Asotin, population 1,100, is the county seat of Asotin County, Washington. It lies across the Snake River from Hells Gate State Park in Idaho, which is south of Lewiston.
The Asotin County Courthouse is rather unusual. Looking at it from the front, it appears as two old red brick buildings that are about 100 years old. Just a few inches of space separate the walls of the buildings, which is typical of many downtown buildings all across the country. The buildings are both two stories and look like they might have been stores at one time. However, driving around the side of the courthouse, the red bricks give way to fake adobe stucco about halfway back. Then, looking at the courthouse from the back side, it appears to be one building, with no demarcation between them. Evidently the county government bought two abandoned stores and combined them into one to serve as a courthouse.
Just one block away is the Asotin County Courthouse Annex. It occupies a large, landscaped plaza and dominates the town of Asotin. It is just an auxiliary county office building and not the main courthouse but it is unusual because it is quite a bit larger than the courthouse is, it occupies a plaza like courthouses do and it dominates the town like many courthouses do, yet it is not the main courthouse.
Asotin is located in the Palouse Region, a lush and grassy, but emphatically hilly area in eastern Washington that also covers parts of northern Idaho and northeastern Oregon. Asotin is located in the same "hole" that Lewiston and Clarkston are in and, at the south edge of town, State Highway 129 switchbacks precipitiously up the face of a mesa. The drive down this mesa affords spectacular views of the whole area!
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Twin Cities On The Border
Lewiston has about 32,000 people and is the second largest town in northern Idaho, after Coeur d'Alene. Directly across the river from Lewiston is Clarkston, Washington, which has about 7,200 people. Both towns are named after famed explorers Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, who passed through this area in 1804. Five miles south of Clarkston is Asotin (pronounced A-SOW-TIN). Asotin has about 1,100 people and it is the county seat of Asotin County. In fact, the are only three towns in Asotin County, the other one is Anatone, a town of about 30 people sixteen miles south of Asotin. There is also an unincorporated area just outside the city limits of Clarkston that has about 10,000 people, which is more population than Clarkston has. Asotin County occupies the southeast corner of Washington. The county borders Idaho on the east and Oregon on the south.
Lewiston, meanwhile, is the county seat of Nez Perce County, while, in a strange twist, Nezperce(spelled as one word) is the county seat of Lewis County. These two counties need to trade names, it will make more sense for Lewiston to be in Lewis County and Nezperce to be in Nez Perce County.
Lewiston has a very old and historic downtown business district, which is just southeast of the confluence of the two rivers. Although I have not found any evidence of it in my research, there must have been another town just south of Lewiston that was later annexed into the city of Lewiston. This area I am wondering about is called Lewiston Orchards or, simply, The Orchards. The street numbering system in Lewiston is repeated in The Orchards area. For example, they both have First Street, Second Street, Third Street, etc. The ones in The Orchards usually have a "South" appendage added onto them because they are on the south side of the city. One of Lewiston's major streets, 17th Street, suddenly becomes 5th Street South at the intersection with Preston Avenue. There are several other numbered streets that suddenyl change numbers at an intersection. for this reason, I am convinced The Orchards used to be a separate town that has since been absorbed by Lewiston.
The location of the old Territorial Capitol Building in Lewiston, near the Clearwater River, is now occupied by the county historical museum. From pictures I have seen, the capitol was a simple, wooden building that was probably intended to be a temporary structure. When Lewiston was the capitol of Idaho, the capitol building was only half a mile from the Washington border.
Lewiston, meanwhile, is the county seat of Nez Perce County, while, in a strange twist, Nezperce(spelled as one word) is the county seat of Lewis County. These two counties need to trade names, it will make more sense for Lewiston to be in Lewis County and Nezperce to be in Nez Perce County.
Lewiston has a very old and historic downtown business district, which is just southeast of the confluence of the two rivers. Although I have not found any evidence of it in my research, there must have been another town just south of Lewiston that was later annexed into the city of Lewiston. This area I am wondering about is called Lewiston Orchards or, simply, The Orchards. The street numbering system in Lewiston is repeated in The Orchards area. For example, they both have First Street, Second Street, Third Street, etc. The ones in The Orchards usually have a "South" appendage added onto them because they are on the south side of the city. One of Lewiston's major streets, 17th Street, suddenly becomes 5th Street South at the intersection with Preston Avenue. There are several other numbered streets that suddenyl change numbers at an intersection. for this reason, I am convinced The Orchards used to be a separate town that has since been absorbed by Lewiston.
The location of the old Territorial Capitol Building in Lewiston, near the Clearwater River, is now occupied by the county historical museum. From pictures I have seen, the capitol was a simple, wooden building that was probably intended to be a temporary structure. When Lewiston was the capitol of Idaho, the capitol building was only half a mile from the Washington border.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Stolen Glory, part 2
It took Smith sixteen days to make it down to Boise. On April 14, he officially proclaimed Boise as the capital of Idaho despite the court order blocking the move. The case wound up going to the Idaho Supreme Court and they, in a roundabout way, declared Boise to be the permanent capital of Idaho. However, this verdict is only recorded in the court minutes, no official opinion was ever written. To this day, no official opinion has ever been written regarding this issue.
Even though the movement of the capital from Lewiston to Boise was just a matter of time, Boise wound up
stealing the capital, in my opinion, but there was a court order blocking the move, but the move happened anyway, in the middle of the night. That movement in the middle of the night speaks volumes because it means the acting governor knew he was breaking the law by moving territorial documents out of Lewiston.
Both Smith and Caleb Lyon liked Boise and wanted Boise to be the capital, but if it had not been moved in a clandestine manner that dark, late winter night, it probably would have moved after the case was heard in court or at least moved during the next year's legislative session. It was bound to happen anyway because Lewiston was rapidly shrinking in size because the gold rush in northern Idaho had abated and Boise was booming because of a new gold rush that was occurring in the southern part of the territory. The town of Boise was only a year old when it suddenly became the capital of Idaho, a distinction it still holds to this day. If the capital question hd been put on the ballot, I am sure Boise, or perhaps Idaho City, would have won handily because the southern part of Idaho had the vast majority of the territory's population.
Since no official court opinion has ever been written concerning this matter, that means that, technically, Lewiston is still the official capital of Idaho, but Boise is the de facto, or actual, capital of Idaho.
Even though the movement of the capital from Lewiston to Boise was just a matter of time, Boise wound up
stealing the capital, in my opinion, but there was a court order blocking the move, but the move happened anyway, in the middle of the night. That movement in the middle of the night speaks volumes because it means the acting governor knew he was breaking the law by moving territorial documents out of Lewiston.
Both Smith and Caleb Lyon liked Boise and wanted Boise to be the capital, but if it had not been moved in a clandestine manner that dark, late winter night, it probably would have moved after the case was heard in court or at least moved during the next year's legislative session. It was bound to happen anyway because Lewiston was rapidly shrinking in size because the gold rush in northern Idaho had abated and Boise was booming because of a new gold rush that was occurring in the southern part of the territory. The town of Boise was only a year old when it suddenly became the capital of Idaho, a distinction it still holds to this day. If the capital question hd been put on the ballot, I am sure Boise, or perhaps Idaho City, would have won handily because the southern part of Idaho had the vast majority of the territory's population.
Since no official court opinion has ever been written concerning this matter, that means that, technically, Lewiston is still the official capital of Idaho, but Boise is the de facto, or actual, capital of Idaho.
Stolen Glory
When Abraham Lincoln signed the bill to make Idaho a territory on July 4, 1863, he appointed William Wallace as the first governor. Territorial governors were always appointed by the president and the appointee was usually someone the president owed a political favor to and rarely was that person from the territory or even from the general area. Territorial governors usually did not serve for more than a year or two. The first goveror of Idaho, William Wallace, was at least from the general area. He had lived in Washington for a number of years, although he was originally an Easterner. Washington and Idaho were combined into one territory until that eventful day in 1863 when Idaho became a separate territory. Wallace handpicked Lewiston to be the capital simply because it was the nearest Idaho town to his hometown in Washington.
He presided over the legislative session of 1863, then resigned as governor to do other things. A territorial governorship was not a very glamorous job.
During the early summer of 1864, a New Yorker named Caleb Lyon was appointed governor. Almost immediately, he began trying to get the capital moved to Boise. In the first legislative session, about 60% of the legislators were from the southern part of Idaho. A bill had been introduced in the first legislative session to move the capital to Boise. Caleb Lyon continued this effort during the summer months. When the second legislative session began, 75% of the legislators were from southern Idaho. Another bill to move the capital was introduced and passed by a 75% margin (all the southern Idaho representatives voted 'yes'). Caleb Lyon quickly signed the bill and then snuck out of town in the middle of the night described as a duck hunter because he knew how unpopular the signing of that bill would be. The next day, a court order blocked it, because of some shenanigans that went on behind the scenes to get the bill passed. While the bill was blocked, the governor was out of the territory, so his secretary, Clinton Smith, was named acting governor in his absence. In March of 1865, Smith brought a contingent of soldiers from Fort Lapwai and broke into the capitol in the middle of the night. They then broke into a locked safe. Once the safe was open, Smith took the Territorial Seal, the Territorial Constitution and as many official papers as he could stuff into his saddlebags and then made it over to the river where a boat was waiting to ferry him across. He went the three blocks from capitol to river under armed guard. Since Lewiston is situated on the Snake River, which is the border with Washington, all Smith had to do was cross the midpoint of the river and he would be out of the jurisdiction of Idaho law enforcement authorities.
He presided over the legislative session of 1863, then resigned as governor to do other things. A territorial governorship was not a very glamorous job.
During the early summer of 1864, a New Yorker named Caleb Lyon was appointed governor. Almost immediately, he began trying to get the capital moved to Boise. In the first legislative session, about 60% of the legislators were from the southern part of Idaho. A bill had been introduced in the first legislative session to move the capital to Boise. Caleb Lyon continued this effort during the summer months. When the second legislative session began, 75% of the legislators were from southern Idaho. Another bill to move the capital was introduced and passed by a 75% margin (all the southern Idaho representatives voted 'yes'). Caleb Lyon quickly signed the bill and then snuck out of town in the middle of the night described as a duck hunter because he knew how unpopular the signing of that bill would be. The next day, a court order blocked it, because of some shenanigans that went on behind the scenes to get the bill passed. While the bill was blocked, the governor was out of the territory, so his secretary, Clinton Smith, was named acting governor in his absence. In March of 1865, Smith brought a contingent of soldiers from Fort Lapwai and broke into the capitol in the middle of the night. They then broke into a locked safe. Once the safe was open, Smith took the Territorial Seal, the Territorial Constitution and as many official papers as he could stuff into his saddlebags and then made it over to the river where a boat was waiting to ferry him across. He went the three blocks from capitol to river under armed guard. Since Lewiston is situated on the Snake River, which is the border with Washington, all Smith had to do was cross the midpoint of the river and he would be out of the jurisdiction of Idaho law enforcement authorities.
Friday, April 15, 2011
An Early Boomtown
Lewiston, Idaho was founded in 1861 during a big mining boom that was taking place in what is now northern Idaho. At the time, this area was part of Washington, which was a territory at the time. Washington had been split off from Oregon when the latter became a state in 1859.
Lewiston's founding in 1861 (not sure of the month), makes it the second oldest town in Idaho, but it is the oldest incorporated town in Idaho. The oldest town, Franklin, was platted on August 14, 1860 by Brigham Young. So, Franklin is the only town in Idaho that is older than Lewiston. Franklin is in southeastern Idaho about half a mile north of the Utah border. When Franklin was laid out, the border was poorly defined and it was believed the site was in Utah.
Lewiston, in its early days, was the shipping and supply center for the gold mines of what is now northern Idaho. Its location at the confluence of the Clearwater and Snake Rivers proved to be ideal. Big steamwheeler ships could access Lewiston via the Columbia and Snake Rivers from the Pacific Ocean. Lewiston is still a seaport today, but now boats have to negotiate locks and canals to manuever around all of the dams that have been built athwart the Snake and Columbia Rivers since then. It is Idaho's only seaport. (I'll bet you didn't know Idaho had a seaport, did you?)
Lewiston's location made it boom from day one. When Idaho was partitioned off from Washington and became a separate territory in 1863, the booming seaport of Lewiston was chosen as its capital. At the time, Lewiston had about 7,500 people. The boom lasted for about one more year before the town began shrink because the gold mines farther east were playing out, one by one.
In the first Territorial Legislative session, which began in the winter of 1863, approximately 60% of the members of the legislature were from southern Idaho, where most of the territory's population resided. This was noticed and people began to wonder how long Lewiston would serve as the capital. When the legislative session of 1864 began, Lewiston had already begun to empty out and now about 75% of the legislators were from southern Idaho, but they had to make the long, arduous trek to northern Idaho to serve in the government.
During the summer of 1864, even before the legislative session began, there was a movement by a fledgling mining town in southwest Idaho called Boise to take the capital away from Lewiston. There was also a movement by the residents of Idaho City, 35 miles northeast of Boise, to become the capital of Idaho. At the time, Idaho City had about 35,000 people and was the biggest city in the Pacific Northwest due to a massive gold rush that took place in the area at the time. Today, it is a town of about 510 people and is a tourist mecca. The population of Idaho City had dropped as low as 91 before its current rebirth. In fact, the massive population influx in the Idaho City area is what led to Idaho's establishment as a separate territory in the first place. It is amazing to me that Idaho City never became the capital of Idaho considering the circumstances of 1860s.
Boise became the capital of Idaho in 1865 in a very underhanded way. The day that Boise officially became the capital was April 14,1865. However, it received very little publicity at the time because of a more famous event that happened on that same day in Washington, D.C. On the day that Boise became the capital of Idaho, Abraham Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth.
In the next installment of this blog, I will go into more detail about how Boise stole the capital from Lewiston.
Lewiston's founding in 1861 (not sure of the month), makes it the second oldest town in Idaho, but it is the oldest incorporated town in Idaho. The oldest town, Franklin, was platted on August 14, 1860 by Brigham Young. So, Franklin is the only town in Idaho that is older than Lewiston. Franklin is in southeastern Idaho about half a mile north of the Utah border. When Franklin was laid out, the border was poorly defined and it was believed the site was in Utah.
Lewiston, in its early days, was the shipping and supply center for the gold mines of what is now northern Idaho. Its location at the confluence of the Clearwater and Snake Rivers proved to be ideal. Big steamwheeler ships could access Lewiston via the Columbia and Snake Rivers from the Pacific Ocean. Lewiston is still a seaport today, but now boats have to negotiate locks and canals to manuever around all of the dams that have been built athwart the Snake and Columbia Rivers since then. It is Idaho's only seaport. (I'll bet you didn't know Idaho had a seaport, did you?)
Lewiston's location made it boom from day one. When Idaho was partitioned off from Washington and became a separate territory in 1863, the booming seaport of Lewiston was chosen as its capital. At the time, Lewiston had about 7,500 people. The boom lasted for about one more year before the town began shrink because the gold mines farther east were playing out, one by one.
In the first Territorial Legislative session, which began in the winter of 1863, approximately 60% of the members of the legislature were from southern Idaho, where most of the territory's population resided. This was noticed and people began to wonder how long Lewiston would serve as the capital. When the legislative session of 1864 began, Lewiston had already begun to empty out and now about 75% of the legislators were from southern Idaho, but they had to make the long, arduous trek to northern Idaho to serve in the government.
During the summer of 1864, even before the legislative session began, there was a movement by a fledgling mining town in southwest Idaho called Boise to take the capital away from Lewiston. There was also a movement by the residents of Idaho City, 35 miles northeast of Boise, to become the capital of Idaho. At the time, Idaho City had about 35,000 people and was the biggest city in the Pacific Northwest due to a massive gold rush that took place in the area at the time. Today, it is a town of about 510 people and is a tourist mecca. The population of Idaho City had dropped as low as 91 before its current rebirth. In fact, the massive population influx in the Idaho City area is what led to Idaho's establishment as a separate territory in the first place. It is amazing to me that Idaho City never became the capital of Idaho considering the circumstances of 1860s.
Boise became the capital of Idaho in 1865 in a very underhanded way. The day that Boise officially became the capital was April 14,1865. However, it received very little publicity at the time because of a more famous event that happened on that same day in Washington, D.C. On the day that Boise became the capital of Idaho, Abraham Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth.
In the next installment of this blog, I will go into more detail about how Boise stole the capital from Lewiston.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Lewiston
The one and only time that I visited northern Idaho, I entered the state at the town of Lewiston. Lewiston is located on the border with Washington. The town is at the confluence of the Snake River and the Clearwater River. At the confluence of these two rivers, the Snake River makes a 90 degree turn to the west and enters Washington. At this point, the border between the two states leaves the river and becomes a land border all the way up to the border with Canada. The point where the Clearwater flows into the Snake is the lowest point in Idaho, 710 feet above sea level. As a result, Lewiston is usually one of the hottest places in Idaho during the summer months.
The oldest part of Lewiston, which is now the downtown business district, developed southeast of the confluence. Today, about 95% of Lewiston lies to the south of the Clearwater River. In fact, the population north of the river is only about 1,000 people.
Lewiston has slightly more than 32,000 people. It is growing, but very slowly. Since 1970, Lewiston has grown from just over 26,000 people to just over 32,000. In fact, until the 1990 Census, Lewiston was the largest town in the northern part of Idaho, now it is the second largest, after Coeur d'Alene, which has grown so fast it has left Lewiston in the dust. Coeur d'Alene now has about 50,000 people. Post Falls, a few miles west of Coeur d'Alene, is also growing at an explosive rate. It now has about 26,000 people and will eclipse Lewiston in the next few years.
The northern half of Lewiston is basically down in a hole with an average elevation of around 750 feet above sea level. All of the streets that connect the northern and southern parts of town make a steep climb. The southern part of town is about 2,000 feet above sea level! That makes for alot of steep streets in town. The extremely low elevation follows the Clearwater River east from Lewiston to a short distance east of Orofino, which is 44 miles east of Lewiston (Orofino holds the record for the highest temperature ever recorded in Idaho, 118 degrees, and Lewiston is right behind with a record of 117 degrees). Any drive into Lewiston requires a steep descent in any direction.
Across the Snake River from Lewiston is Clarkston, Washington. These two towns both honor the intrepid exploratory party led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark by taking their names.
Clarkston has about 7,200 people, so it is alot smaller than Lewiston.
The oldest part of Lewiston, which is now the downtown business district, developed southeast of the confluence. Today, about 95% of Lewiston lies to the south of the Clearwater River. In fact, the population north of the river is only about 1,000 people.
Lewiston has slightly more than 32,000 people. It is growing, but very slowly. Since 1970, Lewiston has grown from just over 26,000 people to just over 32,000. In fact, until the 1990 Census, Lewiston was the largest town in the northern part of Idaho, now it is the second largest, after Coeur d'Alene, which has grown so fast it has left Lewiston in the dust. Coeur d'Alene now has about 50,000 people. Post Falls, a few miles west of Coeur d'Alene, is also growing at an explosive rate. It now has about 26,000 people and will eclipse Lewiston in the next few years.
The northern half of Lewiston is basically down in a hole with an average elevation of around 750 feet above sea level. All of the streets that connect the northern and southern parts of town make a steep climb. The southern part of town is about 2,000 feet above sea level! That makes for alot of steep streets in town. The extremely low elevation follows the Clearwater River east from Lewiston to a short distance east of Orofino, which is 44 miles east of Lewiston (Orofino holds the record for the highest temperature ever recorded in Idaho, 118 degrees, and Lewiston is right behind with a record of 117 degrees). Any drive into Lewiston requires a steep descent in any direction.
Across the Snake River from Lewiston is Clarkston, Washington. These two towns both honor the intrepid exploratory party led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark by taking their names.
Clarkston has about 7,200 people, so it is alot smaller than Lewiston.
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Northern Idaho
I have been in the northern part of Idaho on one occasion. The state is only 40 miles wide at the top, where it squeezes between Montana and Washington. I have heard this area referred to as "The Chimney" on the Weather Channel a bunch of times. Usually is it called the "Panhandle" by most people. I guess a skinny part of any state is called a "panhandle."
As I mentioned is the last installment of this blog, the northern part of Idaho has very little in common with the southern part of the state. This area was once a part of Washington, which was still a territory at the time the current border was delineated. When the border was drawn, the northern part of Idaho mostly consisted of rowdy mining towns that were established by a series of gold rushes in the early 1860s. The territorial legislature in Washington wanted nothing to do with the rowdy miners and, thus, drew the border to exclude the mining towns.
Idaho was established as a territory on July 4, 1863, by Abraham Lincoln. William Wallace was appointed by Lincoln to be the first governor. In territories, governors were appointed by the President and the appointee was usually someone the President owed a political favor to and the governor was rarely, if ever, a resident of the territory that he would reside over. Wallace chose Lewiston as the capital of Idaho Territory simply because it was the closest Idaho town to his hometown in Washington. It was a booming town, however, due to the gold rush that was ongoing at the time. In the summer of 1863, Lewiston had grown to approximately 10,000 people and it was bigger than Seattle and Portland combined. Lewiston is located on the border with Washington, with the Snake River serving as the border until it makes a 90 degree curve into Washington. Beginning at that point, the border between Idaho and Washington is a land border for the remainder of the distance to the 49th parallel, which is the border with Canada.
Even though Lewiston is barely in Idaho, it was a good choice for the territorial capital at the time because it was a major transportation corridor in the 1860s. It is located at the confluence of the Snake River and the Clearwater River and this made access by boat easy in the days before roads. Also, even though Lewiston is 465 miles from the Pacific Ocean, it was a seaport! The Snake River and its "parent" stream, the Columbia River, are both extremely wide and deep rivers and large ships were able to make it as far as Lewiston.
Lewiston is still a seaport today, the only seaport Idaho has. Only now, riverboats have to negotiate a series of locks to get around all the dams between Lewiston and the Pacific Ocean.
So, even though Lewiston was chosen as the capital of Idaho Territory simply because it was the closest town in the territory to the first governor's hometown in Washington, it was a major transportation corridor, it was the supply point for all the northern Idaho gold mines and it was a booming town, so it was a logical choice to serve as the capital of the new territory.
Lewiston would only serve as the capital of Idaho for one year and seven months. I will get into more details about that in the next one or two editions of this blog. There are some very interesting details about that are still unresolved to this day.
As I mentioned is the last installment of this blog, the northern part of Idaho has very little in common with the southern part of the state. This area was once a part of Washington, which was still a territory at the time the current border was delineated. When the border was drawn, the northern part of Idaho mostly consisted of rowdy mining towns that were established by a series of gold rushes in the early 1860s. The territorial legislature in Washington wanted nothing to do with the rowdy miners and, thus, drew the border to exclude the mining towns.
Idaho was established as a territory on July 4, 1863, by Abraham Lincoln. William Wallace was appointed by Lincoln to be the first governor. In territories, governors were appointed by the President and the appointee was usually someone the President owed a political favor to and the governor was rarely, if ever, a resident of the territory that he would reside over. Wallace chose Lewiston as the capital of Idaho Territory simply because it was the closest Idaho town to his hometown in Washington. It was a booming town, however, due to the gold rush that was ongoing at the time. In the summer of 1863, Lewiston had grown to approximately 10,000 people and it was bigger than Seattle and Portland combined. Lewiston is located on the border with Washington, with the Snake River serving as the border until it makes a 90 degree curve into Washington. Beginning at that point, the border between Idaho and Washington is a land border for the remainder of the distance to the 49th parallel, which is the border with Canada.
Even though Lewiston is barely in Idaho, it was a good choice for the territorial capital at the time because it was a major transportation corridor in the 1860s. It is located at the confluence of the Snake River and the Clearwater River and this made access by boat easy in the days before roads. Also, even though Lewiston is 465 miles from the Pacific Ocean, it was a seaport! The Snake River and its "parent" stream, the Columbia River, are both extremely wide and deep rivers and large ships were able to make it as far as Lewiston.
Lewiston is still a seaport today, the only seaport Idaho has. Only now, riverboats have to negotiate a series of locks to get around all the dams between Lewiston and the Pacific Ocean.
So, even though Lewiston was chosen as the capital of Idaho Territory simply because it was the closest town in the territory to the first governor's hometown in Washington, it was a major transportation corridor, it was the supply point for all the northern Idaho gold mines and it was a booming town, so it was a logical choice to serve as the capital of the new territory.
Lewiston would only serve as the capital of Idaho for one year and seven months. I will get into more details about that in the next one or two editions of this blog. There are some very interesting details about that are still unresolved to this day.
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