The Old Koot

Christmas Memories

2011-12-22T08:46:00.000-08:00

Ho Ho Ohhhhhhh........

I must admit first off that I am The Grinch. And Scrooge. I wasn't always and indeed loved Christmas as a kid (what kid doesn't?). My childhood joys of opening Xmas gifts were surpassed only in the summertime when the hydroplanes came to race in the Diamond Cup on Lake Coeur d'Alene. But Christmas was fun and gifts, aka TOYS!, were wonderful. For the most part. Like everyone, I got some awesome, and some not-so-awesome, gifts over the years.

As a tyke I got the usual late-1950's and early-1960's assortment of trains, cars, airplanes and tractors. Oh how I wish I still had them all (in mint condition, hello Ebay!).

Some of my best gifts came from Uncle Ray and Aunt Mary in Montana. Over the years I got cool stuff like an astronaut helmet and a secret agent attache case for Xmas and birthdays. But my All Time Number One Greatest Xmas Gift of All was an Aurora Thunderjet 500 HO Slot Car Set. It wasn't a big set but that small track and the skinny-tire Fords started a love affair that grew and lasted until I was in high school.

In time, all my buddies got slot car sets and we'd combine our track to create huge layouts. I had control of half an unfinished basement that was hobby central. The wall was covered with center spreads pulled from Hot Rod and Car Craft magazines, a desk was dedicated to slot car tune-ups and model car building, and the radio was always tuned into the original KVNI at "1240 on your dial". What we now refer to as Man Caves was, back in the day, Boy's Club.

Other memorable Xmas gifts included a 20 gauge shotgun (pheasant hunting!), a trip to Hawaii (4th grade, didn't mean much then but was my first big vacation) and a trip to the 1995 Indy 500 from my wonderful wife, Sue.

One year I had my eye set on a wonderful plastic Army set from JC Penny and let know that that box of little green men and vehicles was what I desired. Come Xmas morn I didn't get it. After everything was opened and breakfast was over, Dad broke the news that they got the Army set but couldn't find it. We went through Mom's office (Ace Travel, 3rd & Sherman, 2nd floor) and Dad's (CdA Chamber of Commerce attached to the Desert Hotel) to no avail. Such is life, Xmas was still great.

In the summer, for some reason, I was yanking my way through an 8 foot long basement closet with only a walk in door. As I pushed my way to one end I heard something. Crawling back I discovered a box. Hello Xmas. We spent the summer setting up all the soldiers, cannons, jeeps and tanks only to bombard them with dirt clods. Now that was a great Xmas present and well worth waiting for.

Then there's the presents that didn't go over so well. As a high school freshman I got a typewriter. Sure, I was in typing class, but a typewriter as a present?! (This may have been a turning point in my perception of Christmas.) Not too many years ago I got a "brew beer at home" kit (which was promptly returned, if I'm going to be a home brewer I'm sure not going to do it in a plastic jug from Spencer Gifts). No complaints on socks and underwear, they may not be fun but are everyday useful.

But the all time worst Xmas gift was from my dear Aunt Mary. After Uncle Ray had passed, which suggests that he was the "fun" guy in the pair.

My family was a Christmas morning family, but on Christmas Eve I was allowed to open ONE gift as long as it was from someone other than them. Knowing that Ray & Mary always sent cool stuff, I plucked a small box from under the tree. From the size it could have been a wallet, maybe with money. Excitedly I opened it only to discover the most gawd awful ornate gold maltese cross on an equally awful gold chain. (And this was the days before wearing crap like alarm clocks around your neck was cool.) The one time I wore it was the one time I also wore a funky white turtleneck just long enough for Dad to take a photo. I need to find it, you'd get a great laugh. Out of respect I stashed the cross somewhere and one day re-gifted it in some manner.

McEuen, Part 5

2011-12-14T10:38:00.000-08:00

With the end of 2011 just around the corner and I look back at the year, McEuen remains one of the most controversial issues in Coeur d'Alene. It even had a direct affect on the 2011 City Elections. If you've read many of my Old Koot entries (see Feb 2010), you know that I have strong feelings for this important piece of land. As such I'd like to review what's happened this year along with a couple of pieces I wrote.

In February my following essay on the McEuen debate was posted on the CdA Press website as well as published as a My Turn editorial. It is the basis of my rants and irritation regarding McEuen. Follow along my next couple posts as I continue to cover the topic of McEuen and politics in Coeur d'Alene from 2011.

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In all the recent talk and reporting of McEuen, the concept driven by the Committee of Nine has been mentioned only in passing. It's too bad because it was created by citizens with input from all parties. A concept that, after a year and a half in the making, was accepted by the Coeur d'Alene City Council. Without fanfare and without a public vote. Yet, save the Library, nothing has come of it. What happened?

Around the year 2000 and after the Hyett-Palma and Walker-Macy studies, the future of McEuen was at the feet of the City Council. A committee was set with a mission of considering the various reports and, with local input, come up with a conceptual plan/vision for a future McEuen. This group included Scott Reed, Red Halpern, Dave Schreiber, Denny Hague, Mike McDowell, Brad Jordan, Steve Anthony, landscape architects Dell Hatch and Jon Mueller. I was and am proud to have been a member of that group of high quality community leaders and what our committee accomplished.

We met mostly weekly and started with setting ground rules for how any/all concepts would relate to McEuen. That became what is now known as the Seven Values. If you aren't familiar with that list I urge you to take the time to read it (see below). It is the single most important document regarding McEuen.

Consulting with City Attorneys and associated government entities helped us define what could and couldn't be done, both legally and logically. We met with various civic entities connected to McEuen and spent one entire Saturday talking with representatives of each group to understand their concerns, answer their questions and get their input.

As concepts were drawn out we held public workshops where locals sat in groups at tables with maps, pencils, markers and survey sheets. The only "loading" we did was to try and put opposing viewpoints together at the same table to stimulate discussion. Committee members acted as moderators only, moving from table to table answering questions. Each table then presented their findings. After a workshop we returned to committee and tweaked things in accordance of what we heard, then held the next of what was three workshops.

These workshops are some of my all time favorite memories of working as community. Discussions were spirited but mannered. Ideas were traded and eyes opened. A "good of the whole" attitude won out over myopic special intrests. Feedback was positive and enthusiastic as people visioned the possibilities.

With the Values set in stone and a plan created by the community, a "final" concept was accepted by the City Council. And it went in a drawer. Outside our beautiful Library, nothing much has happened since.

Fast forward to now and the City's latest attempt to update McEuen. And, not uncommon to Coeur d'Alene, the topic ellicits smiles, ideas, hopes, passions and, sadly, fear and hate. Emotions so high it drove one person to consider a gun at a meeting. Take a breath people. Let me address a few issues and tone down the emotions.

The land now known as McEuen has, over time, been everything from an industrial site to a fairgrounds to low income housing. It was never owned by Mae McEuen and therefore never given to the City by her nor does it carry any sacred covenants from her. I am shocked by the number of people who still think this.

One of two huge issues is the boat ramps. I am personally not in favor of removing the boat launch and the Committee of Nine's concept also left it in place. It's long history and the restraints from decades old deals with entities like Land and Water made the decision obvious. But the idea of moving the trailer parking for green/people space is even more obvious. If nothing else is done, that blacktop has got to go.

Then there's the baseball field. I'm surprised that's the best we can do for our American Legion teams. Forget the location and view, it's a low quality baseball field. Local high school fields are superior. I'm puzzled that with the cries to save the field, nobody seems to want a better field.

One of the Seven Values states we "Ensure the replacement of any displaced facilities with equal or better facilities."

Imagine a baseball facility serving not only Legion but high school, Major Little League and a returned NIC team. One that could proudly host tournaments and draw crowds to watch America's game. Would something like that be the right fit at McEuen? I don't think so.

There was a baseball plan once. Post-Committee of Nine, an ad-hoc committee took on the idea of a better baseball facility for Coeur d'Alene. I was also in that little group and boy oh boy did we have a great plan for a two-field complex, one being a feature stadium. This first class facility would meet said Value in spades and open the green space door at McEuen. But where to put it?

Stars must have aligned and the City Council acquired property earmarked for baseball. Located near arterials with room for plenty of parking, it was a perfect fit. So what happened to it? That property is now known as Kroc Center. While Kroc is a wonderful assent to Coeur d'Alene, it may be the single biggest reason McEuen was left behind until now.

An obvious move now would be a new Memorial Baseball Stadium. With rights of way opening for parking next to Northwest Boulevard and located across the street from City Park, what a great place to watch America's favorite game.

Back to McEuen. Looking at this grand new vision and as one who poured his time and heart into McEuen over the years, I gotta ask. What is the City thinking?

Why did we spend money on yet another professional study and another (21 member!) committee when a plan driven by The People already existed? How could a concept this fantastic be produced with seemingly so little public input? And for the $64K question, if we couldn't pull off a simpler plan during better economic times, how is this one going to work?

Now the big question is do we vote on McEuen. Of course some are calling for a vote, it's a City Council election year. Don't tell me you haven't lived here long enough to see that one coming.

My question is what exactly would we vote on? Is it A, leave it alone forever, or B, accept the proposed concept as it stands? Black or white. One or the other.

The fact is, any such vote would be a waste of time and money and wouldn't accomplish anything no matter how the vote went. Neither side wins in the end. If the concept is booted then we're saddled with a future of the same old underused and overvalued property. If it's accepted and during the multi-year build out things need to be added, deleted or moved, who makes the call? Or do we have another vote on where the swing-set is relocated? Any concept is just that, a work in progress and a yes or no vote isn't what McEuen or Coeur d'Alene deserves.

A change is due. Near half of the McEuen property is currently parking lot. For being adjacent to gems like Lake Coeur d'Alene, Tubbs Hill, a charming downtown and a world class resort, the property is vastly underused. Toss out any numbers you want, this property can and should serve a greater number of people than it does on its current day to day basis. You can see more people at G.O. Phippany Park.

Say NO to a vote but say YES to more public input. This is not something that needs to be on such a fast track. If we've waited this long, then let's take a little more time to do it right. I ask the City of Coeur d'Alene to present the Committee of Nine plan to the people before one more step is taken on McEuen. It was and still is a viable, multi faceted and more affordable plan. I believe the community would rally around a more reasonable option. Let's take another look before we go any farther.

Now go take a walk around McEuen, imagine and dream.

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The Values

Recognize the value of public-owned space and encourage improvement
in accessibility and usability by and for the citizens;
Promote and enhance open space;
Encourage greater use of downtown public space for the community;
Recognize the value of vistas and views;
Ensure the replacement of any displaced facilities with equal or better
facilities;
Explore possibilities in creating a community gathering place;
Link the Downtown to the waterfront.

McEuen, Part 6

2011-12-14T10:35:00.000-08:00

The McEuen debate continues. A week prior to the 2011 election my following Letter to the Editor was printed in the CdA Press. Now, mid-December, neither issue referred to has been addressed.
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As this election season draws to a close (hooray!), I still have concerns on what seems to be a top issue regarding the City of Coeur d'Alene races: McEuen. I've long been troubled with this topic and wrote a Press My Turn column earlier this year detailing such. Since then, neither of these following items have been addressed to any satisfaction so I am revisiting them.

Some Council candidates and many residents are demanding a public vote on McEuen. But not once has anyone, candidate or activist, ever attempted to define how that vote would be worded and exactly what the supposed "yes" or "no" vote would be on.

I see the possibility of two choices; Yes, build a $35 million McEuen or, No, leave McEuen as it is. McEuen is too important to be reduced to a yea or nay and neither of these choices are acceptable. Following a rigid plan would be foolhardy yet not doing anything still leaves us with an underused resource and blacktop where green space should be.

This point is especially directed at candidates who are using a McEuen vote as part of their campaign platform. You want a vote? Then define the vote. Otherwise this is just political rhetoric. And I think we can all agree that America already has plenty of that to go around.

The second point I raised last spring was a seemingly simple one. Ten years ago a McEuen concept that was driven by community input was unanimously passed by City Council. That plan was put away and I am still perplexed as to why the City saw the need to start from scratch, again, and create a committee that apparently didn't seek public input yet came up with a pie in the sky concept to the tune of $35 million plus.

I asked 6 months ago and I'm asking again, what happened to that plan and why hasn't the public been given the opportunity to view it along with the current one?

Why are these such difficult concepts? It's simple, Define any proposed McEuen vote and show us the plan the City of Coeur d'Alene has been sitting on for a decade. This election and the future of McEuen are based on these two items. It shouldn't be this hard for the people of Coeur d'Alene to get this information.

Ask questions. Demand answers. And don't forget to VOTE!

FYI North Idaho Blogs

2010-12-29T10:44:00.000-08:00

When I was unemployed I took a small, part time gig working the websites for FYI North Idaho, your best guide to the 5 northern counties. Part of my job was posting to the FYI blog. This is pretty much when I quit writing much on my own blog here. I wrote mostly about Idaho history, trivia and legends, much of it from my rememberances. I was talking about a topic covered in those blogs and it made me go back and read it. I don't know how many people ever saw/read any of that (nor will they here), but most of the posts I made are linked here. Read the title for a clue on what the it's about.

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2009/12/north-idaho-urban-legends-underground.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2009/12/december-15-in-idaho-history-shoshone.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2009/12/gravity-hill.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2009/12/this-day-in-history-dec-18-1975.html

Playland Pier burns

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2009/12/december-22-in-idaho-history.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2009/12/playland-pier-follow-up.html

http://spokanecarrousel.org/OtherCarousels.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2009/12/28-december-in-idaho-history.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/01/when-winter-was-winter.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/01/this-day-in-idaho-history-5-january.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/01/this-day-in-north-idaho-history-january.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/01/this-day-in-north-idaho-history-jan-12.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/01/on-this-day-in-idaho-history-18-jan.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/01/native-american-connection-to-past.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/01/huddy-and-beer.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/01/when-winter-was-winter.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/02/ski-great-potato.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/02/ski-great-potato-part-2.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/02/this-day-in-history-february-3.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/02/on-this-day-in-history-5-february.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/02/on-this-day-in-idaho-history-feb-8.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/02/4-seasons-sing-idaho.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/02/military-connection-to-north-idaho.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/02/great-seal-of-idaho.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/03/this-day-in-idaho-history-feb-27-28.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/03/this-day-in-idaho-history-march-4-1863.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/03/great-seal-of-state-of-idaho-part-2.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/03/this-day-in-history-march-9.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/03/this-day-in-idaho-history-18-march-1859.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/03/born-in-iron-horse-parking-lot.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/04/this-day-in-history-april-7.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/04/empty-building-at-5th-lakeside.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/04/devil-worshipers-hook-man.html

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/04/north-idaho-parks-part-1.html

Cataldo

http://fyinorthidaho.blogspot.com/2010/04/north-idaho-parks-part-2.html

CdA City

The Diamond Cup "Riots", Fact & Fiction

2010-07-22T10:35:00.000-07:00

There's a riot goin' on!

Looking back to the days of the Diamond Cup, there are countless smiles and stories. As we babysat the Miss Budweiser in front of the Museum of North Idaho the weekend of July 4th, many people stopped to look, question, admire, have their pictures taken and talk about hydroplanes and the Diamond Cup. It was fun listening to stories of hanging out in the pits, the sound of the mighty V-12's, family outings to watch the races, hydro parades down Sherman, the boat boom on the lake, the concerts and dances, national entertainers performing, the Diamond Cup Room at the Desert Hotel and the Hydromaniacs. Only a couple people mentioned the riots. That's right, riots.

If there is any local story that has grown with age, it's the Diamond Cup "riots". They weren't anything near the "We won the World Series, let's burn the city down" type riot as some would have you believe. There are an number people who were smack dab in the middle of these disturbances and all I've talked with are amused at how the "hydro riot legend" has morphed over the years. I'll post some first hand reports down the road but let's start with the facts as reported in the Coeur d'Alene Press.

The first Diamond Cup "riot" was in 1961. In later years it was claimed to have been the worst as authorities were caught flat footed when the crowd got unruly. Hard to say what happened, the Monday edition after the race is missing from the Coeur d'Alene Press archives. It must not have been much as the Coeur d'Alene Press didn't mention it again.

The following year the cops were prepared. The Diamond Cup was a 2-day race, and Saturday night saw crowds fired up from the first day and excited for the next. The Press wrote about the weekend on Monday, July 23.

A "disturbance" was reported Saturday night around 11:00pm and took less than 2 hours for authorities to control. Coeur d'Alene Police Chief Reine Schmidt was quoted, "Last year's trouble was termed a riot. I don't believe this one was but it could have turned into a riot unless it had been contained." The story went on to say an "estimated 500 youths, more than in 1961" were gathered on Sherman. The police had prepared to "get tougher quicker" and they did just that. Sherman was blocked off from 1st to 6th Streets and the crowd was given a "ten minute warning to disburse." Firetrucks then sprayed water and "tear gas bombs" were used on the remaining crowd. The "result was several were injured and were given hospital treatment and care."

In the end, less than 50 people were taken into custody, 14 charged with failure to disburse. The rest were minor in possession, open containers, disturbing the peace, public drunkenness, drunk and disorderly and other similar charges. The majority of those charged were not from Coeur d'Alene. Damage was reported to windows at the Diamond Cup headquarters (Desert Hotel) and Merritt's service station and some police cars were dented.

The 1963 Diamond Cup was run the weekend of July 27-28, another two day race which meant a crowd from the first day was gathered again on Saturday night. Some people had no doubt been drinking (Sherman had no shortage of bars) and drinking age was nineteen at the time. The Monday, July 29 Press carried the stories of the Diamond Cup weekend.

The headline reads "Crowd Unruly, 80 Arrested" and goes on to say an estimated 1,000 "young people" were involved. The article cites previous Saturday night Diamond Cup years noting 1961 "reached riot stage when it caught the officers unprepared" and 1962 where the disturbance was "brought under control more quickly." It also stated that Police Chief Reine Schmidt and Sheriff John Bender agreed that the 1963 ruckus never exceeded the "unruly crowd stage."

Helmeted officers used tear gas, "wielded their nightsticks several times" and fire hoses were used between 3rd and 5th on Sherman. The only damage reported were 2 broken windows and as the crowd moved into City Park, "trees, benches and garbage cans were broken up." A total of 41 people (including 7 juveniles) were charged with failure to disburse, 14 were charged with minor in possession and "several" were charged with disturbing the peace, disorderly conduct, drunkenness and like offenses.

If you ask any person at the 1963 Diamond Cup what their standout memory is, they won't say a riot. They'll talk about the wreck of the Miss Exide that put pilot Mira Slovak in the hospital with 27 stitches in his face, a couple lost teeth and a broken ankle. While The Press didn't follow up on the arrest story, it did report on Slovak's recovery daily until he left the hospital and Coeur d'Alene on July 31. That's what people remember, not the riots.

In 1964, the August 4 Coeur d'Alene Press reported on the weekend's Diamond Cup activity with one article stating "Saturday night's riots also proved to be successful for law enforcement but not for some of the 300-400 young people who tried to start something." Police Chief George Lenz said "Our small riot was under control almost immediately." About 60 were taken into custody, one Spokane teen was charged with inciting a riot, 17 with failure to disburse and "perhaps a dozen" high school and college kids were in jail. Again, most were not locals.

The 1965 Diamond Cup was termed a "most successful affair" by both event organizers and law enforcement officials. While police said it could have been the largest Diamond Cup crowd yet and Chief Lenz was quoted "At no time was there any indication of major trouble," and "Disturbances were practically non-existent." Credit was given to a large showing of law enforcement including Civil Defense and National Guard members. Around 50 people were arrested for open container, disorderly conduct, drunkenness and traffic infractions.

The 1966 Diamond Cup was one of the best but the Monday after Press on August 15 made no mention of any crowd activity at all.

There was no funding and therefore no Diamond Cup in 1967 but returned in 1968. The August 12 CdA Press quoted Chief Lenz that this was possibly "the largest crowd ever" and that the total of 69 arrests from Friday to Monday wasn't out of the ordinary. Sheriff John Bender said "What few disturbances we had were normal for the size of the crowd." Even the marine patrol noted the highest number ever of boats tied to the booms but they were well behaved.

And that's story of the Great Diamond Cup Hydroplane Riots. But legend grows, especially when cultivated by someone with no first hand knowledge but a hostility towards the memory of the Diamond Cup.

The inflation of this tale has also led to the incorrect accusation that riots are what ended the Diamond Cup races. I have never understood how riots could be used as the reason to shut down the Diamond Cup five to nine years after the fact.

So, what ended the Diamond Cup? In a word, money. The last possibility was dashed when in the spring of 1969 it was announced there was no funding for the Diamond cup. Overall, in the ten years of the Diamond Cup Regatta, the best year turned a profit of around $500, a couple years broke even at best and others ended in red ink.

In 1968, a "ticket" to the Diamond Cup was a Booster Button that cost $1.00. A lousy buck. But people would walk 100 yards and round the fence rather than shell out a couple dollars. Even at the age of 13, I thought that was a pretty lowdown cheat. How could an event be funded when you can't even get people to buy a ticket. There was no money and there were no more Diamond Cup races.

But back to those riots. Four decades after the last Diamond Cup Regatta, some people are still eager to bash the memory of the Diamond Cup with skewed and inflated tales of those horrible hydroplane riots. Looting, tear gas, fire hoses, destruction, oh my! They paint it to be wilder than the end of Animal House.

Interestingly, the man who has propagated this yarn for years did not live in North Idaho between 1958-68, never attended a Diamond Cup Regatta and didn't move to the area until 15 years after the last Diamond Cup and 20 years after the last "riot". He's not a reporter, he just writes editorials for an out of state newspaper. Take his word for what it is, an inflammatory narrative warped by his own hostility.

Also part of the riot story is that our writer claims the riots were the reason Coeur d'Alene residents voted 3-1 in 1996 to ban unlimited hydroplane racing within city limits. This is probably, but sadly, true. But sadder yet, it was also a case of yellow journalism.

When word of someone exploring the possibility of holding another Diamond Cup in the mid-1990s, a local group banded to stop that from ever happening. Petitioners were stationed at the post office and the issue was eventually placed on that year's City ballot. In efforts to build opposition leading up to the election, our writer led the parade with exaggerated stories and riot hyperbole. His gullible readers rallied and the riot legend took off. "They'll destroy downtown!" "They'll burn down Tubbs Hill!" (No, if that ever happens it'll be the 4th of July so let's end the fireworks show.) The threat of the Hell's Angels was even tossed in for shock factor.

So, yes, riots, or more specifically, fear of riots drove the outcome of an election. Banned were unlimited hydroplanes racing on City of Coeur d'Alene waters and unlimited hydroplane launching from City of Coeur d'Alene property. I find it a despicable statement on how easy it is to get people to vote out of fear rather than bother them with the facts. And the writer continues to pat himself on the back over it.

Why my rant on this fellow? When word of the vintage hydros coming to Coeur d'Alene was made public, his first words were of negativity and accusation. This historical event is a celebration of a period in local history that is still very near and dear to many, many people who lived here at that time. Worst of all, this is hoped to be the first of an annual event benefitting the Museum of North Idaho. To taint a charitable effort for a worthy cause is the work of a lowlife.

I was bold/stupid enough to call a spade a spade and became his personal whipping boy because of it. That's OK, I'm a big boy, I can take it. I just sat back and let him prove his negativity with his own poinson pen. And he did.

Thanks for taking time to read the real story. If you were involved with any of these "riots", please feel free to add your thoughts.

Politics in Action

2010-04-26T21:10:00.000-07:00

Tonight I took part in a focus group. A call last week was a survey asking a few broad political questions and if I was open to discussing my take on politics, which I of course said yes to. So I qualified to be on said focus group. And there was some money in it for me as well. A couple hours. Talk politics. Sure.

So tonight I went to the CdA Inn at 6pm. It was a pro moderator from a research firm near DCA, didn't know himself who the buyer was, "But you may have a good guess by the time it's over."

There were 7 people (1 no-show), 2 lifers, 1 here less than three years, locals, varied backgrounds, I didn't recognize a one. We sat in conference table style and everything was well organized, great cookies and even Cherry Coke.

Everything was opinion based questioning starting with the State of Idaho, basic list of topics, education, health, economy, general feel of where we are and where we're going. This led into politics in general, then to the Governor's office and Butch Otter, the usual pros, cons, rep and rap. At this time I, and I'd guess most if not all, figured this was a Butch survey.

Then he tossed out 8-10 photos of a man in various poses and situations. Our first guess was "candidate" but as his face wasn't familiar, it could just as well have been stock photos in every political photo op pose. I said he looked like the guy who was at the 4th of July parade in the motorhome, the others had no clue. Turns out it was candidate and motorhome driver Keith Allred. In the end I believe this was on his tab.

We then read 2 background/bio/"here's your guy" statement pages and processed the likes and dislikes and influential importance. Next we watched 6 short videos broken from the same speech and discussed and rated each segment. From there we compared a couple pages of puffery and mudslinging as pertained to both candidates, which statements would sway you vote kind of stuff. Finally we "wrote a letter" to the candidates telling them what we felt was important about Idaho and Idaho Politics. Then I was handed an envelope with cash in it.

I really enjoyed being a part of this small cog tooth in the machine of American Politics. The moderator was excellent and kept us on track, just a hair over the advertised 2 hours. But it was our own fault. Each person was able to express their opinions and perceptions pertaining to how our government runs and we did. And it was interesting to hear other people's thoughts.

We all see things from a different place using different reference points. But even with this diverse group I got a general feeling that, to varying degrees, everyone is disgusted with politics as we now know it. That we believe in of the people, by the people and for the people. That we're all sick of the polarization of the Parties, the special interests and how our leaders have become so detached to the Average American. Wow, what if we all voted what we truly felt and wanted rather than vote for a political party out of fear/hate of the other party.

I like to think back to Howard Beale in the movie Network. When is America going to stand up to our own government? When will the voter turnout not only be huge but be filled with everyone who is sick of the status quo? And all it takes is people to get out and vote.

Shout it from your window.

I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore.

McEuen Field Part 4

2010-03-25T21:12:00.000-07:00

I attended the McEuen workshop tonight and came away with good feelings. It was a good crowd and everyone was given the opportunity to participate and voice their thoughts, ideas and concerns.

The City is in a unique position now. Railroad rights of way are being handed back (to the City via the Fed & it's restrictions), some grants are available, Front Street is in for a major re-haul and the seawall must be replaced in the not so distant future. With the input tonight, a vision of the onion of the future just peeled back a layer.

When you entered you got some items including 4 sheets of colored stickers. There were numerous display boards around the room and besides photos, maps, mission statements, etc., there were boards with lists of activities and features and likes and wishes that people could put their sticker "vote" on.

Facilitators then showed 26 slides of various items in various parks. Each attendee had a page with a graph where you marked like/dislike and preferred location as these photos were shown. With some of the photos they asked people to raise green, red or yellow cards on how they felt about a particular item, then called on people to say why they voted what color. After that the moderator took comments, ideas and concerns from the crowd as she led us through what do you like best about parks, name/describe outstanding parks/park features, tell what's important to you about McEuen topics. It lasted a little less than 2 hours which I found to be very well spent. I would guess 90-120 people.

There were a number of things that came up tonight that I thought noteworthy.

The big tree at the foot of 4th St. It's called the Freedom Tree. It was planted to stop cars (when 4th was a 2-way street) from going straight south. In the Viet Nam era, a Coeur d'Alene man named USAF Capt. Frederick McMurray was shot down over North Viet Nam in 1972. Happily, Capt. McMurray did return. At the foot of what we now call the Freedom Tree is a marker noting Capt. McMurray. The tree, Park Director Doug Eastwood said, was a prime example of attachment a community has to it's touchstones. He opened the evening well.

On the topic of tennis courts, one man applauded all the courts in the city and was disappointed they weren't used more. He didn't call for courts on McEuen.

One new idea mentioned was a canoe/kayak launch. I liked that. A young family was there and talked about playgrounds. A real trail around the foot of Tubbs was popular. There were a number of great comments.

An open picnic shelter came up. One woman asked if there was one on McEuen. That one statement may have been the most powerful of the evening. Think about that.

If a person who lives here doesn't even know of the shelter at the foot of Tubbs, doesn't that in and of itself say a lot? You care enough about McEuen to attend this evening but don't know what's even there? Then you must not go there much. Why? I'm guessing there is nothing much there right now to draw you. And that is the crux of the biscuit as Frank Zappa would say.

Sitting there, listening, thinking, a memory popped into my head. Back in the 90's the CdA Kiwanis Club had a Home Run Derby at McEuen. Right on Legion Field. Timing? Couldn't have been better. It followed the Fred Murphy Parade on Memorial Saturday. Drove my little truck down Sherman with my daughter and 20 trophies in back with signs and telling people to come to McEuen Field directly after the parade. It was gonna be great!

Now even on a postcard day, it was like pulling teeth trying to get anyone to come to the American Legion baseball field. It was so slow we solicited people launching boats trying to get batters. "Two balls for a buck and you could with this trophy!" We had everything set; T-ball, pitching machine, tapes to measure, bats of all sizes, buckets of balls, PA with an announcer, plenty of good Kiwanians, the whole shootin' match. We didn't lose money but it was a disappointment. Even with thousands of people literally within blocks of a fun filled, wholesome, family event on a holiday weekend, on McEuen Field, the gem or the Lake City..., well, we all got good tans.

The next year we held it at Memorial Field across from City Park. Success! We all got sunburned on the right side but loved the batters we had all afternoon.

Taking a break for a week, I'll be back.

McEuen Field Part 3

2010-03-24T16:51:00.001-07:00

Two arguments and why they don't hold water.

If you go to Thursday night's meeting about McEuen Field, here's a couple arguments you may hear, along with why they don't make sense. These are from an ad hoc group billed as the Save McEuen Alliance, or something like that, which has been against any improvements since the mid 1990's. This group is led by Charlie Roan and Anne Solomon, a husband and wife team who I'm not 100% sure if they even live in the city limits of Coeur d'Alene.

I am at a loss as to why they are so selfish when it comes to McEuen. Why don't they want more greenspace and more feautures to attract more people to this beautiful piece of property? Here are two of their main arguments.

1. "Save McEuen for kids recreation" (as they parade kids out wearing Recreation Department shirts).

Amazing. There are currently 2 softball fields and 1 baseball field on McEuen. If these people really cared about KIDS they would say Coeur d'Alene already has plenty of softball fields and what we need are some more little league fields, including one at McEuen. Little league isn't played on softball fields, they are two different fields. Yet the CdA recreation Department has kids playing on the softball fields. If you really cared about kids you'd be asking for facilities for them, not to continue to force them to play on improper fields.

2. Mr. Roan has, and will probably again, try to sway you with numbers. He studied McEuen and (to paraphrase) determined that "there are 250,000 person uses per year on McEuen" so it would be unwise to do anything to the property that might endanger this great use.

Poppycock. I'll even give Mr. Roan the benefit of the doubt regarding the number. I have no idea how he arrived at it but will willingly accept it at face value. My question then becomes, why can't we turn McEuen into something that draws 500,000 people uses per year?

Outside the occasional baseball, softball and flag football games, very few people ever set foot on McEuen. The entire property is virtually empty at least 70% of the time. I challenge anyone to personally observe McEuen (count heads) twenty times over various times of the day and days of the week. This means mornings, mid-days, afternoons and evenings, weekdays and weekends. Besides parking at the City Lot almost every weekday for 25 years, I have always made an effort to count heads on McEuen, anytime and everytime I pass it. I've been doing it for years and I usually see less than a dozen people there. Too many times there were only a handful.

Currently, there is nothing at McEuen that draws my family to it except a parking lot. Ask yourself; given a sunny, family, free afternoon, where do you now choose to go in Coeur d'Alene? City Park? Independence Point? The Beach? Dike Road/Rosenberry Drive? McEuen? What draws you on a family outing?

Pay attention to what all parties are saying, and will say, about McEuen Field. Then take the sentiment out of it and take a hard look at it. Are you OK with the most valuable piece of property in Coeur d'Alene sitting unused the majority of the time? Do you prefer parking lots taking up what should be greenspace? Or do you share a vision for more green space, smaller parking footprint, increased recreational opportunity and a true park that appeals to a broad variety of locals and tourists alike?

The baseball field? I'll cover that next. Stay tuned. And if you missed them, read my previous posts on McEuen.

-----------------------------------

OK, just back from the meeting. It was very good, lots of participation from a good crowd.

Mr. Roan and Ms. Solomon were there and they didn't use my accused arguments. I took that as a very good sign. My appologies if due. Now read my follow-up in the next blog.

McEuen Field Part 2

2010-03-23T11:35:00.000-07:00

This photo, circa late 1950's, shows part of the McEuen property on the lower right. This City Parking Lot is gravel, there is one boat launch and a bundle of old docks at the seawall, the current boat trailer parking is dirt and weeds, used mostly once a year as the pits for the Diamond Cup hydroplane races.

Here are some interesting facts about the McEuen property.

Dating back to the 1880's, this site has been many things. Tony Tubbs had a hotel where you could stay, eat, drink and find a girlfriend for the night. Later a sawmill was there. It also had a railroad line that continued out on a dock to load Silver Valley ore from steamboats. It was an industrial site.

Later, under ownership of the County, it became the Kootenai County Fairgrounds. A land deal with the City of Coeur d'Alene moved the fairgrounds to their current location. During and after WWII, small homes filled a neighborhood roughly where the baseball field is today.

In the early 1950's the property was considered for various uses, one of which was a shopping center, that being the commercial fad of the era. A number of people opposed such a use and the crusade to crate public greenspace was begun. One of those people was Mae McEuen.

Mae McEuen never owned this property nor did she give it to the City. I find it amazing that even now some people believe this myth. The McEuens owned a grocery store in the downtown area and, like many local businesses, supported youth sports. She was an avowed critic of any commercial development and was active with the group pushing greenspace at the foot of Tubbs Hill. When all was said and done, McEuen was honored by having this site named after her.

Mae McEuen was an avid supporter of youth sports, that is true. But was it the only reason she had for designating the area as greenspace? I have heard firsthand from people who lived here then and it was also given that, since a grocery super store was to no doubt be a part of any proposed shopping center, self interest in preventing neighborhood competition also played a part in McEuen's stand. I say this not to detract from what Mae McEuen did, but to put it in perspective. History isn't always a rosey as it is believed to be.

Until the mid 1970's, the City also used the east end of McEuen as the home for the City Street Department. An old industrial building was used as the shop/garage until being torn down for what is now City Hall.

It is important that you understand the past as you look to the future. Thursday night is the first of what will probably be a number of public meetings to discuss where McEuen is going. Stay tuned as I'll be covering what Hyatt-Palma, Walker-Macy and the Gang of Nine were and what their findings and visions were as well as how community input and public planning meetings shaped the concepts that were adopted by the City Council in 2002.

McEuen Field Part 1

2010-02-05T12:43:00.000-08:00

After 9 years the topic of McEuen Field has risen again in the City of Coeur d'Alene. I don't think I could count the number of committee meetings, professional studies, public testimony, commuity workshops and Council decisons connected to McEuen over the last 20 years. I know because I have been closely associated with many of those meetings.

McEuen is Holy Land for many people. They want to keep it just like it is. Really? Then I want it just like it WAS. Let's put a sawmill back down there. Or low income housing. Or the County Fairgrounds. Or a whorehouse with a view. It's been all those things.

Note the above photo. The roads where McEuen is today? Yes, that was a neighborhood of small homes from the Faragut Naval Training days. What a waste of prime property you may be thinking. I look at McEuen today and think the same thing.

This Thursday night, Mar 25, there will be a public meeting on the topic of McEuen at the Lake City Senior Center. I will be there. No doubt the same old people with the closed minds and selfish thoughts will be there as well. I've seen all their efforts to let McEuen remain as it is. They even parade little kids in Rec. Dept. shirts up to play your smypathies. I've heard all the arguments, they're all weak and and don't hold water.

McEuen is one of the most important pieces of property in the City of Coeur d'Alene. It is vastly underused and misused. I am a supporter of improving usage, increasing green space and minimizing the pavement and parking footprint.

Don't let closed minds stop making McEuen into the gem it deserves to be. Learn the FACTS not the feelings. Listen to the arguments. Participate in any meetings that lie ahead. Stay tuned to this blog as I will continue this series explaining the history, the concepts that came from 9 years ago, the pros & cons and mostly, the truth about McEuen.

Next time and every time you are within a block of McEuen, please drive/ride/walk past and make note of how many people were actually using the area. Look at how the field is broken up with portable chain link fencing. Notice how the boat trailer parking lot sits on property where a parking lot would be the very last thing you'd want there.

Two Blogs Are Better Than One (sometimes)

2010-01-29T11:21:00.000-08:00

That's what I've got going, two blogs about Coeur d'Alene and North Idaho. I work part time for Kagey Company that, among other things, publishes the annual Guide to North Idaho. My tasks include gathering information on what's happening in North Idaho and updating not only the accompanying website, www.fyinorthidaho.com, but also the companion blogs, Facebok and Twitter accounts.

Yes, I've slacked off here, but I've been covering lots of stuff at the FYI North Idaho blog. So check that out as well to keep up with all the stuff I write about. We're going to have a lot of fun with all this. Not only will I cover my personal memories and thoughts about growing up and living in Coeur d'Alene here, but I'll also cover North Idaho history, tidbits, factoids and even fun and crazy "urban legends" of this wonderful area.

I love feedback, input and even corrections. Please chime in with what you know and feel free to ask questions or suggest topics to cover.

Yes, it's a dream job, writing about my lifelong stomping grounds. Easy to do for a local boy who loves North Idaho and the wonderful people that live here. Stay tuned, won't ya?

dw

Merry Christmas

2009-12-25T09:26:00.000-08:00

Can you imagine how much that stuff would be worth on eBay now?

Playland Pier

2009-12-22T12:31:00.000-08:00

Last Friday marked the 34th anniversary of Playland Pier burning down. I wrote about the history of Playland Pier in this blog at FYI North Idaho but had more memories of what a great place it was as a kid.

If you had a dollar, you had a whole day ahead of you. Ten cent ice cream cones, most arcade games were a penny, nickel or dime and for two cents you could get a souvenir postcard postcards from one of two machines, one with movie and singing stars, the other with mostly custom cars like those of George Barris. Like so much stuff we all had when we were kids, I curse myself for not keeping all those cards, like James Dean. Sheesh.

My all time favorite arcade game was an early version of foosball. It was a freestanding metal and glass case that cost a penny a ball to play, and believe me, I put a LOT of pennies into that machine. The playing surface was a lumpy soccer field covered with players fixed in place. Because it was enclosed the ball would eventually roll in front of a soccer player. On the front were two handles, each activating one team (you could even play by yourself). When the handles were flipped it would move a goalie back and forth and make all the players "kick". The harder you flipped that handle the harder the kicks. The back panel was painted like a full stadium and the front and sides were glass. For old glass it was damn tough. When we played we always tried to kick that little steel ball as hard as possible and although it may have been the loudest game in the arcade, that glass never even cracked.

The bumper cars were great except by the time I was old (and tall) enough to drive them, they were usually broke down or not in operation. I left dejected more often than I actually got to drive them.

Everybody's favorite was the swings. Like a sort of suspended merry-go-round, each swing seat swung out with centrifugal force and actually put you out over the lake. We always wondered how fun it would be to have one break shooting a rider out into the waters.

The merry-go-round still exists and about ten years ago there was even talk about bringing it back to Coeur d'Alene. I can't remember all the details but it was (probably still is) owned by a guy who collects, maintains and operated old carousels around the country. And his mother actually worked at Playland Pier once upon a time. Last I heard it was back east somewhere and it still has paintings that represent Coeur d'Alene and the lake.

The Empire Builder stops at Stryker, Montana

2009-12-13T17:35:00.000-08:00

Uncle Ray was 20 years older than my Dad. He worked for the railroad and moved west from Virginia in the 30's. In the late 40's he was the Station Master at Naples, Idaho. Up until the mid 60's he was SM in Stryker, Montana, along the route of Great Northern Railroad's Empire Builder between Whitefish and Eureka.

When I was young we'd go visit, riding that train from Sandpoint. On rare occasion I'd even get to sit up in the Vista-Dome car, which felt like it was going to roll going around every corner. Such beautiful country. Too bad you go through it in the dark. AMTRAK still runs that same schedule.

Passengers looked wide eyed wondering where it the heck they were when the train stopped to let us off. Stryker consisted of about six houses at a junction. Uncle Ray and Aunt Mary lived in a small log cabin between the main road and the so-called station. They had a guest log cabin that we'd stay in. First place I ever used a chamber pot. Ray was a hunter and bear rugs were plenty.

The little station was fascinating for me as a little kid and loved the place. I got to sit at the main desk with the front window and make Uncle Ray or Aunt Mary translate the Morse Code from the telegraph. They also had a teletype machine and would relay messages to trains.

They'd tie the paper with a string then tie it to ends of a Y shaped pole sticking up the height of the train's window. A Conductor would reach out and snag the message as the train went past. I used to try and see the guy but it went by with such commotion all I ever saw was one second it was there and the next it wasn't. Standing on the platform maybe 15 feet from where the trains went by full speed was pretty impressive for a little kid.

Years ago we were in California seeing my brother, Ron. One day we went to the California State Railway Museum. One of the best museums I've ever been to. One of the displays is a mail car from the Empire Builder that you can walk through. Fun reading all the drop boxes, each and every little place on the line. Including Stryker, Montana.

The Hole Story

2009-12-02T17:23:00.000-08:00

Wednesday before Thanksgiving I found a message from the City Water Department on my recorder. Said 68,000 gallons had passed through our system in the last 2 weeks. We had work to do that started with a hole to dig.

Thankfully my son dug 80% of the hole and I had neighbors that also pitched in. Travis next door helped on Sunday by capping off the sprinkler pipe and providing some good advice. Monday morning we found the hole full of water and about the time a City Water guy came to tuen the water off Bob across the street brought over a small sump pump to clear the hole. Herb on the other side loaned me a breaking bar as we had broke my old one the day before trying to pull out a bush. Seriously, we broke a steel breaking bar.

The job was made much easier with the help of the great guys at the CdA Water Department. They were so wonderful I wrote the mayor the following letter.

Dear Sandi,

I was recently informed by the City Water Department that I had a leaky valve that needed replacement, and I must commend Jim Markley's crew for the excellent service I experienced during this predicament.

Rob Stark called me last Wednesday and was very helpful in explaining the entire situation and the job I had ahead. We dug yesterday and this morning I called to shut our water off. Josh Mayne arrived right on time and answered all my questions and made helpful suggestions.

As we excavated, I kept having questions and turned into Rob's #1 caller today. Rob dropped by to check the job and, seeing we were at the critical part, jumped in the hole, pulled out the part, drove me down the street to Consolidated Plumbing then followed up with the install. Rob didn't like the PVC job the sprinkler guys had used, so he zipped to the shop and returned with a short piece of pipe that was much improved. Rob put this back together, tested everything and we got the thumbs up to start the refill. Rob and Josh retuned later and replaced the top vault on the water meter as the old one was cracked.

My son, Aaron, and I can shovel dirt. The whole pipe thing was my worry. We had everything exposed and Rob just whipped the plumb job out in less time than I would have spent pondering how I was going to do it.

Like I have discovered so many times before with so many different people of the City of Coeur d'Alene, the Water Department has proven they are not only on the top of their game (I would never have discovered this leak) but have the skills to expertly and efficiently perform their job and with a "can do" attitude to boot. Kudos to them for this excellent customer service.

Respectfully,
dw

Not bad for what could have been a much bigger problem.

The 12 Ales of Christmas

2009-12-01T21:58:00.000-08:00

I'm all excited for the 13th Annual 12 Ales of Christmas is at Capone's CdA this Saturday night. My (actually Sue's) favorite cousins from Montana are coming over and this is looking like a grand time.

I was at Capone's tonight and the tap count for the list of winter warmers is up to nine. A new entry this year is Dick's Brewing seasonal. I had a taste and found it less malty than many darker winter brews, but it had a nice floral spice to it.

My wonderful daughter, Tia, has bought my 12 Ales ticket for the last 4 years. And to prove how good a gifter she is to me, I've also over the years gotten a DVD 2-pack with Raising Arizona and Fargo (yippee, the Coen Brothers!) and my own version of the Christmas Story leg lamp.

A tip to 12 Ales newbies: drink accordingly. Your ticket gets you at least 12 fills of a 4 ounce glass, sampling at least a dozen high powered brews. You'll be drinking 3-4+ pints not counting the pints of the ones that you really like. Make sure you can still appreciate #12 as much as #1.

For the 2nd year, a taxi ride in CdA proper is included. Take it or call your Mom. You won't be driving home from this.

See ya there!

Read The Press, Made Me Go "Hmmmmm...."

2009-11-13T13:58:00.000-08:00

I started the morning like any other, with breakfast while I read the CdA Press. Say what you will about The Press but it is KootCo's best source of local news and info. But while I turned the pages I saw three items that made me go "Hmmmmmmm..."

1. Editorial recommending more parks be named after distinguished locals, citing a Post Falls Park named after Hilde Kellogg.

Nothing against Hilde, heck, I've known her since I was a little kid and she has done much for North Idaho & KootCo. BUT, I always have to wonder about naming parks after people. Here are two good examples here in CdA.
Person Field on 15th. I've lived here all my life and am still a little fuzzy on who "Person" was. And over the years it has been erroneously called everything from Persons to Piersons Field. I'm betting that only a handful of locals could tell me about Mr/Ms Person.
GO Phippeny Park on 7th St. I remember that Mr. Phippeny was a long time educator and the park sits on the one time site of CdA High and Jr. High Schools. But I can't give many more details.
Fifty years from now will anyone remember Hilde and what she did?

2. Letters to the Editor regarding the reversal of suspensions for CHS Viking football players.
First question I had to ponder was, who took the photos of beer swilling, minor students? Could it possibly be an LCHS minor student at the same party in a proverbial calling the kettle black situation?
Just because I was a Viking doesn't mean I'd look the other way. But looking the other way when high school students misbehave is nothing new. Remember when the first LCHS graduating class pulled their senior pranks which accounted for literally thousands of dollars of damage to a brand new school paid for with taxpayer dollars? You don't? I guess we looked the other way that time, too.

3. Yet another news article where Fort Hood killer Nidal Hasan is referred to as a "suspect". Suspect? Alleged? Does anyone actually think he's innocent until proven guilty in a court of law? The guy KILLED people, no if's and's or but's about it. Are we so politically correct that we can't call a spade a spade?

Dunno about you, but stuff like this always makes me go "Hmmmmmm...."

The Old Neighborhood

2009-10-30T11:32:00.000-07:00

When I was born my parents lived in a little house at 1220 N. 5th St in Coeur d'Alene. I have no recollection of that house at all. The house is still there, and is currently for sale, right behind the Goodwill store.

After that we moved to 1310 Ash, just a block from Sanders Beach. This house was where my first memories are from. I remember playing in the sand and all the chunks of bark from the sawmill that washed onto the beach. I also remember my babysitter who would lay in the summer sun, a perfect job if it wasn't for the tyke.

Then my parents bought the above house in 1959. It was (is) at 11th & Homestead in what was then the new (first) Monte Vista addition. The house is about 200 yards north of I-90 which was just being finished at the time. I remember laying in bed and hearing the noise from the heavy equipment that would officially bring an end to Hwy10.

The house faced west and the backside living room window looked towards Best Mountain. The trees weren't that tall and you could not only see the big clearing where CHS students would put a big 'C' for all the town to see, but the red light blinking atop the KVNI (1240 on your dial) radio transmitter tower that sat in the low flat just north of the foot of Best on the east side of 15th Street.

The neighborhood was roughly defined in the triangle of 11th, Homestead and Syringa. It may have been the greatest place in the world to grow up. There were over 60 kids of all ages; from college age to tykes. There were families with one kid (like mine) and some with up to a half dozen.

We went to Borah School, just 3 blocks away. I remember days when I actually came home for lunch. I have a hundred stories about the friends I grew up with and the crazy things we did to entertain ourselves in the 60's and 70's. Stay tuned.

Cowboy Duds

2009-10-27T15:27:00.000-07:00

If you wanted to look cowboy, the best place in North Idaho to go shopping was the Bar-B-Q- Ranch. Jack and Hilde Kellogg ran the Bar-B-Q and it was here that my folks bought most of my blue jeans, at least a couple sets of boots, a hat and the obligatory western cut shirts.

The Bar-B-Q sat where USBank is in Post Falls now, northwest corner of Idaho and Seltice. It was, as you can see, a great place to pull in tourists with the original giant cowboy. an assortment of wooden Indians out front and animals ranging from dinosaur to chicken on the roof.

Jack never failed to hand me some Bazooka bubble gum every time we went. I was always amazed with the wide selection of colors of boots and shirts, the hats, Stetson and others, and a gift shop full of all sorts of western/wooden novelties.

Jack passed long ago but Hilde went on to elected office, her claim to fame being helping get the greyhound track approved and having the mechanical rabbit named for her. Is it really 25 years ago when each race started with the announcer's call of "Here comes Hilde!"?

Time goes on but so do the memories and the photos to go with them.

1909 Land Rush

2009-10-19T10:05:00.000-07:00

This is the last of a 32 page pamphlet put out by the Coeur d'Alene Commercial Club titled The Panhandle of Idaho. There is no date but this advertises the great land lotto of 1909 so I'd guess late 1908 or early 1909. I'll scan and post more of my tattered copy of this 100 year old publication later, but this one page always fascinated me most. I learned more about this amazing era in the book Steamboats in the Timber by Ruby El Hult, published 1952.

The U.S. Government decided they had given the Tribes too good of a deal and wanting to expand development in this part of America rich in natural resources, opened 700,000 acres of Flathead, Spokane and Coeur d'Alene Reservation lands. Hundreds of thousands of people from all over America spent 3 million dollars on railroad tickets to travel here and take a chance in this great land lottery. The odds were as high as 500 to 1 in Spokane and 100 to 1 in Coeur d'Alene.

At midnight on July 14th, sixteen Notaries opened the doors in Coeur d'Alene to register people, 500 names were taken in the first hour. In four days that jumped to 34,730 and by the time of the drawing, 264,883 names had been registered for the three blocks of reservation lands.

Every inbound train was full and the lake steamers were filled to capacity and then some. Coeur d'Alene was packed with people and not all were land speculators, bunco artists, thieves and pickpockets were also on hand to profit where they could. In two weeks the post office sold over $4,000 worth of stamps to send cards home from the land seekers. Notaries had over two tons of completed registrations.

While people had to register in Spokane for the Spokane land, Kalispell for Flathead and Coeur d'Alene for Coeur d'Alene, it was Coeur d'Alene where James W. Whitten conducted the drawings for all. At noon on August 9th, Miss Helen Hamilton stood on a platform in front of the Hotel Idaho (Desert Hotel) and drew the first envelope from the 105,000 Coeur d'Alene entries strewn over the stage.

Isador Selig was number one and had the first pick of land in the Coeur d'Alenes, choosing a spot along the St. Joe River. A power company claimed to have a prior rights to the land and by the time Mr. Selig got to pick a 2nd choice there was little good land left.

In the end, most of the land was too dense with timber to farm and too hard to clear. Settlers found the deer ate most of their gardens and most weren't farmers anyway. Some of the winners sold out to timber companies. Few of the thousands who came west with the dream of carving out a happy life found anything but sorrows.

Pick up Steamboats in the Timber to read more about the wild times of early Coeur d'Alene country.

Road Construction Season

2009-10-16T13:43:00.000-07:00

Now that 4th Street through Midtown is almost finished, I suppose we're near the end of the 2009 road construction season. To celebrate, here are a couple photos from the building of the first version of I-90 along the lake. This was early to mid 1950's.

The upper photo is the construction of the Blue Creek Bay bridge. It was built with help from the Army Corps of Engineers. The problem was the bottom of the lake was deep muck and they had a hard time setting footings. Using new technology, they pumped concrete down to the bedrock.

The lower photo shows some of the earth moving efforts to provide a roadbed along the lakeshore.

Just a short one today. Hope it'll be a short winter as well.

Hunting Season is Open

2009-10-11T09:55:00.000-07:00

This photo holds a few memories. Yup, that's me with my brother Ron, 1968. I was an 8th grader at CdA Jr. High. It was Ron's near annual visit to go hunting and he talked me into skipping school to go with him one day.

We drove up the St. Joe headed for Slate Creek. We parked and right off Ron has me walk through knee deep water. I'm wearing crappy cowboy boots that filled with water, thanks for not suggesting I bring a dry pair of socks. Then he tells me we're going straight up a steep mountain, in those oh so comfy wet boots. Halfway up, I'm dragging ass. We take a break and he gives me a couple cookies and a cup of black coffee, my first taste of that bitter brew. I mash my cookies into the coffee, trying to make it palletable. The caffine didn't get me up that mountain any faster and I remember being blamed for the lack of coffee at lunch later in the day.

Up high on the ridge we're hiking along when we see a huge bull elk. Ron drops him with one shot. We approach the beast with head bobbing in his dying throes. Ron pumps 3-4 more shots into his head to finally put him down and we started to field dress the carcass. Up to my elbows in elk intestines made me realize that I was not cut from the same outdoor hunting cloth as my father.

Dad was an outdoorsman's outdoorsman. He had countless hunting and fishing tales and artifacts to back up even the most incredible. He, as a freelance writer and photographer, submitted numerous stories to sporting magazines and for some years was the Idaho State Editor for the now long gone Western Outdoors publication. I enjoyed going fishing and pheasant hunting with him and his oldtimer pals.

But as a clumsy gomer I never liked humping the how brush (how the hell do you get through it?) when out for deer and elk. One year I kept skirting the thickets which would have led me back to the ranch, I ended up way off track. I had an idea of where I was but no clue exactly where to go (and still avoid the brush). I found a road, walked to a 4-finger saddle and sat down against a tree. It eventually got dark and I dozed off. Then I heard a shot and knew it was for me. I shot my old 30.06 and waited. Lloyd Jones, who's ranch we hunted from, knew exactly where I was and they pulled the truck right up where I was. I believe that was also my first taste of Elderberry wine that night.

Back at Slate Creek we finally got the elk dressed out and started the walk back. No way could we carry the elk and that night Dad called Lloyd who they met with his horses and packed out the elk and the amazing rack you see above. I was back at school and was shocked to discover that even in North Idaho, skipping school to go hunting was considered an unexcused absense. "But we got a big elk!" didn't sway the Principal.

Even though I didn't pull the trigger, I was proud to have my photo taken with that big rack. The picture even made the CdA Press.

One last note about the Willy's Jeep we're sitting on. Dad bought that from my Uncle Ray. It was the first car I ever drove, somewhere on the backroads coming home from a fly fishing trip. Dad told me I better know how to drive in case something ever happened to him in the back country. He told me I was a hell of a good driver for my first time, I hit every pothole in the road.

Beautiful Lake Coeur d'Alene

2009-09-21T15:47:00.000-07:00

Here's a photo Dad took from the point of Tubbs Hill in the early 60's. Didn't it look like a sleepy, laid back lake? Not many houses and hills were covered with trees, not dotted with the homes of affluent transients like today. And sailboats were quiet and graceful as they navigated the blue waters, now wake strewn from countless ski boats and jet skis on any given summer day.

Is Coeur d'Alene one of the seven most beautiful lakes in the world? Supposedly attributed to National Geographic, some years ago I wrote them and was informed that they had never ranked "beautiful lakes". Dad used the line promoting the area in the 50's and 60's but I'd guess he never tracked down the validity of the declaration. Some things are best left alone.

The claim was actually early tourism hype first pushed by the railroads and steamboat lines that served the thousands upon thousands they served in the early years of the 1900's. There was big money in transporting tourists to and around lake Coeur d'Alene. If you think Lake Coeur d'Alene is beautiful now, imagine how people viewed it then, with its crystal clear waters, mountains densely covered with stands of timber and abundant fish and wildlife.

The Red Collar Line and White Star Navigation Company were rivals for these passengers and boasted beautiful steamboats that could carry hundreds of passengers. The sidewheeler Idaho could board up to a thousand. Hauling equipment, supplies, settlers and loggers most days, Sundays found trainloads of people coming from Spokane and the Palouse to spend the day on the steamers as they cruised the lake, sometimes to visit the Old Mission (prior to being moved to it's present elevated location). Round trip tickets were $1.25 to St. Maries and $1.75 to St, Joe, a one time bustling and roughneck city that doesn't even exist today.

Red Collar owned the main dock where the Electric Line brought trainloads of people right up to the boats. The shenanigans between Red Collar and White Star seem humorous now but dangerous and cutthroat back in the day. Stories of "stealing" passengers were common as were dock scuffles, boats being driven into shallow water on the St. Joe, races between boats filled with cheering passengers across the lake and even one boat "accidentally" (on purpose?) ramming and sinking a rival boat. The Red Collar Line won the war and during it's heydays between 1908 and 1913 they had near 50 boats of various sizes plying the waters.

Next time you're in Hudson's, take pause to really look at the old photos on the wall. And if you want to know more about this amazing history of our area, seek out Steamboats in the Timber by Ruby El Hult. Written in 1952, I found this one of the most interesting books I've ever read.

Let's Go Boating

2009-09-19T10:43:00.000-07:00

For a guy who's lived in CdA all his life, I haven't really been on the lake that much. We never had a boat so I'll always jump at an opportunity to go along with friends who do.

I look maybe 3 years old in this photo so we'll say 1958. Dad's holding onto a boat that I think belonged to a Canadian friend, Norm Hendricks. One of the ladies is Norm's wife, Mary Templin's in the middle and I have no clue after that. (Note to self, put names on the backs of photos for future reference)

We're standing on the Templin's Motor Inn dock, pretty much where the west entry of the Resort Boardwalk is now.

Memoirs of a Seahawk Fan

2009-09-15T16:15:00.000-07:00

The above photo was taken on Dec. 26, 1999. The last regular season game in the Kingdome. These were our seats for 16 years. The first year the seats cost $8 a game. Now $8 hardly buys you a beer at a game. Standing behind us are 3 of our Seahawk "family". The guy in the vest was the sideline cameraman. He was from Spokane and always passed out Tootsie Pops to us before the game. We got on the big screen regularly. In the middle is Bennie, what a wonderful lady. We know where her seats at Quest are and always make sure to seek her out if we go to a game. Bennie split the pair of season tickets with Chester, on the right.

I miss the Kingdome, its destruction was the first signal for my fading dedication. They are still my team but I don't bleed blue anymore. Posted below is a review of my life with the Seahawks, originally written a few days before the Seahawks played the Steelers in Super Bowl XL.

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It has been XXXVIII years since MY team was in the Super Bowl. When I was a kid, I was a Packer fan. And how could I not love Idaho boy Jerry Kramer throwing the block to let Bart Star sneak in for the TD in the Ice Bowl against the Cowboys? I was 11 at the time. After Lombardi left I went for years without a real favorite team.

Then the Seahawks came along and I’ve bled blue ever since. I’ve suffered through a lot of losses, a lot of disappointments and a lot of mediocre seasons. Not that there hasn’t been a number of memorable moments over the years.

Oct. 21, 1979. It was my first visit to the Kingdome. The Oilers, featuring Earl Campbell, were in town. I’d come to watch him as much as the Hawks. I should have known a fickle love/hate relationship with the NFL in Seattle lie ahead of me. Earl hardly played and our ‘Hi Mom” banner never made it on TV. The Jim Zorn led Seahawks won 34-14.

Nov. 8, 1981. Pittsburgh’s Terrible Towels waved in the Kingdome but the Seahawks and fans were up to the call. We sat 300 level, dead square between the goal posts. Late in the 4th quarter, I watched the Hawks hold Pittsburgh on a 4th and goal then march the ball back to our endzone. I had a bird’s eye view on a Seahawk 4th and goal. Touchdown Seahawks! Seahawks win, 24-21.

New Years Eve day, 1983. This was as close as got for decades. The Hawks go 9-7 and beat Denver at home in the Wild Card. This day we sat in our living room and watched as Idaho Alum “Super” Sam Merriman fell on a fumble in a rain soaked 4th quarter to beat the Dolphins 27-20 in Miami. The Hawks went on to lose to the would-be Super Bowl Champion Raiders the next week.

Oct. 6, 1986. It’s a month before my son, Aaron, turns six and we take him to see his favorite player and first sports hero, Steve Largent, make a catch in an NFL record-breaking 128th consecutive game. We win 33-7. On the way out, Aaron stumbles on the steps and a seat-arm on the aisle leaves a third eyeball dead center on his forehead. We watch the highlights in the ER of Swedish Hospital. He still has the souvenir, er, scar.

Nov. 16, 1986. Cincinnati wins 34-7 giving the Hawks 4 straight losses and a 2-7 record. We refuse to not have fun at the game. After the second Bengal TD, we put sacks on our heads, each with a letter spelling out K-N-O-X. We’re in the newspaper the next morning. At least we got our money’s worth and laughed all the way home.

Nov. 30, 1987. Monday Night Football. The Raiders. Bo Jackson. Bozworth. A 37-14 butt-kicking. Bo runs over the Boz right in front of us. A couple long faced fans, Aaron and I, make the Tuesday newspaper. We have to chain up on Snoqualmie and it takes 12 hours for our charter bus to make it home.

December 23, 1989. Steve Largent’s last game. Many former Seahawks are on hand to honor him. Pre-game ceremonies are moving and there’s hardly a dry eye in the house. By halftime we were really crying as the Redskins are cleaning up on their way to a 29-0 victory. It was an emotional halftime, the Blue Angel was retiring. We didn’t stay for the second half.

Through the 80’s and 90’s, we were as good a mediocre team as you’d ever want. We had highs of home victories over archenemies Denver and Oakland/LA. We saw Steve Largent flat-can a Denver defensive back after an interception (the same player that put him out earlier in the season). We had the Wave. We wore Raider-Buster shirts. We retired the number 12 (bite me, Aggies!). We loudly proved the NFL’s new ‘noise rule’ would never work by repeatedly pegging the decibel meter on national television. We cheered names like Efren, Doornink, Krieg, John L, Easley, Brown, Yarno, Nash, Tuiasosopo, Cortez, Warner, Skansi and Paul Johns. We jeered names like Elway (Elllllll-waaaaaaaaay!) and cussed those of Flores, Behring and Erickson. We went home hoarse and happy; we went home spent and sullen. We were Seahawk fans.

December 26, 1999. The last regular season game in the Kingdome, we beat Kansas City 23-14. Two weeks later, the Hawks lose the Wild Card at home to Miami, but this was the official farewell game. The sidelines were packed with a who’s who of Seahawk history, pre-game and halftime shows are moving. Post game, every player was introduced and the top 10 all-time Kingdome highlights are shown on the big screen. Laser lights and pyrotechnics make this wake a spectacular party.

We had sat in the same seats for 16 years, aisle 110, row 1, seats 1-4. Nearby season ticket holders watched our children grow, we became friends with sideline cameramen and security people. Once our reluctant daughter Tia was recruited to pull camera cable and stood just out of the endzone for a Seahawk touchdown, forever locking her into Seahawk Blue. These people were our family.

Our seats were at one of the few entries to the playing field and longtime security lady, Mary, looked at me as we packed to leave and asked “You guys want to go on the field?” Sue, the kids and I walked among our team, Aaron finally getting his photo taken with Largent. I miss those seats and I miss those friends.

Then came the UW years. Husky Stadium is in one of the greatest settings in sports. But it is an awful stadium. Seats are uncomfortable and far removed from the field, the aisles are woefully inadequate. The football wasn’t much better.

The new stadium brought new excitement but also higher prices. After 20 years, we finally gave up our season tickets. We’ve since gone to some games, but (typically me or typically Seahawks), of the three regular season losses Seattle has had at Quest Field, I’ve been to two of them.

This is the first year since 1979 that I haven’t attended at least one game. Now they’re XL bound. Perhaps the albatross hanging around one’s neck isn’t the Seahawks on me but me on the Seahawks. Go figure.

Epilogue

Well, the Seahawks lost the Big One. Yes, some calls went against them but they just didn’t play well enough to win. So much for me getting rich selling my years of collectibles on eBay. I’ll just pack it all away for another year/decade/millennium.

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The story continues...

October 22, 2006

Mostly because my wife wanted to go, we attended the game against the Minnesota Vikings. Along for the trip were my daughter and her friend, I should have known going with three women wasn’t going to be like the Boy’s Trips of the old days.

The good news is Gordie is still bartending at the Athenian in Pike Place Market and they still serve Snowcap in frosty mugs, Mee Sum pastry still has the best sidewalk potstickers and you can still buy cheddar cheese rolls from the Russian bakery. And it was a sunny weekend.

Sunday morning rolled around. Parking five (city) blocks away was an affordable $30 (compared to the $50 near the stadium). Football mornings are always fun in the Pioneer Square area and breakfast at The Central was good, including the numerous Viking fans in attendance.

Almost half of the Seahawks total game yardage came in the first quarter, and damn near half that was in one play. Turned out it was one of the few highlights of the actual game. Seahawk highlights anyway, the Vikings had plenty.

Now I have been to three of the four regular season losses in Quest Field. Maybe I should just stay away from now on.

November 27, 2006

Nope, Sue got tickets for the Monday Night Game against the Packers and after going to over 120 games in over 25 years, I have to say this was in my Top Ten. Of course, spending the pre-game at Pyramid Brewing, walking into a snow storm for the game (we had our boots, gloves and CHS Viking stadium blanket and kept toasty), seeing a great game and then closing the Elysian Brewery after the game, it had to be a fun time.

October 14, 2007

My son, Aaron, and I make a one day trip over and back to see the Sunday night game against the Saints. Early in the game it’s so loud I almost wish I had earplugs. Then the Saints start looking great while the Hawks start looking bad. With Seattle down 28-10, we leave with six minutes left in the game. Yet another loss I attend.

December 9, 2007

Another Seattle trip and now I just look at it as a beer weekend. Saturday we visit Pyramid Brewing, Pike Place Brewing, The Athenian and The Taproom. Gordie’s still at The Athenian but tells me he’s retiring and moving to Arizona. I guess everything changes in time. The Seahawks win, big. But even with a 42-21 shellacking of the Cardinals, well, it’s still just the lowly Cardinals. Lucky we’re in the worst division in the NFC.

January 12, 2008
In what will go down in history as a great Green Bay Packer win, in epic Lambeau Field weather, the Seahawks see their season come to a close.

2008 Season
The Hawks stink and Holmgren can't be run out of town fast enough for my liking. We go to one game but I don't even remember who we played or if we won. I do remember Saturday night at the Taproom.

2009 Season
This year's season ticket is in my living room. Free parking, better beer, no drive home and, if the game sucks, a nice place for a nap.

Mr. Coeur d'Alene

2009-09-10T09:29:00.000-07:00

This is a photo of my dad, Kyle M. Walker, from summer 1953. I don't know who the photographer was but written on the back is the date, his name and "the busiest man in CdA". The photo was taken in front of what was at the time the Chamber of Commerce building. It was just a little log cabin located roughly where big granite Centennial Trail monument is between the Sherman/NW Blvd bend and the Independence Point parking lot. I remember little of it, only that it was small.

Near the end of the 1950's the Chamber office was moved to an annex on the east end of The Desert Hotel, now the site of Bonsai at 1st & Sherman. Not long after Dad retired from his 23 years as Manager of the Chamber in 1971, the Desert Burnt down, taking with it the Chamber, the Athletic Round Table and the Diamond Cup Trophy. A total and sad loss.

Dad moved to the Inland Empire in 1947 from Kingsport, TN. where he was the outdoor editor for the Kingsport Times and a reporter for the American Field, the semi-weekly publication and bible for field dogs and field dog trials. Dad traveled across the US and into the plains of Canada with this job, and discovering Coeur d'Alene, he fell in love with it.

After working as a writer/photographer for a magazine called Scenic Idaho he was hired as the Chamber Manager in 1948. Most industry in the CdA area was still lumber mills and various associated businesses. But tourism, which was a huge part of what put CdA on the map even around the turn of the century, was a major player.

Dad worked the promotion of local tourism with a passion. When he wasn't promoting CdA as his job, he, as a freelance writer/photographer, had CdA and surrounding areas featured in countless magazines and trade publications across North America. He was an original member of the State of Idaho Board of Commerce and Tourism and scrounged for funding to promote the area almost every year at the Calgary Stampede as well as travel expos in places like Los Angeles (yeah, I took a bad rap for him bringing the Californians) and Chicago.

Ever the promoter, we even had 2 cars that had "follow the photographer to scenic Coeur d'Alene" painted (by Ted Anderson) down the sides and trunk. Damn I hated to ride in those.

He got the movie bug, bought a 16mm Bolex and made The Coeur d'Alene Country which was released in 1962. He got his friend, country music star and Disney narrator, Rex Allen to narrate the movie and it was distributed widely, including a German translation as it grew popular in Europe. He also, as a one man movie production company, made North Idaho Scenic Land which featured the 11 northern counties and at his retirement banquet premiered Four Seasons in the Coeur d'Alene Country.

During his years with the Chamber he helped get the Public Golf Course off the ground, was instrumental in bringing the Boy and Girl Scout World Jamborees to Farragut State Park and was involved with everything from parades and the Diamond Cup to the Scottish Tattoo and Forest Festival Days.

He was known as Mr. Coeur d'Alene and considering the times and what media was available in the 50's & 60's, probably did more to promote Coeur d'Alene than any other single person before or since.

Dad passed in 1989 and I miss him and his never ending stories, songs, poems and sayings for almost every occasion. He's mostly forgotten now, as are so many of the wonderful people of that era. I was lucky enough to meet and know an amazing number of special individuals through Dad. He is my Hero; for moving here, for marrying my Mother and for raising me in the most wonderful little city on Earth.

Sherman Avenue

2009-09-07T11:00:00.000-07:00

Ah yes, Sherman Avenue. It was our version of American Graffiti. I met my wife "tootin' the gut". Things have certainly changed over the years, the late 80's saw the "revitalization" of downtown with widening of sidewalks and Sherman going from 4 lanes to 2. This photo taken looking west at 4th & Sherman I'd guess is late 60's or very early 70's, the Oldsmobile on the left looks like a 68.

Looking down the south (left) side of the street we see Hart Drug, a beauty salon, Coast to Coast Hardware and Woolworths, now Java, San Francisco Sourdough, Pita Pit and Sherman Square Park. Beyond that I can't tell/don't remember (I should find an old Polk's city directory). Some of the businesses farther down on the next block were Western Auto, Bank of Idaho, JC Penney and the Gold Cup, now the Resort Plaza takes up the entire block.

On the north side of the street is the Kamera Korner which over my memories was also Ruth's Children's Wear, the Penny Candy store and now the Beacon (I may one day expand on the California Carpetbagger who booted from the building the candy store, an attorney and Ace Travel after 34 years). What is now Brix was at the time Mariposa if I recall correctly. Prior to remodeling this was where JC Penny was. I remember getting clothed off the husky rack in the upper "balcony". You can't make out much from the photo but on down the street was IXL Toggery, Merrill's Cafe, the Sportsman's, Clark's Jewelry (the clock's still there), Lighthouse Sporting Goods and what is now Wells Fargo was the Hagadone building (1967-1971) with Everson's Jewelry and Floyd's Camera on the street level and upstairs were the Hagadone offices, Dr. Toyama optomitrist and Ace Travel. On the next block were Gridley's Clothing, Shamrock Bar, Hudson's and The Wilma among other things.

I've got more photos, stay tuned and please leave comments on your memories of Sherman and what I missed between 2nd & 4th streets.

Parking Ticket

2009-09-06T15:34:00.000-07:00

Seeing the letter in The CdA Press today about downtown parking made me pull this one out. Back in the 50's & 60's when Dad was the manager of the Chamber of Commerce, he somehow got the City to pass out these "parking tickets" to cars obviously belonging to tourists. This was when downtown still had parking meters. Rather than a ticket, they got this postcard on their windshield. Probably weren't going to get many tourists to pay a parking fine anyway.

The complaint in the Press today was a "downtown business owner" complaining that the current parking laws penalize customers and employees and are just another means of the City taxing people. Cry me a river, bub. Parking tickets are not a new concept and have been an American fact of life for almost a century and for well over 50 years here in CdA.

I was a downtown CdA business owner for 25 years and saw first hand how parking worked. The number one problem with parking on streets in downtown are the huge number of people who own or work in stores and businesses located there. I've never understood how these folks expect customers when they take up parking in front of their own business all day long. I'd bet there still isn't a block downtown that doesn't have some owner/employee checking the clock and going out to move their car every two hours. I saw it on a daily basis for years. People sitting around waiting for customers in between the times they go out to erase the chalk mark on their tire or rolling forward enough to put it on the pavement. I watched as one guy first rolled his wife's car then did the same thing with his car parked right behind hers. This went on for a couple years, until they (mayhap for lack of customers) moved out.

As a business owner I bought every employee a monthly pass in the city parking lot. Two blocks is too far? Only in America will people pay $29.95 a month to be in an athletic club yet are still so lazy they'll park in a handicap space or in the "no parking" zone on a curb so they don't have to walk.

Downtown businesses are their own worst enemy. While crying how parking is keeping customers from their door, maybe Mr. Downtown Business Owner should take a look in the mirror. And it's not just parking. Check downtown in the winter to see how few businesses actually make an effort (or have enough pride) to keep their sidewalk cleared of snow and make a cut in the berm so people don't have to climb over it.

I used to be disgusted with many of my fellow downtown neighbors, now I'm just amused that attitudes haven't changed one bit.

The Last Log Drive in America

2009-08-29T11:53:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time, most young men who grew up in this area worked at least once for a sawmill, logger, farmer, rancher or in the mines. I did some time at the Potlatch Rutledge mill which is now the CdA Resort Gold Course (see previous entry for photos). I went to school with a number of guys who were 2nd and 3rd generation loggers. Fellow CHS Class of 73 twins, Bart and Mark Turnbull, were both killed logging. Anyone who's ever cut firewood in the forest can identify with the work, and peril, that goes into falling and removing timber.

Logging has been big business in North Idaho since the late 1800's. While modern equipment has improved safety and efficiency, olden times saw very dangerous and difficult work. Timber was often felled in the winter and logs run down flumes to a river where they would be floated toward sawmills. High waters of spring were when most of these log drives were run. But with a wild river ran and receding waters, lots of logs were hung up along the river.

To free these logs, river rats worked from the head of the drive, down river. Using boats to move workers, these hearty men stood in ice cold waters and worked peevees and pike poles (see photo) to roll logs back into the flow. Often jams were so tight they had to blast them with dynamite.

The men lived on Wanigans, 2-3 connected barges that had a kitchen/mess hall, sleeping quarters and equipment. The Wanigan was moved down river along with the drive, drives lasting anywhere from a week or two to a month or more.

Dad was contracted by Potlatch to make a 16mm film called From Forest to Home which started with felling and ended with lumber ready for construction. This was 1966 and Dad filmed what would be the last log drive in America, on the Clearwater River. By that time, flumes were out and trucks were used. The above photo is from that excursion and shows men trying break free a jam.

I was maybe 11 and got to go with Dad on this trip and I will always cherish the memories of this long gone operation. We got to tour and have lunch on the Wanigan (good cooks were highly valued and the fresh banana cream pie was the best I ever had).

Also filming during this drive was Walt Disney Studios for the movie Charlie the Lonesome Cougar that was released in 1967. It was the tale of a cougar raised by loggers and the misadventures of this combination. The filming was complete and while I didn't see any Hollywood activity, I did get to visit Charlie who was in a big cage on the back of the Wanigan. The movie was narrated by cowboy singer Rex Allen who did a number of similar films for Disney. Rex was a friend of my dad's and I remember him as a very warm and funny man. He'd always stop by when he was in the area and he always clowned around to my delight.

Anyways, I've been reading local history books and about the lives of loggers, and of the many lives lost. Looking back I am blessed to have had a father with whom I got to experience so many wonderful things. I ran across this photo recently and felt compelled to write this blog. If you find this interesting I urge you to read the books Hardships & Happy Times, Caulked Boots, Swiftwater People and North Fork of the CdA River by Bert Russell (buy at the Museum of North Idaho) and/or White Pine: King of Many Waters by Clarence Strong and Clyde Webb.

Timber!

The Dancewana

2009-08-18T21:59:00.000-07:00

Hello girls!

It's 1957 and the Dancewana is pulling out, or should I say is being pulled out, with a load of young ladies ready for a day on beautiful Lake Coeur d'Alene.

I say pulled out because the Dancewana was really just a barge. On the left you can see part of the Sea-we-wana (correct spelling?) that was the power sister to the Dancewana.

Steamboats may have plied the waters of Lake Coeur d'Alene in the early half of the 1900's but in the middle of the century this was about all that was left of the lake's tourism business. The Dancewana was then what the CdA Resort's fleet is today. Other photos I've seen show the decks loaded with sailors from Faragut NTS, all no doubt hoping to snag one of the local lovelies like seen here.

Now here's where I'm asking for help with info. Did the Dancewana end up as the Mish-a-Nock? Wasn't the Sea-we-wana purposefully sunk about 20 years ago to provide divers a piece of history to explore?

Correct or confirm please.

Dr. Hamilton Greenwood

2009-08-12T21:22:00.000-07:00

Here's another photo Dad took, this one of Dr. H.H. (Ham) Greenwood and his 26 pound Kamloop taken in 1954. He also caught a premie from my Mother on May 8 of the next year at Lake City General Hospital (yup, can you believe I was an incubator baby? fooled all of them!). Ham and his wife, Mary, lived in a beautiful house on Government Way and I loved to visit when I was a little kid. He had the biggest, most comfortable leather chair in a room just off from the front door. He looked sort of like Captain Kangaroo and he had this wonderful deep voice with a great laugh and a great sense of humor. Just another wonderful local who I got to know as a kid growing up in CdA.

Before the Coeur d'Alene Resort

2009-08-11T13:52:00.000-07:00

The top photo is of the "new" North Shore Motor Inn. I'd guess mid to late 60's. Looking around it you can see the outdoor pool at center rear and convention center on the east end. Above the North Shore is Templin's, the Desert Hotel across the street and Playland Pier closer to the park. Just east of the convention center is Inland Marine and you can clearly see that boat docks were aplenty.

Where Independence Point parking is now was then just a dirt lot. The Milwaukee Road building is gone by the time this was taken. On Northwest Blvd what is now the Museum of North Idaho was then the Co-op Supply, the west end turn around for Sherman's cruisers.

At the corner of 2nd & Sherman is the Telephone/Johnston Building prior to being covered with the black facade that still covers it. The then new JC Penny store sits center of the block where the CdA Resort Plaza is today (having been moved from it's previous location which is now Brix).

The North Idaho Junior College campus is visable, well at least the one main building that it was at the time. The recently closed DeArmond stud mill is showing smoke from the burner and you can see where Hwy 95 crosses the Spokane River between it and NIJC. Yup, go straight to cross to Blackwell Island and head south or turn left onto the Dike Road.

The lower photo of the expanded North Shore would have been taken in 1972. I know that as I worked as a dishwasher in the brand new Cloud 9 resturant that summer (a job that sucked so bad when I quit after 8 days I was the longest employed dishwaher).

Of course all this is now the world famous CdA Resort. Things change and how many of us have watched Coeur d'Alene go through these changes in our lifetime.

As usual, stay tuned for more historic photos. And please pass The Old Koot on to anyone you know who would enjoy seeing CdA the way it was.

North Idaho Land Rush

2009-08-07T13:40:00.000-07:00

Lake lots for $2,000? Yup, just get in a time machine and go back 40 years.

Ozzie Walch was an interesting guy. He was a yell leader at the U of Idaho, I wish I had a copy of the photo of him with the megaphone. He was known as The Wizard of Oz and had a CdA Lake resort with the Land of Oz theme. And he was a real estate pioneer of sorts for lake property as this ad shows.

More CdA City Beach Scenes

2009-08-06T15:00:00.000-07:00

Here are two more recent photos of City Beach. These were taken after the changing rooms were taken out from under Playland Pier. The lower photo clearly shows where the steps went from the seawall down to the water. That's where the walkway to the dock is visible in my previous blog photos.

Both photos clearly show how the docks were situated and where the swim meets would have been in between. The lower photo also has the island dock and beyond it, the Union 76 Ball (sign) for the gas dock. It also shows the North Shore in the background so it would be the mid to late 60's. The upper photo I'm guessing is a few years later.

Thanks to all who make comments and add to the memories or clarify things I may have missed or are mistaken about. Stay tuned, I still have more to come.

2009-08-04T09:43:00.000-07:00

A Great Place to Cool Down

Ah yes, City Beach and the Park. It's been a popular place for decades. I'm guessing the first photo was taken in the late 1940's. Note where the steps go from the park, a ramp crosses the beach and goes out to the docks. Fully dressed people, including a sailor, are on the dock.

The lower photo was probably taken in the late 1950's. You can see more docks and Playland Pier in the background. The porthole windows were the doors on changing rooms. Those were removed in later years, I don't remember them. Also visible are the carousel, rockoplane, ferris wheel and swings. The swings were a favorite because you literally swung out over the water on the ride. The buildings behind housed the bumper cars, the arcade and snack bar.

There were 3 docks at City Beach, the one the sailor is on in the top photo, an L shaped dock that faced it and an island dock out farther. You can see them better in the 2nd photo. Lane ropes were strung between the main docks and swim meets were held there.

Log booms and docks were not always in the same place. It seemed like every couple years the configuration was tweaked. Now the only thing left is the swim area perimiter boom. I suppose docks were removed to lessen the liability. I miss the days when people were actually responsible for their own actions.

More pics to come, stay tuned.

2009-07-29T08:19:00.000-07:00

More Coeur d'Alene From the Air

Here's another arial photo from around 1960. Looking from bottom to top note the Government Way, 4th Street, 7th Street and 9th Street bridges.

Pretty sparce neighborhoods, you can tell which homes have been around that long. At 4th Street, about the only building that remains is Lake City Lanes (Auto Body).

On 7th Street is Borah School, which just had its first expansion on the west (near) end, and the 2 churches that are still there.

Above 9th Street is the brand new Monte Vista neighborhood. You can see a row of homes on 11th Street just this side of the tree line. From left to right, these were occupied by the Fossum, Robideaux, Walker (me!), Ashleby, Hubbard, ?, Scott and Cook families. You can't tell from this pic, but decades earlier a railroad line ran behind where these houses are. Behind Mike Scott's house there were still a couple old RR ties in the ground.

This was a great place to grow up. North of the bridge is Homestead and the angled street is Syringa. This little triangle neighborhood at one time had over 70 kids of all ages. There was plenty of room to explore, build forts, ride bikes and generally do all the simple things that kids of the 60's did. All my buds had HO slot cars and we'd combine our track to build huge layouts and race, when we weren't building model cars.

As Monte Vista was built out (the big field to the left) we had dirt streets to play "prisoner escape", which was just an excuse to ride our bikes like hell all over the place chasing each other. When houses were being built we crawled through them at night, when utility lines were being installed we climbed in and out of the trenches "saving" each other like we saw on the TV show Rescue 8. We'd pack lunches and climb "Big Best" and eat looking over the City.

And, being kids in those carefree times, our only rule was to be home in time for dinner. We'd ride our bikes all over town and at least once a month and would go to every store in town that sold comic books and stock up for summer reading, always making sure everyone bought different ones so we could trade them around.

Then there was the Diamond Cup hysdroplane races, which to us was better than Christmas. We'd spend all day, every day down at the pits where the big boats were in town, collecting booster buttons and every other thing we could get out hands on. You have no idea how big the spark plugs were for those giant V-12 engines. The mechanic's junk was our treasure. (More on the Diamond Cup in a future edition.)

Life was simple then. Kids grow up so dang fast now. Grade school kids think they are too mature to do some of the stuff we enjoyed into our early high school years. I don't want to go back but I do have some awesome memories of growing up with a bunch of great friends.

2009-07-26T15:00:00.000-07:00

Looking Down on the Past

Here's another one of Dad's photos of I-90 taken around 1960. Looking from bottom to top (west to east) are the bridges of Lincoln Way (now Hwy 95), Government Way, 4th Street, 7th Street and 9th Street. Yes, things have certainly changed.

Lincoln Way was destined to become Highway 95 but when the overpass was built it just came to a T at Appleway. Government Way was still the main north - south route. But Sherman was still part of Hwy-10 as well. I-90 changed everything.

You don't see the hospital, Shopko, the CdA Inn, Wild Waters or any of the many buildings and businesses that have showed up in the last near 50 years. Looking at Government Way you can see which houses are now that old. Continuing to look east you can pick out a few places that still exist like Borah School and Lake City Lanes (now Lake City Auto Body). Also of note are the dirt streets in the Borah neighborhoods. And there's the house I grew up in.

I'll post more detailed photos in this series soon.

The Best Beer Ever

2009-07-21T18:43:00.000-07:00

OK, this blog doesn't have to all be about history. As you may know, I'm a fan of quality beer. And I thought it worthy to write about the best beer I ever had. It was just a couple weeks ago. It was at Xmas in July at Capone's on the 2nd and it was incredible.

It's always fun to have a Snowcap or a Jubleale in July but on this night I was smitten with a very special beer. I will be so bold as to say it was the best beer I've ever drank in my life.

Full Sail Ales has a wonderfully hoppy winter warmer called "Wreck The Halls." A Full Sail sales guy (dude! bring your biz cards) came and brought what looked like a blender about 30 inches tall. On the floor were a keg of Wreck the Halls and a big CO2 tank. Hoses ran from the tank to the keg to the "blender" which wasn't a blender at all but more like a beer compressor named Randle. Filled with fresh hops the beer pressure pushed through the wonderfully fragrent buds before being tapped out through an ice filled cooler. Full Sail called it Wrecking Randle.

This was without a doubt the tastiest beer I have ever enjoyed. I even had my wonderful wife go home and grab a couple of growlers which I got filled before she took me home. I then shared the goodness with friends on the 4th of July. The growlers hadn't been filled properly and the brew lost a lot in about 40 hours. BUT, everyone who tasted it even then was wowed by the flavor.

Thank you Full Sail for what has to be the best bar/beer promo in the world. A close runner-up was Sierra Nevada's Celebration Ale that had aged in a burboun barrel. Only a couple kegs of it were ever filled and it was the hit of the 2007 12 Ales of Xmas at Capone's. That was damn fine beer as well.

Hooray Beer!

Rutledge Unit

2009-07-20T21:33:00.000-07:00

This is the first of a number of photos I'll be posting that Dad took from Bill Brook's seaplane when I-90 was first completed. This would be about 1959. You can see the wings in a couple photos (which he would crop out where needed).

Dad sold a group of these arial photos, showing the new freeway end to end, to the Spokane Chronicle. The Chronicle was an evening paper, the Spokesman a morning issue. If you're old enough to remember, or have noticed on the newspaper the Old Man reads in A Christmas Story, many newspapers would fill the last page with "photos of the day". Dad's photos took the whole page a few days before the grand opening.

When I got older I got to go along and hold the plane's window open, out and up, for Dad to shoot. That was fun but it about tore my arm off. This is scanned from an 8x10" contact sheet, prints right from the negitives from Dad's 4x5" Press style cameras. I kept the prints, the negatives went to the Museum of North Idaho. Dad had maybe 1,000 - 1,500 of them.

The photos here show not only the new I-90 sweeper into the east end of town, but Potlatch Mill, Rutledge Unit.

The top left one shows the then brand new bridge that everyone now takes to go up to all the houses. Known now as Rutledge, we called it Armstrong Hill in the 70's. Great place to make out up on top. You could drive to the end of the road, turn around and park where you overlooked CdA and had clear vision of anyone coming your way long before they got there. I watched the 4th of July fireworks from there a time of two.

This shot could be held up to an arial promo shot of the CdA Resort Golf Course and new condo for comparison. It's all there. The sawmill has the tall stacks in the upper right. Check out the booms of logs ready to be fed into the mill.

The top right photo looks back at Sanders Beach and Tubbs Hill. Look how small a piece of land the new condos were built on is. In the background you can see the smoke from the sawmills out on Northwest Blvd.

The bottom left photo shows how west bound traffic exited over a bridge and down what is now East Lakeshore Drive and to the Serman intersection. In the background is Big Best, as we kids called it, the Cherry Hill area and the cross-town route of I-90.

The bottom right is all the same from the southwest. It clearly shows how big a mill Potlatch was and how much land it takes for a golf course.

For what must have been decades, a big chunk of boys growing up around here worked at least once in a sawmill, a mine or for a logger, rancher or farmer. I put in a short stint at Rutledge when I was going to NIC. Got a "join the union or else" letter in my paycheck once and figured if I was only going to work until I went to U of I, why should I pay them any of my money. End of job, start of summer.

I did have a couple of the most memorable work days of my life there, though. There were actually 2 of the best days of work ever, and then there were the days I had to work between the head rigs turning slabs. That sucked, hurt my back and bothered me until I finally had surgery 25 years later. But those are stories for another time.

More pics will follow. Stay tuned.

2009-07-15T19:44:00.000-07:00

Summertime, And the Living is Easy

Here's another one of Dad's photos, City Beach in the crush of another beautiful Lake City day. You can see Playland pier in the back; dang, what a great place when you were a kid. Forget Coney Island, we had a reasonable facsimile right here that was good enough.

A kid could have a hell of a great day at City beach with a dollar bill. There was the Merry-go-round, Rock-o-plane, tiny tot roller coaster, Bumper Cars and the ever popular Swings which literally put you over Lake CdA. [We always imagined one breaking and sending a rider way out into the lake.] I rode everything at least a couple times but usually spent my money in the arcade. There were a few very special machines there.

You couldn't afford to do everything on a dollar but at least a couple times each summer I'd shoot the growling bear with the light beam (pre-laser days by a damn sight) rifle. It was great hitting that glass eye in his side, causing him to raise up on his rear legs, growl and turn. Great shooting! And there was skee-ball and pinball and ancient hand crank flip picture movie machines. One was a snake eating a rat and the other (if they didn't catch you looking) was a fan dancer.

Then there was the good stuff. There were two post card machines. For .02 you got a photo of a movie star (starlets on one side, hunks on the other) or, even better yet, hot rods and custom cars. Why or why didn't I keep all that crap? Yeah, famous words we all can claim.

But then there was the greatest arcade game of all time. There was an (of course, ancient) early try at a soccer game. It was basically a large aquarium size glass case that stood on metal legs (hell, it was all metal). On the front were a slot for a penny a hand lever on each side. In the case was a playing field covered with little players and a goal with goalie at each end. The field was lumpy and low spots were in front of each player so the ball wouldn't go dead. When you flipped your lever, all the men on your team would kick one leg, plus your goalie would cross the goal. So you'd flip that lever in an early version of foosball. The balls were steelies (yes, steel balls) and you got one for every penny.

Hell yes it was fun, and it got even funner as the game became more about trying to break the glass with a kicked steelie than it was pushing an abacus like bead for scoring a goal. And at a penny a ball, I tossed a good share of dollar bills, a penny at a time into that machine playing and trying to break that glass. Amazingly, and with what had to be like 1930's glass, it never broke. No matter how many solid shots on glass we slammed, it never even cracked.

A penny a ball. Try and have that much fun nowadays.

2009-07-10T12:14:00.000-07:00

My father was the manager of the CdA Chamber of Commerce from 1948 to 1971. Summer of 1952 my mother was on vacation from Edmonton, Alberta. As Dad walked through City Park along the seawall he saw two women who were obviously on vacation (heck, there was only like 2,000 people in CdA, tourists were easy to spot). Dad, as I saw him do with thousands of people all his life, welcomed them to the Lake City.

The rest, as they say, is history. I am a direct product of the Chamber of Commerce, born in the Iron Horse parking lot (Lake City General, more on that some other time).

Dad had traveled all over North America reporting for a semi-weekly publication, The American Field, which is THE journal for anyone involved with bird dogs. But when he came through the Pacific Northwest, he knew this was the place for him. And he fell in love with Coeur d'Alene.

Involved deeply in tourism and the promotion of CdA, North Idaho and Idaho in general (he sat on the first State Tourism committee with Louise Shadduck), Dad came into possession of all sorts of things. The above poem is one of those items. My guess is this was printed somewhere around 1930. I believe it stands the test of time.

My dad, Kyle Walker, has been gone 20 years and I cherish so much of what he left me. Not the least of are his sense of humor, value of family and friends and love of CdA. This blog, and this entire blog site, is dedicated to him, Mr. Coeur d'Alene.

2009-07-07T10:01:00.000-07:00

Lakeside Days 1957 Program

Let's see how many pages I can post.

Check out the ads!

MOhawk 4

60,000 visitors!

The waterfront looks pretty industrial at the time.

Ben's Spudnut, now Capone's.

RexRexall, in the Desert, see the previous blog for the pic.

Everson's address became 107, home of Ace Travel for 34 years, now an art gallery.

A tug-o-war between lumber mills, this was serious!

Miss Lakeside Days, insert wolf whistle.

Yes, many businesses are this old.

Broderick Motors, now Architects West.

The New Studebaker!

Club Cigar & Sport Shop, fishing licenses up front, booze in the back.
IXL Toggery, when your parents really wanted you dressed up.
Gridley's, now the Painter's Chair.

Louie's is of course the Paul Bunyan.

Hart Drug, great magazine rack, now Java.

YJ Packing, fresh meat & sawdust floors. Hwy 10 is now Seltice.

Yes, there was a time when sailboats weren't outnumbered by jetskis.

The parade featured Miss Lakeside Days & her court, that's over.

Pines & Powell's, now the Iron Horse.

The baseball games were at Person because there was no McEuen at the time.

Central Motors, now Tito Macaroni's.

The boat races were not the hydroplane races, that was a different date,

Cruise Lake CdA on the Dance-a-wanna and the Sea-wee-wanna.

The Showboat was roughly where the rental storage units west of the I-90/NW Blvd/Ramsey interchange are.

Inland Marine was where the CdA Resort Convention Center and cruise boats are now.

The Lighthouse was the biggest hunting & fishing store. They had cases on the sidewalk where local fishermen displayed their big catches on ice. The loan offices for Wells Fargo are there now.

Sunset Raceway was roughly where the Shilo Inn is on West Appleway.

Knudtsen Chevrolet is now Headmasters.

Can't remember if it was Holsum or Bogge Brothers who tossed mini loaves of bread at the parade. Much better than candy.

Must have got darker earlier then, fireworks at 9:30pm.

Ray Jones Marina is now 11th Street Marina.

Remember S&H Green Stamps?

The Shady Rest was a great place. When Hwy 10 became I-90, it was cut off from the road. It's the somewhat abaondoned place you see behind the fence east of town. Bummer.

Kennedy Buick is now Takara & the Olympia.
First Federal S&L is now Canton Chinese.

The Boots & Saddle is now the parking lot for O'Shea's Irish Pub. Their Thursday smorgasbord was awesome, said the growing boy (me).

Stay tuned for what I throw at you next.

2009-07-06T16:29:00.000-07:00

Coeur d'Alene

Black & White

Part 1

My father, Kyle M. Walker, moved here from Kingsport, Tennessee in 1947. His first job was for a magazine called North Idaho Scenic Land. His writing, photography and public relations skills then led him to the position of Manager of the Coeur d'Alene Chamber of Commerce, a job he'd have until retiring in 1971.

In those years, Dad showcased Coeur d'Alene and North Idaho around the world. He ran a booth at the Calgary Stampede almost ever year until the late 1960's, wrote, filmed and produced three 16mm movies (two narrated by Rex Allen) promoting the area and wrote countless stories in all sorts of outdoor, travel, recreation and institutional publications.

Dad passed away in 1989, but he left me with a great sense of humor, an openness to make friends and help people, a good photographer's eye and a huge sense of pride in my home town, county and state. He also left behind a lot of pictures.

My Mother, Edith B. Walker, donated well over a thousand 4x5" black and white negatives to the Museum of North Idaho after his death. I did keep stacks of magazines with his articles and a good number of 8x10 prints. Since I'm going to try my own blog, what better subject matter could I have but his photos along with my memories of living in Coeur d'Alene since I was born? So this one will kick it off, appropriate since we just had the annual 4th of July Parade.

This photo obviously shows the CHS Marching Band headed west on Sherman from 2nd to 1st Streets. I'm guessing the year was around 1950. The big building on the left was the Desert Hotel, Coeur d'Alene's own Pink Palace. Besides Templin's Motor Inn, the Desert was the biggest and nicest accommodations in town and even had a swimming pool. I took swimming lessons from Lorraine Ursaki in that pool (I was the best floater in the group, thank you).

The Desert also had two of the coolest things in town; a large meeting room with a huge mural painted by Ted Anderson depicting the Diamond Cup Hydroplane Races in front of downtown CdA, and in the basement, the Athletic Round Table with it's dim lights, colorful bar and big aquarium. Members of the ART got monthly calendars and I always remember reading the one hung by our fridge, wondering what it would be like to attend things like live music and the Friday Night Seafood extravaganzas.

My parents (mom) opened Ace Travel Agency in 1957 (more on that later) and by 1960, Ace was in the main lobby, on the left side of the main staircase, Registration being on the right. Colorful characters flowed through the Desert Hotel including an Indian man who lived there for a time. He looked like an Arabian Knight and always wore his turban and a big smile. Yup, CdA was integrated as early as that.

Under the awnings (upper center) were two offices. At the time of this photo all I can say is one was a pharmacy. In later years and among other things, on the left was the office for AM 1240 KVNI, back when it really was a local radio station. In the late 50's, the Chamber of Commerce moved from a small log cabin (located within 100 feet of the Centennial Trail Monument at Independence Point) to under the right awning. With both parents working in the same building, I literally grew up in downtown Coeur d'Alene.

Moving east is the Telephone building, now known as the Johnston Building. Yes, there really is a classic building under that black facade. Around the corner at 107 N. 2nd was where Ace Travel began. The office sat, as it does today, just a few steps below sidewalk level. One of the airline sales reps who called on Mom jokingly referred to it as the old Ace in the Hole, and still did when I saw him last some 10 years ago.

Crossing 2nd we find The Wilma Theater, home of the Saturday Matinee where us kids sat through double features of cartoons, news and B-thrillers. Creature From the Black Lagoon? Saw it. Just one of the countless reels I remember sitting through. I was the tallest kid in my gang and even though I was 11, the woman selling tickets always tried to charge me the 12 year old price, my older friends laughed as they paid less.

We'd always try to sneak up into the balcony, success being about half the time. The front row of the balcony tailed off to about 4 seats on each side that were walled behind, necker's nooks. As we got older we figured out why couples liked to sit there.

Damn shame the Wilma was left to rot, unkempt, forgotten, boarded up. We always hoped it could come back to life, like the Panida in Sandpoint has done. How wonderful to have a theater downtown. But, the owners saw it as only a piece of land and a liability at that. When the heavy snow collapsed the roof some 15 years ago, we knew it was never to be. Now it's a fenced lawn, woopie.

From there was, and is, the Eagles Lodge, bars and shops. At the time this was taken, Hudson's, aka The Missouri Lunch, was across the street with the Hudson automobile dealer and the Dream Theater, now all part of the CdA Resort Shopping Plaza.

Coeur d'Alene has grown and changed. It's not what it used to be, but I've never been anywhere I liked any better nor would I have ever wanted to grow up anywhere else on earth.

Stick around, I've got lots more photos and lots more memories.

The Old Koot Begins Blogging?

2009-06-17T22:49:00.000-07:00

Yeah, after being urged to do so by a number of people, here we go.

It's late and I'm too tired to get much started, but here are some of the things you'll find me writing about as time goes on.

Being born, raised and living in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho all my life.

The (for the most part) wonderful people, places and things in CdA and Kootenai County I've come in contact with during my life.

Local politics. I sat on the CdA City Council for awhile.

Setting things straight, like the fact that Mae McEuen never owned nor gave that property to anyone.

Camping, beer and food.

The value of being a citizen rather than a resident and what the difference is.

Volunteering, like I'll be doing for Ironman the next 5 days.

Funny stories and other entertaining bullshit I've gathered during my life.

So stay tuned.

dw