Bookmarking History National Register's role in preserving Kootenai County's past
The Corbin Ditch canal system in Post Falls made small-scale farming possible for many in the region.
Corbin ditch (Historic photos courtesy of Idaho State Historical Society)
The Fort Sherman Chapel is Coeur d’Alene’s oldest church, school, library and meeting hall.
The Old Kootenai County Jail in Rathdrum, circa 1892, also served as the county’s first sheriff’s office and, later, a library and city hall.
Back in the 1890s and through the turn of a new century, hooligans, the criminally insane, gunslinging outlaws and other menacing desperados in North Idaho faced tough consequences when they were captured and hauled off to the county lockup.
Kootenai County’s first jail, built in 1892 for $540, housed criminals from a vast area stretching from the Canadian border south to Moscow, bordered by Washington and Montana.
The steel-celled jail, which still stands in Rathdrum, has not held prisoners for well over 100 years—its days as the region’s only jail are long gone.
But not forgotten.
A museum and tourist attraction now, the old Kootenai County Jail is one of more than 60 historic locations in the county certified on the National Register of Historic Places.
In Idaho, these historic places are managed by the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), which was established to coordinate the statewide inventory of historic properties, nominate properties to the National
Register and maintain a statewide preservation plan.
SHPO Director Tricia Canaday said while inclusion in the register is rigorous and requires significant documentation, the designation is mostly honorary.
“It doesn’t necessarily protect the site,” she said. “There are no restrictions to private property owners to alter or change the use of the property. The designation shows the historical importance but does not guarantee preservation.”
Still, being included on the National Register of Historic Places is a big deal, Canaday said.
“I like to believe there are bragging rights associated with it,” she said. And there are economic and aesthetic benefits, too.
“There have been multiple studies done about the historic designation that show it increases property values,” she said. “Pride in ownership leads to better maintained properties and that results in surrounding areas also showing more care for their land.”
The historic places distinction is bestowed in five categories:
Buildings. Dwellings that are inhabitable or were in the past.
Structures. Uninhabitable structures such as grain elevators or dams.
Sites. Examples include archeological digs or the location of a significant historical event such as a battle.
Districts. A group of properties that are related either schematically or archeologically.
Objects. Places that are “site-bound” (can’t be moved) such as a statue or sign.
Local historian and author Robert Singletary said historic places are a great tourism tool that help put a community on the map.
“Studies I’ve seen show 25 to 30 percent of people that go on vacation are interested in seeing historical sites,” he said. “If you have a town that designates historical sites it’s a great way to advertise your town and promote tourism.”
Singletary used the example of Wallace. The entire historic mining town is on the National Historic Register.
“Wallace gets tons of visitors. Why? They go to see those old buildings,” said Singletary, who at 85 is still immersed in local history, serving as public relations and marketing director for the Museum of North Idaho and chairman of the Kootenai County Historic Preservation Commission.
“There are significant benefits for a town that takes care of its old structures and works to designate and maintain them as landmarks rather than tearing them down and letting them go by the wayside,” Singletary said.
Here is a glimpse of just a few properties in Kootenai County that are included on the National Register of Historic Places:
Old Kootenai County Jail (Rathdrum). Designated in 2001. Built in 1892, the building served as the Sheriff’s Office and Jail until 1908 when the courthouse and jail were moved to Coeur d’Alene. The jail is built in a rough Romanesque style, of local brick and stone masonry with steel cells.
Fort Sherman Buildings, including the Chapel (Coeur d’Alene). Designated in 1979. Fort Sherman is North Idaho’s only official historic district. Several of its buildings remain on or near the campus of North Idaho College. Built in 1880 by the U.S. Army, the Fort Sherman Chapel is Coeur d’Alene’s oldest church, school, library and meeting hall.
Corbin Ditch (Post Falls). Designated 2003. Officially called the Spokane Valley Land and Water Company Canal, this site is associated with the early agricultural history of the area. Construction of the canal system, starting in 1907, encouraged the development of small-scale farming in North Idaho and eastern Washington.
Overseeing a staff of 10 at the State Historic Preservation Office in Boise, Canaday said the agency’s perpetual mission is to encourage the preservation, documentation, and use of cultural resources.
“SHPO will always be here to educate the public about the importance of Idaho’s cultural heritage,” she said. “Idaho’s historic, archaeological, and cultural resources represent the physical and tangible manifestations of our history.”
SHPO, a branch of the Idaho Historical Society, has an extensive website that details the state’s official historic places. Visit History.idaho.gov/location/shpo/.
Next time: Will Coeur d’Alene’s Garden District become a nationally recognized historic district?