Out of the Past: 04/15/2026

100 Years Ago—

The people of the Fruitland Irrigation District and Kettle Falls are planning to hold the Apple Blossom Festival on April 25. They will have a big day out among the fruit blossoms and up at the falls.

Northport is the home of a new product which is now being placed on the market, with prospects of a big sale. It is W-N sauce (abbreviation of Washington) a relish for meats, gravies and salads, somewhat similar to Worcestershire sauce, but with a much more pleasing flavor. It is sold in 6-ounce bottles, and is manufactured by E.C. Stevens, for 26 years a resident of Northport and vicinity.

Colville’s old brick school building, the pride of early days, will soon be but a memory. It is being torn down, and another week will not see much of it remaining. It has served its purpose during the 37 years of its life. Much of the brick will go into the new school building which is to be erected southwest in the same block.

75 Years Ago—

Louis Bailey, who formerly operated a jewelry store in Spokane, this week opened a clothing store at 339 North Main, near the Kirkooler locker plant.

A rich ore strike at Old Dominion Mine east of Colville was reported this week by Earle B. Gibbs, owner of the mine. Gibbs reported that miners, working in a 1,400-foot tunnel in the northwest corner of the property, struck a 12-foot vein of high-grade ore.

Gordon Nelson was elected president of the PTA (Parent-Teacher Association) at the meeting on April 18. He succeeds Mrs. Rene Dubois, who has been president for the last two years.

50 Years Ago—

A ribbon cutting ceremony will open Colville’s Bicentennial Store Monday with the new Miss Colville, Kathi Pellisier, doing the honors. The store, a mobile home on loan from Mobile Ranch Sales of Colville, will have for sale souvenirs, arts, and crafts.

Lon W. Hatfield, MD, has opened a solo general practice in Colville. Hatfield, who is married and is the father of two, is sharing office space with Dr. Irwin at 154 E. 1^st Ave.

With this copy of the Statesman-Examiner is the 840-page edition of the 1976 Panorama Land Magazine, telling about the great northeastern Washington area.

25 Years Ago—

There was an eerie silence last week along Lake Roosevelt shores, where the Columbia Princess, the erstwhile Gifford/Inchelium ferry, made its way across the backwaters of Grand Coulee Dam daily until last Wednesday. The ferry sits idled by low water and sand in Lake Roosevelt. It’s anybody’s guess when the water will rise again to within 72-feet of full pool.

ONION CREEK – Onion Creek School is planning their 85^th-year anniversary dinner in May. All former students, employees, and community members are invited.

10 Years Ago—

Drivers traveling along the Colville Main Street corridor, and parts of Oak Street, are engaging in unsafe parking practices. Colville Street and Parks Superintendent Terry LeCaire said, “There is a lot more cross parking happening these days, which is why the city wants to crack down on it.”

OLYMPIA – A request to increase speed limits on a roughly 100-mile stretch of Interstate 90 in eastern Washington is being considered and the Washington State Department of Transportation is asking for comments from citizens.