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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1883 | 9 |
| 1889 | 3 |
| 1891 | 1 |
| 1892 | 5 |
| 1895 | 2 |
| 1898 | 1 |
| 1903 | 2 |
| 1908 | 1 |
24 stories matching construct
- Plumbers Strike and Demand Wage Hike
Spokane master plumbers face a complete work stoppage as journeymen strike for better pay, sparking fears of a broader construction crisis.
- The great railway washout of 1883
Heavy spring snowmelt triggers dozens of washouts along the railway between Spokane and Ainsworth, leaving passengers stranded in the mud.
- A Frontier City That Could Not Stop Building
Brick blocks, storefronts, and frame houses rose across Spokane Falls as contractors raced winter—and touted the town's future.
- The Great Northern Railway Arrives in Spokane
After years of construction, the final spike connects Spokane to the Great Northern line, linking the city to the East.
- A Deadly Shift in the Great Northern Yards
A newly hired switchman dies after slipping under the wheels of an engine in Spokane, leaving behind a grieving family.
- A Stage for the Falls: The Push for Spokane's First Great Opera House
With touring companies expected on the Northern Pacific, local boosters propose a 1,000-seat frame hall—and a joint-stock company to build it for $6,000.
- The Union Block Collapse: A Mason's Fall Through a Defective Staging
A plank gave way during construction at Union Block, sending one mason into the cellar with a broken collarbone and a second man tumbling to the ground floor.
- J.J. Hill's Great Northern Railway Nears the Coast
A look at the rapid rise of James J. Hill and the construction of the Great Northern railway through the rugged Cascades.
- Great Northern Crews Link Spokane and Push Toward the Columbia
Tracklaying reaches a fever pitch as James J. Hill's Great Northern connects to Spokane, with plans to bridge the Cascades and link Seattle to the East by the new year.
- Spokane Buys Itself an Army Post
Boosters raise cash and acreage for a new military post on the ground of an 1858 campaign against confederated tribes.
- Tragedy in the Spokane Excavations
A laborer is killed and his foreman injured after a delayed dynamite blast detonates during construction work on First Avenue.
- The Iron Road Rushes East
In 1892, railroad tycoon James J. Hill arrived in Spokane to finalize plans for a massive rail expansion that would forever link the Columbia River plateau to the transcontinental network.
- The Tragedy at Trent: A Deadly Railroad Collision
A passenger train and a freight train collide in a fatal error, killing a brakeman and prompting a rare condemnation of corporate negligence.
- Spokane’s Plumbers’ Strike Escalates
A two-month-old labor standoff between the plumbers' union and master builders threatens to halt all major construction in the city.
- The City That Refused to Stay Burnt
After the Great Spokane Fire of 1889, civic leaders rejected the urge to build cheaply, choosing instead to construct a permanent, iron-and-stone metropolis fueled by the river's immense power.
- Spokane County Commissioners Fire Courthouse Superintendent, Demand Architect's Resignation
A dispute over incompetency and neglect of duty leads to a shake-up in the construction of the Spokane County courthouse.
- The Rapid Rise of a City from the Ashes
After a devastating fire nearly destroyed Spokane, the community bypassed despair, opting instead for an immediate, high-velocity reconstruction effort that saw the city rising before the smoke had even cleared.
- The Iron Flash: How Spokane Fell for a Railroad
In a daring midnight maneuver that bypassed local obstructionists, the Oregon and Washington Territory railroad laid its tracks through downtown Spokane in a single night, turning a political standoff into a civic celebration.
- The Boom Will Not Be Questioned
Three months in Spokane Falls and the Review answers the doubters: the hammers are still ringing, the hotels are full, and when the Northern Pacific opens in September the real rush begins.
- A Spokane Craftsman's Twelve-Year Masterpiece in Human Hair
Charles Streib spent over a decade creating portraits of Generals Washington and Sherman from thousands of strands of human hair—a feat of patience and artistry that astonished the city.
- The Minister's Daughter and the $300 Check
Winifred Moter — adopted as an infant by Rev. R. C. Moter — is jailed in Spokane on a forgery charge, and Newport weighs its sympathy for the parents against the wreck of a young life.
- The Six-Story Mill Built on a Rock in the Spokane River
In 1883, S. G. Havermale and B. F. Davis began raising a flour mill and elevator on Little Island, betting that water power and wheat would make Spokane Falls a grain capital.
- Spokane Dressed for a Railroad King—and Waited Until Midnight
Spokane Falls spent a week building arches and hanging evergreens for Henry Villard's Northern Pacific excursion, but delayed trains turned the grand reception into a series of after-dark whistle-stops—and Ulysses S. Grant drew the crowd that the railroad had promised.
- Spokane Falls Council Tackles Charter, Cash, and a Dead Horse
In August 1883, the Spokane Falls City Council met to discuss a new city charter, unpaid bills, street assessments, and the problem of a dead horse. The meeting offers a glimpse into the challenges of a growing frontier town.