Lake Roosevelt Administrative History

Fort Spokane

When the Colville Indian Agency took over Fort Spokane in 1900, the buildings required a great deal of maintenance. Most were dismantled, relocated, or lost to fire and vandalism over the following decades. In 1918, when the hospital opened, only two of the standing buildings were occupied, and several were soon demolished. Most of the remaining structures were removed between 1930 and 1960, and the orchards, gardens, and fences were abandoned. Local farmers often used open areas for pasture and for raising cultivated crops, and area residents continued to use the site as a picnic spot. A caretaker for the Indian Service lived on the grounds. In 1940, as part of the Grand Coulee Dam Project, some 310 acres were transferred to Reclamation. The remaining 331.31 acres, on the higher bench, remained under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management. [30]

Beginning in the 1920s, agencies and individuals suggested a number of possible uses for Fort Spokane. The Washington Natural Parks Association thought it could be a state park. Some people in Spokane wanted to preserve it as an historic monument. The residents of Lincoln, at the mouth of the Spokane River, originally planned to relocate their town to the site of Fort Spokane when their townsite was flooded by the new reservoir, but this turned out not to be possible. The Lincoln County Historical Society and Spokane Chamber of Commerce wanted the buildings to be restored. The Park Service became interested in the site's possibilities as early as 1941, during the planning process for recreation on Lake Roosevelt. The agency asked to take over jurisdiction of the fort lands in 1943 and again in 1946 when the Tri-Party Agreement was signed. The Bureau of Land Management agreed to the transfer, but in 1949 the Spokane Business Council asserted its interest based on aboriginal use and occupancy. The STI hoped to develop the area for recreation and operate it to produce income for the tribe. As a result of the STI protest, a 1951 Solicitor's Opinion held that any withdrawal of the lands for inclusion in LARO had to be authorized by Congress. This delayed the decision for a number of years. [32]

During the 1940s and 1950s, while the Park Service was waiting on authorization to use the land outside of LARO's boundaries at Fort Spokane, the agency continued planning and developing facilities on the lower bench on land that belonged to Reclamation. The site was seriously considered for administrative headquarters in the 1940s. Although the regional office continued to urge evaluation of the historic qualities of the remaining buildings, LARO Superintendent Greider saw little value in them, or in the site's potential for LARO headquarters, as evidenced by this 1949 telegram about Fort Spokane: "Frame buildings have been removed. Brick buildings and old stable only good for salvage of brick and timbers. Fort Spokane satisfactory for district ranger station but not for general area headquarters." [33]

During the 1950s, Park Service personnel had mixed feelings about the historical significance of the few buildings still standing at Fort Spokane. In 1952, the Park Service revised its Master Plan for Fort Spokane to exclude the area occupied by the fort. In submitting this plan to the Park Service Director, Sanford Hill, Park Service Assistant Regional Director, explained that "Dr. Neasham [Park Service historian] does not believe this fort is of sufficient National importance to warrant acquisition or possible restoration by the National Park Service." The Park Service was trying at that time to reach a compromise with the Bureau of Indian Affairs whereby the Park Service would acquire only those acres that it absolutely needed for development of a recreational site at Fort Spokane. By 1957, however, the regional office again was stating in correspondence that one or more of the remaining buildings at Fort Spokane should be stabilized and used for administrative, interpretive, or other purposes. Regional staff did not believe that the fort had national significance, but they did agree that its state and local values were worthy of recognition. The primary purpose of acquiring the upper bench, however, according to LARO Superintendent Homer Robinson, was to develop a water system from the historic spring that had served the fort and to provide land for Park Service residences and a utility area away from the public-use area down on the lower bench. The regional office reminded Robinson that the Park Service had a national policy of preserving historic sites and structures and that any proposed development of Fort Spokane should not intrude on the historic scene. [34]