Cheney, Washington - An Illustrated History of Spokane County, State of Washington

An Illustrated History of Spokane County, State of Washington

The best advertised town in the county is Cheney. In early years its ambition was to be no less than the metropolis of eastern Washington, and it is not the fault of its heroic citizens that this high aim was not realized. Cheney is beautifully situated on the Northern Pacilic Railroad, si.xteen miles west of Spokane, where the Washington Central branches off to the Big Bend country. The town site is especially adapted for a well ordered city, the land receding gradually from the railroad toward a slightly elevated plateau. A portion of the town was originally covered with pine trees, and even to-day^ the suburbs have a parklike appearance. The northern end is an open prairie of rich soil. On the highest elevation half a mile north of the normal school one can have a fine view of the vast and fertile Palouse valley to the south and the rugged Coeur d' Alene region to the east. The location of the town is on one of the highest points of the Big Bend plateau, twenty-three hundred feet above the level of the sea. In the surrounding country there is much rich agricultural land, also fruitgrowing and stockraising sections. The town was laid ofif by the Northern Pacific Railroad Company and the first house erected in 1880. The name Cheney is in remembrance of the late Benjamin P. Cheney, of Boston, to whom the town is especially indebted Cheney has had in the past, as well as to-day, among its citizens some of the most progressive men in the west, who have been thoroughly devoted to the interests of their town. Among them may be mentioned Hon. D. F. Percival, a native of Bangor, Maine, W. D. Switzer, a Pennsylvanian, who has conducted the drug and stationery business since 1880, and whose wife has been one of the most heroic temperance workers in the state. Other Pennsylvanians are Hon. S. D. Grubb and the venerable J. S. Mount. Dr. Pomeroy and many others might be mentioned. Cheney has a large grain elevator, a well equipped flouring mill, the products of which find a ready sale. The creamery is doing a good business. Among the business houses are A. L. Ames, merchant tailor; G. E. Roos, bakery; O. B. Royce, meat market. In the general merchandise business are O. Brien & Co. and H. & W. L. Fulton.

Cheney has a reservoir system of water works, put in in 1890, at great expense. The water is piped from Fish Lake, a short distance out, and it is pronounced absolutely pure. The pumping pressure in the pipes is one hundred and eighty-five pounds to the square inch, while the standing pressure is one hundred and twenty-five pounds - ample for protection against fire.

most fifteen thousand dollars. It is at present owned by a company, for whom L. Walter is the local agent. The works are supplied with two dynamos, whose capacity is seven hundred incandescent lights.

The town is blessed with two lively and ably conducted weekly newspapers, the Free Press, managed and edited by Mr. S. L. Alexander, and the Cheney Sentinel, until recently edited by j\Ir. D. H. Stew'art, but now by Frank A. Dunn.

Cheney is admirably located for an educational center, and a more desirable place for a State Normal School could not be selected. The place is clean, healthy, superb in surroundings and should in a great degree be free from demoralizing influences. In addition to the State Normal School there is a fine brick school building in a central location. The enrollment reaches well nigh on three hundred and nine grades of work is done. Cheney is well supplied with churches. The Christian, Congregational, Methodist Episcopal and Baptist and the Catholics have houses of worship. The Methodist Episcopal church was organized in Cheney in 1880, and was the first of any church organization in the city. The first sermon preached in the town was by Rev. G. W. Strong, then presiding elder in this section of country, and was preached in a butcher shop without a floor in it in October, 1880. The first public prayermeeting was held in the home of John Robbins in Alarch, 1881. The day tollowing this prayermeeting, Rev. G. W. Strong, the presiding elder, selected lots on which to build a church, and the edifice was completed by the first of June following. This tniilding is now used as a private residence on the ground on which is was originally erected. John C. Tyler and his wife, Laura E., are the only remaining members of the original organization, from whom these particulars are obtained. The present beautiful brick church, known under the corporate name of "The First Methodist Church of Cheney," was erected in

The church at present has a member-;hip of about ninety and a large Sunday school and an Epworth League of between forty and sixty earnest young people. The present pastor is Rev. W. H. Fry, a brilliant young preacher, a native of England and educated at Manitoba University, Wiimipeg. He has served since September, 1899.

The Congregational church w'as organized in 1881 through the instrumentality of the late Father Fells and Deacon G. R. Andrus, now of Tacoma. Father Eells made his home in Cheney as early as April, 1882, and built himself a small house a little east of the town, which still stands. "For nearly a year and a half, while living in Cheney, his time was spent in a round of labors in nine different places in three counties. Lone Pine, in Whitman county, Cheney, Sprague, Spangle, Medical Lake, and near Cottonwood Springs, in Spokane county, Chewelah, Fort Colville and Colville town, in Stevens county." - Life of Father Eells, page 249. Nearly all the early members of the Congregational church have either moved away to other places or gone the way of all flesh. But the church is in a vigorous condition to-day under the efficient ministry of Rev. F. B. Doane and his accomplished wife. Both the Sunday school and Christian Endeavor Society are doing excellent work. Mr. Doane is a native of the state of Massachusetts. He graduated from Hopkins Academy, Had- ley, Massachusetts, in 1S85. He entered Amherst College in September, 1886, and graduated in January, 1890. He graduated from Yale Divinity School in 1893. He pursued post-graduate studies one year after receiving the degree of B. D. Mr. Doane was pastor of the Congregational church in Dayton, \\'ashington. from October, 1894, until January i, 1897, and has been pastor of the First Congregational church of Cheney since that time. The first pastor was Rev. F. V. Hoyt and he ser\'ed it efiiciently for four years. He was succeeded by Rev. A. Howell, C. E. Chase, George E. Hooker, O. F. Thayer.

The State Noniial Scliool at Clieney, established by act of the Legislature, approved March 22. 1890, was opened for admission of students October 13, 1890. It is accordingly the oldest state normal school in Washington. The building and grounds of the Benjamin P. Cheney Academy were donated for the use of the school on condition that the state maintain in Cheney perpetually a public normal school for the training of teachers. Since then the school has had a somewhat checkered career.

notwithstanding which its course has been steadily onward and upward, with the exception of the school year 1897-8, during which its doors were closed. Its first misfortune was the loss of its building - the old Benjamin P. Cheney Academy - by fire. After that the school was housed in a business block and later in a new public school building, which, through the enterprise of the Cheney school district, was built and furnished for the use of the normal school until the state provided the present fine building. During its history, its legislative appropriation for maintenance has been twice cut off by gubernatorial veto. In each case, however, the executive opposition was later withdrawn upon a fuller understanding of the conditions. During its days of trial it has been upheld by loyal faculties and by the enterprise of the citizens of Cheney, who have fully realized the need to the public schools of this eastern Washington institution for the training of teachers. In 1898, after the school had been closed a year, the board of trustees called to the revival of the school the present principals of the school and its training department, and the citizens of Cheney subscribed a liberal fund to pay the running expenses of the school, such as light, heat, water, printing, etc. An energetic faculty was gathered together and over one hundred students were enrolled, who paid in fees for their attendance to go to the compensating of the faculty. With this showing of the necessity of the school to eastern Washington, the Legislature did not hesitate to renew its life, and it now emerges from all its trials, but the stronger for the conflicts.

The following is the faculty as at present constituted for 1899-1900: W. B. Turner, M. A., principal, psycholog}', pedagogics and sociology; Frank B. Babcock, M. A., vice-principal, English, Latin and history; H. C. Sampson, B. A., mathematics; Florence E. Snyder, B. Sc, natural and physical sciences; Rose Rice Turner, principal of training department and super\isor of methods; Lilyan Walter, draw- ing, penmanship and Ijookkeeping : ^Myrtle ^I. Graham, reading, voice culture and physical culture; R. A. Heritage, Mus. Doc, music; E. May Mackenzie, kindergartner.

The location of the State Normal School at Cheney could hardly be improved. It is in the midst of the most populous part of eastern Washington and is easy of access. The \\'ashington Central Railroad and the Great Northern Railroad place the people of the Big Bend country within a few hours ride of the Normal. The O. R. & N. and the Palouse branch of the Northern Pacific place the whole of the eastern, southeastern and southern parts of the state in close communication with the school, while the main line of the Northern Pacific and the Spokane & Northern furnish easy access to the people of the western and northern parts of the state. Spokane, the metropolis of eastern Washington, is only sixteen miles distant, and the students thus have easy opportunity to avail themselves of the best the west affords in the way of lectures, concerts and literary entertainments. Cheney is one of the most beautiful and healthful towns of the state. It is clean, lighted by electricity, well supplied with good water, both for domestic purposes and lawns. It has two enterprising newspapers, five churches and a complete public school system.

The board of trustees, in 1S96, completed the erection of one of the largest and best arranged school buildings in the state, at a cost of sixty thousand dollars. The building is of brick and stone and is furnished with all of the modern appliances to be found in any firstclass institution. The recitation rooms are perfectly adapted to the purpose for which they were intended, are large, well heated, well lighted and well ventilated. The physical and chemical laboratories are supplied with the best appliances for individual work in these subjects. Each floor is supplied with large, roomy cloak-rooms, toilet-rooms, lavatories, etc. The corridors are large and well lighted, the stairs easy of ascent, while the auditorium, with its beautiful stage, large gallery and comfortable modern furniture, is one of the best in the state. This building has already proved itself to be admirably adapted to normal school purposes. The present board of trustees comprises Hon. J. J. Browne, president, Hon. J. S. Allen and Hon. E. Dempsie, all of Spokane. The course of study is for five years. The average age of all students last year was 21.2 years.

The distinctive purpose of the State Normal School is to train teachers for the public schools of the state. It aims to accomplish this purpose :

2d. By giving a thorough understanding of the laws of growth, the interests and development of childhood and an active sympathy with child life.

3d. By instructing students in the science and art of teaching and of school management, in methods of instruction and by affording favorable conditions under which to put such instruction to the test by practice teaching in the training school.

The present enrollment of the Normal School is over one hundred and sixty, with probabilities of enrolling a total of over two hundred by the end of the present school year. In addition to this there are over seventy pupils in the training school and kindergarten. .Its full course graduates number fifty-one, while the elementary certificate has been awarded to forty-two additional. These are nearly all teaching in the public schools of the state of Washington.