Another represented that "great inconvenience exists to the settlers on the publie lands in the counties of Walla Walla, Spokane. Shoshone. Missoula. Nez Perce and Idaho, by consequence of their remote situation from any land office of the United States; and you are hereby respectfully petitioned to establish a land office at the city of Walla Walla. in Walla Walla county."
In these various acts and memorials we find lack of uniformity in spelling the name "Spokane," and it appears frequently without the final "e."
Lewiston had now become the largest town, excepting Portland, in the Pacific northwest. Almost literally it may be said that it sprang up in a night. experience having shown that its site was the practical hend of navigation on the Snake and the Clearwater, and therefore the natural ontfitting and distributing point for miners and others going into the placer camps of the Clearwater and Salmon river districts. A controversy arose a few years ago, respecting the date of its founding and the origin of its name, and the question having been referred to George E. Cole. former governor of Washington territory. Mr. Cole replied :
"Colonel Lyle. Captain Ainsworth, Lawrence Coe. Vie. Trevett and myself
CHARLES H. MONTGOMERY A noted Stevens County Pioneer
JAMES MONAGHAN
Who came to the Spokane river in 1.60
M. M. COWLEY
Who located at Cowley's Bridge in 1872
. Pl
RESIDENCE OF JAMES MONAGHAN, SHOWING JAMES MON.A. GHAN AND FAMILY WHEN A POST TRADER
Also Robert Monaghan afterward Ensign, on pony, and the stage which ran from the Fort to Spokane Falls
ـم ـم PUBLI LIBRARY
1
QUIN FOUNDATIONS
.PUB IJKARY 1
.IN LINUX
1
4 UNS
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SPOKANE AND THE INLAND EMPIRE
selected the location and named the place Lewiston, in the latter part of May or the first part of June, 1861, in honor of Captain Lewis, of the Lewis and Clark expedition."
An aet passed at the session of 1862-3 authorized David Williamson to estab- lish and keep a ferry "across the Spokane river, at a point two and a quarter miles above Colonel Wright's erossing of the same, with the privilege of two miles each way up and down from said point." For each footman, a toll of 50 cents could be collected; for cach man and horse, and for each animal packed, $1.50; for each wagon with two animals attached, $3, and for each wagon with four animals at- tached, $+; but the county commissioners were empowered to regulate and change these tolls at any regular term of their court. An annual tax of $25 was charged for the franchise.
At the same session A. W. Compton and . Henry Carnes were "authorized to establish and keep a ferry across the "Pend d'Oreille river at Singuaekwateen, with a 50-cent toll for footmen, but somewhat lower rates for conveyances than in the ease of the Spokane ferry.
Another franchise was granted to George Melville "and his associates to establish and keep a ferry across the Kootenay river, at a point where the boundary commissioners' trail crosses said river, known as Chelemta." All of these fran- chises were in Spokane county.
At that period many Chinese were entering the country to mine plaeers that were not considered sufficiently profitable by white miners, and the legislature fixed a poll tax on Chinese of $16 a head, the proceeds to go to the school funds of the various counties, excepting in Stevens, where the money went into the road fund. By special act, it was provided that "in the collection of the Chinese police tax the sheriff of Stevens county or his deputy shall have power to pursue any per- son who shall attempt to evade the payment of this tax into any county in the territory. and enforce the collection in the same manner as though he were in the county of Stevens." Obviously the pioneers of fifty years ago believed, with "Truthful James," that "for ways that are dark and tricks that are vain, the heathen Chinee is peculiar."
At the session of 1861-5. Irwin R. Morris was voted a franchise to build a toll bridge across the Spokane river, "commeneing at a point two miles above the house of Antoine Plant, and extending up said river a distance of five miles above said point." County organizations were still faint and irregular, for while the grant lay within Spokane county the grantee was required to pay into the treasury of Walla Walla county an annual tax of $25.
And on the following day, S. D. Smith was granted a franchise for a toll bridge "across the Spokane river at or near the place known as Colonel Wright's crossing. with the same requirement as to payment of annual tax to Walla Walla county." The schedule of charges ranged from 50 cents for a footman to $4 for a wagon and two-horse team.
Culture was not altogether ignored in the interior, and Walla Walla was the place to light and hold aloft the lamp of learning. The legisature, at this session, passed an act "to incorporate a library and literary association in the town of Walla Walla." with W. W. Johnson. B. N. Sexton. L. B. Monson, L. J. Rcetor, J. Il. Vol. 1-19
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Kendrick and Angus MeKay. and "the officers and members of the Calliopian society of Walla Walla" as incorporators.
"Said corporation may receive and hold all moneys or property coming into their hands by voluntary subscriptions, contributions or otherwise, or apply the same to the establishing and maintaining of a library, and may also receive and hold all donations of books, papers and periodicals that may be donated for that purpose."
Travel over the Walla Walla-Colville valley road had been heavy and continuous for several years, and James Monaghan and William Nix, who had been conducting a ferry at the Spokane crossing of that highway, about twenty miles below the present city, sought and were granted, by the legislature of 1865-6, a franchise to build a bridge. The act required that "the said bridge shall not be less than eight feet wide. and shall be substantially built. and sufficiently strong to bear up with safety a wagon carrying three tons with the team attached." The franchise ran for ten years, and the grantees were to pay an annual tax of $25 to Stevens county. The tolls ran from 25 cents for a foot passenger to $1 for each wagon with two horses attached.
Mr. Monaghan was one of the first white men to engage definitely and perma- nently in business on the Spokane. He had come to America from Ireland in 1856, and two years later came to the Pacific coast by way of the Isthmus. arriving at Vancouver, this state, in May. 1858. For a year or so he worked on a ferry across the DesChutes river in eastern Oregon: was next employed until 1860 on the little steamer Colonel Wright, the first steamboat to run on the upper Columbia. His next occupation was on the ferry across the Spokane. which he bought from its former owner and later converted into a bridge, under the foregoing franchise. In 1869 he went to Walla Walla for a short time. and the following year bought an interest in a store at Chewelah. Washington, also buying from the Indians a farm on which a part of the town site is now located. In 1873 he removed to Colville, where he en- gaged in merchandising until 1879, and then went with the United States troops to the mouth of Foster creek, in the Big Bend country, and the following spring to Chelan. In 1880 he took supplies by boat from Colville to the mouth of Foster creek.
Mr. Monaghan next came to Fort Spokane, at the month of the Spokane river, where he was engaged in contracting for government supplies, and also served as postmaster and post-trader of that post from 1882 to 1885. He and C. B. King erected the first private boat on Lake Coeur d'Alene, running from Coeur d'Alene City to Old Mission during the gold excitement on the North fork of the Coeur d'Alene, and a year later they laid out the townsite of Coeur d'Alene. Mr. Monaghan came to Spokane in 1887, and this city has since been his home. His son. John Robert Monaghan, born at Chewelah, entered the United States naval academy at Annapo- lis, was graduated with honors. assigned to service as an ensign. and fell in action, under particularly heroie circumstances, in a hot skirmish with rebellions natives, near Apia in the Samoan islands. An impressive monument at the intersection of Riverside avenue and Monroe streets, was erected by admiring friends and citizens of Spokane as a tribute to his gallant memory.
Clamor still rose for better mail service, and the legislature, in January, 1865, memorialized congress to establish a distributing postoffice at Walla Walla. In sup- port of this request it argued that-
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"There is, in the territories of Washington and Oregon, a combined population of over 80.000 inhabitants ; that in these territories rieh deposits of gold and silver are being constantly discovered and developed; that the permanent population is being steadily and rapidly augmented ; that mining towns are in consequence spring- ing into existenee in every part of the mining distriets; that the present postal ar- rangements are entirely inadequate to meet the growing demand for postal eon- venienees; that the city of Walla Walla is on the natural and recognized transit route of the great northern overland mail, and is the geographie and eligible eenter of distribution for the great mining distriets of Idaho and Washington territories ; that at this time sueh settlements are almost entirely dependent upon the said over- land mail, which arrives at Walla Walla three times a week, which eity is already connected by roads with Lewiston, Fort Lapwai, Fort Colville, Florence, Pieree City, Elk City, Orofino. Deer Lodge Valley and other mining camps; that mail matter for sueh towns and settlements must and necessarily does pass through Walla Walla; and that the western portion of Washington territory. embracing the lower Colum- bia and Puget Sound country. as well as all the portion of Oregon north of the Calapooia mountains, ean, with slight addition to existing postal arrangements of overland service, secure the reception of mail matter from the Atlantic States in from five to ten days less time than by way of Sacramento, California."
A memorial adopted in January. 1866, represented "that in view of the rapid filling up of the country east of the Cascade range of mountains with a hardy and industrious elass of immigrants, who are making homes for themselves and poster- ity." there was urgent necessity at the earliest praetieable date, of effeeting a treaty with such tribes of Indians as had not already been treated with for their lands. The memorial added that the Indians not treated with had manifested a hostile atti- tude at various times and places for the last seven years: "that murder and theft are of very frequent occurrenee, and the security of life and property are in constant jeopardy from the small roving tribes that have not been placed on reservations."
"Your memorialists would further represent that all of the Indian tribes not treated with east of the Caseade mountains reside within the boundaries of Stevens county, and that they number between 1,500 and 2.000."
A memorial adopted in December, 1865, urged the establishment of a post route from Helena, Montana territory, to Wallula, on the Columbia river. in eastern Wash- ington, via Hell Gate, Pend d'Oreille lake and Antoine Plant's place on the Spo- kane. In argument it was represented that "the portion of Montana territory lying westward of the Rocky mountains is fast filling with population attraeted thither by the rich mining fields recently discovered and already being successfully developed ; that there is now in such portion of said territory an estimated population of some 95.000. distributed in numerous mining eamps and towns; that your memorialists believe that these pioneers of settlement who are laboring to develop the resources of the country have strong elaims on your consideration. and that the encouragement by the government of mining interests will materially tend to increase the supply of the precious metals and their distribution, the result of which must secure a national benefit, because of the fact that an abundance of gold and silver would defeat a speculation in gold, and as the premium on that was reduced, it would measurably enhance the value of currency, thereby alleviating the government in its discharge of our great national debt."
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Men come and go, and the years roll by, but animating motives remain the same. Portland and San Francisco merchants wanted the trade of the vast interior as against the merchants of St. Louis and Missouri river cities, who were actively reaching out for it by steamboat transportation to old Fort Benton, on the upper Missouri. Portland merchants, forty or fifty years ago, sold goods all the way to Benton, and enjoyed a thriving trade, particularly at seasons when low water pre- vented the Missouri river boats from ascending to the head of highwater navigation. The late Edward Failing, long engaged in the wholesale hardware line in Portland, informed the writer years ago that his house had placed many a rich order in the country around Fort Benton.
This motive of trade expansion was candidly paraded in the memorial. which added: "The natural outlet of said region, whereby its vast mineral wealth is to be- come beneficial to the world, is through the Columbia river to Portland, Oregon, and San Francisco: that upon these points and by such channel the population of this region are to depend, principally for their supplies, and a reference to the map will demonstrate that through this channel they can be easily, cheaply and expeditiously supplied at all seasons of the year. And your memorialists may add in this connec- tion, that if these settlements are made to depend upon St. Louis, they will be re- stricted to the occasional trips of steamboats at the high stages of water of the Mis- somri river."
By whom could then be foreseen the swift. transforming changes of forty years? the passing forevermore, with the dawning of the twentieth century, of steamboat navigation on the Missouri; and the construction, not of a single transcontinental railroad, but half a dozen; and the building. at their crossroads by the falls of the Spokane, of a city twenty times as large as the Portland of old? And whose then the vision to discern the rise by the shores of lonely Puget Sound of a city that should cover by 1912 a population greater than St. Louis boasted when the ink was yet not dry on this old memorial of six and forty years agone?
Oregon coveted then the fair vale of Walla Walla, and the Washington legisla- ture, in a resolution passed January 9, 1866, directed its delegate in congress "to resist any and all attempt to diminish the area of the territory of Washington by annexing Walla Walla county to the state of Oregon." The firm belief was further expressed "that such proposed scheme of annexation meets with the earnest disap- probation of a large majority of the citizens of said county, and finds no favor with the people of the territory."
"Coming events cast their shadows before." and the coming of the Northern Pacific was foreshadowed in a resolution passed January t5. 1866:
"Whereas there has been a project organized to connect the great lakes of the North with Puget Sound and the Pacific ocean by a railroad to be designated as the Northern Pacific railroad ; and
"Whereas, We believe such an enterprise would be greatly beneficial to Wash- ington territory in developing its various agricultural, mineral and commercial in- terests ; therefore,
"Resolved, By the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Washington, That we hail with joy an enterprise of this kind as tending to develop not only the interests of Washington territory, but all the great Northwest."
An act adopted in January, 1867. defined the boundaries of Stevens county as
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commeneing at the point of intersection of the forty-ninth parallel of latitude and the boundary line between Washington and Idaho territories; thenee west with said parallel to the summit of the Cascade mountains ; thence southerly with said summit to the headwaters of the Wenatchee river; thenee down the channel of said river to the Columbia river; thenee down mid-channel of said river to the mouth of Snake river; thenee up mid-channel of said river to the boundary line between Wash- ington and Idaho territories; thenee north on said line to the forty-ninth parallel of latitude and place of beginning.
Out of this expansive domain have since been eut the counties of Ferry, Okano- gan, Chelan, Douglas, Grant, Franklin, Lincoln, Adams, Whitman and Spokane- material ample enough in territory and wealth and variety of natural resources for an imperial state.
For the building and improvement of roads within this domain, the legislature, at the same session, authorized the county commissioners to assess a road tax of $6 on every person liable to perform labor on the public roads, and also to assess not less than 5 nor more than 10 mills on the dollar of the valuation as determined by the county assessor.
W. A. Ball and associates were authorized to eonstruet a wagon road from Goose Island on Snake river, to the Mullan road, "near the old Indian ferry on the north side of the Spokane river. and to establish bridges on the Palouse and Spokane rivers." A rather stiff schedule of tolls was anthorized: For each wagon with two animals attached, $12; for each additional span or yoke of animals, $2; for each buggy and horse. $10; for each horseman, $4; for each loaded pack animal, $2; for each loose or unloaded animal, $1; for each head of horned cattle, $1 and for each footman, and head of sheep or swine, 50 eents. But these charges were to eover the erossing at both bridges.
J. D. Sehnebley was given a grant to build and operate a bridge across the Spo- kane "at a place distant from two to three miles above the ferry of Antoine Plant, at such particular point as may be most eligible for building such bridge."
At the same session, Patrick Farrell was authorized to build and keep a toll bridge across Hangman ereek, on the direct road leading from Walla Walla to Fort Benton.
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