By Dale Raugust
In 1908 Stevens Street in Spokane was lined with employment agencies that charged a dollar to the many transient workers who were looking for work in the mining, logging or construction industries. The employers kept the worker for a day or two and then fired him, forcing him to go back to the employment agencies and pay another dollar for another job. This was repeated over and over. One company, Somers Lumber Company, hired 3,000 workers that summer to maintain a workforce of 50. Industrial Workers of the World (IWW, also known as the Wobblies), organizer James Walsh arrived in Spokane in 1908 to address this issue. At first the Wobblies tried to work within the system but when the Spokane City Council refused to revoke the licenses of 19 employment agencies the Wobblies began a public speaking campaign to inform the public of the abuses. Late in the year the Spokane City Council passed an ordinance banning public speaking on the streets. The IWW continued to cooperate with the police, holding meetings indoors; but when the City Council passed an exception allowing the Salvation Army to speak on the streets, the Wobblies objected and started one of the most significant actions of civil disobedience in American history, an action that would spread to 26 other cities across the nation. The Wobblies sent out a call for supporters to come to Spokane and they arrived by the hundreds. On November 2, 1909, a crate was overturned and one by one the Wobblies got onto the “soapbox” and spoke against the employment agency abuses. One by one they were arrested until over 500 were carted off to jail.
In December, 1909, 19 year old organizer Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, a founding member of the American Civil Liberties Union and a woman of extraordinary speaking skills; arrived in Spokane to join the fight for social justice. Flynn was pregnant and at first the Wobblies organizers allowed her to speak only indoors. When the IWW office was raided and everyone arrested Flynn took over as publisher of the local worker’s newspaper, The Industrial Worker. Even after the speaking ban was declared unconstitutional the arrests continued, only now the speakers were arrested for disorderly conduct. There were so many arrests that the city could not afford to feed the men in jail so the men would be arrested in the afternoon or evening, held overnight and released before breakfast so that they did not have to be fed. The next day after a hearty meal provided by union organizers they got back on the soapbox and were again arrested. Flynn continued to speak at rallies and indoors until she was arrested while walking to the meeting hall and charged with “conspiracy to incite men to violate the law”. Her arrest made headlines throughout the nation. The Spokesman-Review described her as a “frail, slender girl, pretty and graceful, with a resonant voice and a fiery eloquence that attracted huge crowds.” Flynn was held in jail overnight and then released.
Upon her release she wrote of the police brutality she witnessed while in jail and the deplorable conditions of the jail. She declared that there were two prostitutes kept in the women’s quarters with her. During the night the jailers took the women downstairs one at a time, rape them, and then return them to the jail. The men also suffered from police brutality. A Spokesmen-Review reporter wrote that the men were confined 28 to a seven foot by eight foot cell, so tightly that “It took four cops to close the cell door. This was called the ‘sweat box’. The steam was turned on until the men nearly suffocated and were overcome with exhaustion. Then they were placed in ice cold cells and ‘third degreed’ in this weakened state. When the jail became overcrowded an abandoned unheated schoolhouse, Franklin School, was used as a jail.” The army also offered the use of Fort George Wright. A diary kept by a prisoner, James Stark, described how the men were covered with blood with teeth knocked out, eyes blackened, bones broken, and clothes torn. Three prisoners died. When Flynn wrote of the abuses in The Industrial Worker, city police went door to door and confiscated as many copies of the paper as they could, but it was too late, the word had gotten out and the news went national.
Flynn and half a dozen men were scheduled to go to trial on the conspiracy charge but right before the trial the charges were dropped against all but Flynn and one man, Charley Filigno. The trial before Judge Mann lasted for two weeks and made headlines throughout the nation. Flynn insisted on making her own closing argument. She acknowledged her guilt but appealed to the emotions of the men on the jury describing for them in vivid detail the working and living conditions of the transient workers as well as the incidents of police brutality and the condition of the jail... She was acquitted while Filigno was convicted. The prosecutor was furious. As the jury foreman told the prosecutor: “She ain’t a criminal, Fred, an’ you know it! If you think this jury, or any jury, is goin’ to send that pretty Irish girl to jail merely for being big hearted and idealistic, to mix with all those crooks down at the pen, you’ve got another guess comin’.” Flynn was surprised that she was acquitted. She later wrote in her autobiography that: “By this time I was obviously pregnant and even the fast-fading Western chivalry undoubtedly came into play.”
The city of Spokane had had enough. The arrests was costing the city $1,000 a week and a lot of bad publicity. All the charges were dropped and the licenses of 19 employment agencies were revoked. Many attorneys helped the arrested men, mostly pro bono. Flynn was defended by a young Spokane attorney, Fred Moore.
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Saturday, November 8, 2008
1961 Spokane Bar Association Schedule of Minimum Fees
By Dale Raugust
In 1961, the Spokane County Bar Association published an “Official Schedule of Minimum Fees” in an effort “to assure proper professional standards.” The Foreword to the schedule declared the purpose of the schedule as follows: “It is the opinion of the Spokane County Bar Association that except in unusual cases warranting a reduction on account of the peculiar circumstances of the case or the financial condition of the client, it should not be necessary to reduce any fee below the minimum prescribed in this schedule. It is further submitted to the members of the Bar that when it is apparent that a client or prospective client proposes to offer employment to the low bidder or that he intends to obtain bids from other lawyers, under no circumstances is the lawyer warranted in quoting a fee below the schedule.” At that time Section 12 of the Canons of Professional Ethics provided: “In determining the customary charges for similar services, it is proper for a lawyer to consider a schedule of minimum fees adopted by a bar association, but no lawyer should permit himself to be controlled thereby or to follow it as his sole guide in determining the amount of his fee.”
Per hour rate….$16.00; Oral Advice, not less than $5.00; Written opinion, not less than $15.00; Per Diem rate: “The charge for office work will depend upon the factors mentioned in the introduction to this schedule, and particularly upon the importance of the matter and the character of the problems involved. It is suggested that when on a per diem basis the minimum charge for office work should be at least $75.00 per day. This may be used as a guide on preparation for trial. Out of town or away from office per diem, at least $100.00 per day; Contract of sale, Personal Property…$10.00; Real Property…$15.00; Real Property deed, tax affidavit, closing…$40.00; Bill of sale…$5.00; Guardian ad Litem, not less than $25.00; Probate, $150.00 or 6% of first $5,000, 5% of next $10,000, 4% of next $60,000, 31/2% of next $425,000, and 3% of all amounts over $500,000. Bankruptcy, no assets…$175.00; assets above exemptions…$250.00; creditor claim…$5.00; Family Law: Community Property Agreement… $25.00; Adoption, non consenting parent…$150.00; all others…$100.00; divorce-default-no property or children…$200.00; divorce-default-with property or children…$250.00; negotiated settlement..$100; contested case, either side…$200.00; modifications pursuant to stipulation…$50.00 Trial rates: Superior Court: $175.00 per day with minimum of ½ day; District or Justice Court: $50.00 half day or $100.00 if involving possible suspension of license; Appellant work: appellant brief $500.00; Respondent Brief…$300.00; Oral arguments…$200.00; Motions $100.00. Corporations: Organization to do business, $250.00; dissolution, $200.00; amendment of articles, $100.00; partnership formation, hourly rate but not less than $75.00; dissolution, hourly rate but not less than $50.00.
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In 1961, the Spokane County Bar Association published an “Official Schedule of Minimum Fees” in an effort “to assure proper professional standards.” The Foreword to the schedule declared the purpose of the schedule as follows: “It is the opinion of the Spokane County Bar Association that except in unusual cases warranting a reduction on account of the peculiar circumstances of the case or the financial condition of the client, it should not be necessary to reduce any fee below the minimum prescribed in this schedule. It is further submitted to the members of the Bar that when it is apparent that a client or prospective client proposes to offer employment to the low bidder or that he intends to obtain bids from other lawyers, under no circumstances is the lawyer warranted in quoting a fee below the schedule.” At that time Section 12 of the Canons of Professional Ethics provided: “In determining the customary charges for similar services, it is proper for a lawyer to consider a schedule of minimum fees adopted by a bar association, but no lawyer should permit himself to be controlled thereby or to follow it as his sole guide in determining the amount of his fee.”
Per hour rate….$16.00; Oral Advice, not less than $5.00; Written opinion, not less than $15.00; Per Diem rate: “The charge for office work will depend upon the factors mentioned in the introduction to this schedule, and particularly upon the importance of the matter and the character of the problems involved. It is suggested that when on a per diem basis the minimum charge for office work should be at least $75.00 per day. This may be used as a guide on preparation for trial. Out of town or away from office per diem, at least $100.00 per day; Contract of sale, Personal Property…$10.00; Real Property…$15.00; Real Property deed, tax affidavit, closing…$40.00; Bill of sale…$5.00; Guardian ad Litem, not less than $25.00; Probate, $150.00 or 6% of first $5,000, 5% of next $10,000, 4% of next $60,000, 31/2% of next $425,000, and 3% of all amounts over $500,000. Bankruptcy, no assets…$175.00; assets above exemptions…$250.00; creditor claim…$5.00; Family Law: Community Property Agreement… $25.00; Adoption, non consenting parent…$150.00; all others…$100.00; divorce-default-no property or children…$200.00; divorce-default-with property or children…$250.00; negotiated settlement..$100; contested case, either side…$200.00; modifications pursuant to stipulation…$50.00 Trial rates: Superior Court: $175.00 per day with minimum of ½ day; District or Justice Court: $50.00 half day or $100.00 if involving possible suspension of license; Appellant work: appellant brief $500.00; Respondent Brief…$300.00; Oral arguments…$200.00; Motions $100.00. Corporations: Organization to do business, $250.00; dissolution, $200.00; amendment of articles, $100.00; partnership formation, hourly rate but not less than $75.00; dissolution, hourly rate but not less than $50.00.
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Short Biographies of Early Bar Members
By Dale Raugust
Hon William H. Plummer: Born in 1870 and raised in Massachusetts, the Hon Plummer became first a member of the New Mexican bar in 1888 and then moved to Colfax, Washington in 1889. He practice in Colfax and Farmington for three years and then moved to Spokane. In 1895 he became corporate counsel for the city and then in 1896 a state senator. Since 1900 he has focused on his law duties.
Hon William M Ridpath: After service in the Union army during the Civil War the young Ridpath graduated from college in 1870 in Indiana and then took up the study of law while teaching school. He was admitted to the Indiana bar in 1872 and for ten years practiced in Brazil, Indiana, while moving up the political ladder in the state legislature eventually serving as Speaker of the House. From 1882 to 1886 he served in several federal appointed positions at the pleasure of the President as an Indian agent, and then moved to Spokane in 1888 where he practiced law for about 12 years with a number of partners. He served as Prosecuting attorney from 1889 to 1891. Meanwhile he became involved in the famous Le Roy mine which when sold made fortunes for several Spokane families. With his money he built the Ridpath Hotel which opened in 1899, at the time regarded as the best hotel in Spokane.
Hon Richard B Blake: Also born in Indiana, Judge Blake practiced law in Indiana for 16 years and then moved to Spokane in 1888, the same year as Ridpath. It is not know if they knew each other in Indiana but in Spokane they became law partners until Blake was elected to the Superior Court bench for Spokane and Stevens counties in 1889. He served for 4 years and in 1893 resumed his law partnership with Ridpath until his death in 1900 at the young age of 50. Blake was involved in much prominent litigation and was regarded as one of the best attorneys in Spokane at the time. He was also widely popular and was mentioned as a candidate for governor but refused to consider the possibility. His two sons also became attorneys, one in San Francisco and one in Chicago.
George M Ferris: Mr. Ferris has been a member of the bar since 1903 and formed the firm of Cannon, Ferris, Swan & Lally in 1910. Mr. Ferris was a professional baseball player supporting himself though college and law school in this manner. From 1902-6, he played on the Spokane team during the summer months and practiced his law profession during the winter. His grandson, Joel Ferris would later donate the land upon which Ferris High School was built.
Judge Henry L. Kennan: Judge Kennan served as Superior Court Judge in both Spokane Washington and prior to that in Ohio. He became a member if the bar in Ohio in 1875 and became a probate judge in that state at the age of 32 serving for 9 years. In 1891 he moved to Spokane and in 1902 he was elected a Judge of the Superior Court.
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Hon William H. Plummer: Born in 1870 and raised in Massachusetts, the Hon Plummer became first a member of the New Mexican bar in 1888 and then moved to Colfax, Washington in 1889. He practice in Colfax and Farmington for three years and then moved to Spokane. In 1895 he became corporate counsel for the city and then in 1896 a state senator. Since 1900 he has focused on his law duties.
Hon William M Ridpath: After service in the Union army during the Civil War the young Ridpath graduated from college in 1870 in Indiana and then took up the study of law while teaching school. He was admitted to the Indiana bar in 1872 and for ten years practiced in Brazil, Indiana, while moving up the political ladder in the state legislature eventually serving as Speaker of the House. From 1882 to 1886 he served in several federal appointed positions at the pleasure of the President as an Indian agent, and then moved to Spokane in 1888 where he practiced law for about 12 years with a number of partners. He served as Prosecuting attorney from 1889 to 1891. Meanwhile he became involved in the famous Le Roy mine which when sold made fortunes for several Spokane families. With his money he built the Ridpath Hotel which opened in 1899, at the time regarded as the best hotel in Spokane.
Hon Richard B Blake: Also born in Indiana, Judge Blake practiced law in Indiana for 16 years and then moved to Spokane in 1888, the same year as Ridpath. It is not know if they knew each other in Indiana but in Spokane they became law partners until Blake was elected to the Superior Court bench for Spokane and Stevens counties in 1889. He served for 4 years and in 1893 resumed his law partnership with Ridpath until his death in 1900 at the young age of 50. Blake was involved in much prominent litigation and was regarded as one of the best attorneys in Spokane at the time. He was also widely popular and was mentioned as a candidate for governor but refused to consider the possibility. His two sons also became attorneys, one in San Francisco and one in Chicago.
George M Ferris: Mr. Ferris has been a member of the bar since 1903 and formed the firm of Cannon, Ferris, Swan & Lally in 1910. Mr. Ferris was a professional baseball player supporting himself though college and law school in this manner. From 1902-6, he played on the Spokane team during the summer months and practiced his law profession during the winter. His grandson, Joel Ferris would later donate the land upon which Ferris High School was built.
Judge Henry L. Kennan: Judge Kennan served as Superior Court Judge in both Spokane Washington and prior to that in Ohio. He became a member if the bar in Ohio in 1875 and became a probate judge in that state at the age of 32 serving for 9 years. In 1891 he moved to Spokane and in 1902 he was elected a Judge of the Superior Court.
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The Early History of the Spokane Bar Association
By Dale Raugust
The Spokane County Courthouse was officially opened for business on November 20, 1895. That same year, on May 13, 1895, the first official meeting of the Spokane County Bar Association was held. Forty-four attorneys attended the meeting. They elected Cyrus happy as their first president. Also in attendance were many of the attorneys that I have written about in these articles, including W.M. Ridpath, George M. Forster, W. J. C. Wakefield, and W. W. D. Turner. The organization did not hold regular meetings but did establish in 1905, a county bar library for the mutual benefit of the members.
Spokane attorneys were also active on a national level. In 1901, Frank Post, an early Spokane pioneer attorney for who Post street and Post Falls were named, was elected as a delegate to the national convention of the American Bar Association, but was replaced at the last minute by George Forester of the law firm Forster and Wakefield, because of a death in Post’s family. On August 24, 1901 George Forster was elected Vice President of the American Bar Association.
Meanwhile, a rival organization had been formed called the Associated Bar of the City of Spokane. On December 5, 1909, attorneys of the two bar associations met in Judge J. D. Hinkle’s courtroom and decided to merge into one large association to be known as the Spokane Bar Association. The attorneys present at the meeting unanimously adopted the merger plan and set the initial fees at $5.00 a year with an entrance fee of $10.00. An election was held for officers and Frank Post was elected the first president of the Spokane Bar Association. The SCBA had, the previous year in 1908, formed a legal entity for their association, and the merged organization eventually took over the corporate entity, and over time the official new name, Spokane Bar Association, became Spokane County Bar Association. This is why Spokane attorneys have declared the year 2008 as the 100th anniversary of the SCBA, when several other years have perhaps a better claim to the honor. 1995 was the one hundredth anniversary of the first meeting; 2009 will be the one hundredth anniversary of the merger, and Frank Post served as the first president one hundred years prior to 2010.
Frank Post agreed to become the first president on the condition that the organization held regular weekly meetings, with a definite agenda for each meeting. 1910 is therefore the real birth date for the SCBA and Frank Post its first father. Other well known early presidents include Wakefield in 1911, two time president, W. W. Zent in 1916 and 1917, Philip Brook in 1934, William Kelly in 1940, Del Cary Smith, Jr. in 1942, Herbert Hamblen in 1943, William Ennis in 1949 and Willard Roe in 1958.
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The Spokane County Courthouse was officially opened for business on November 20, 1895. That same year, on May 13, 1895, the first official meeting of the Spokane County Bar Association was held. Forty-four attorneys attended the meeting. They elected Cyrus happy as their first president. Also in attendance were many of the attorneys that I have written about in these articles, including W.M. Ridpath, George M. Forster, W. J. C. Wakefield, and W. W. D. Turner. The organization did not hold regular meetings but did establish in 1905, a county bar library for the mutual benefit of the members.
Spokane attorneys were also active on a national level. In 1901, Frank Post, an early Spokane pioneer attorney for who Post street and Post Falls were named, was elected as a delegate to the national convention of the American Bar Association, but was replaced at the last minute by George Forester of the law firm Forster and Wakefield, because of a death in Post’s family. On August 24, 1901 George Forster was elected Vice President of the American Bar Association.
Meanwhile, a rival organization had been formed called the Associated Bar of the City of Spokane. On December 5, 1909, attorneys of the two bar associations met in Judge J. D. Hinkle’s courtroom and decided to merge into one large association to be known as the Spokane Bar Association. The attorneys present at the meeting unanimously adopted the merger plan and set the initial fees at $5.00 a year with an entrance fee of $10.00. An election was held for officers and Frank Post was elected the first president of the Spokane Bar Association. The SCBA had, the previous year in 1908, formed a legal entity for their association, and the merged organization eventually took over the corporate entity, and over time the official new name, Spokane Bar Association, became Spokane County Bar Association. This is why Spokane attorneys have declared the year 2008 as the 100th anniversary of the SCBA, when several other years have perhaps a better claim to the honor. 1995 was the one hundredth anniversary of the first meeting; 2009 will be the one hundredth anniversary of the merger, and Frank Post served as the first president one hundred years prior to 2010.
Frank Post agreed to become the first president on the condition that the organization held regular weekly meetings, with a definite agenda for each meeting. 1910 is therefore the real birth date for the SCBA and Frank Post its first father. Other well known early presidents include Wakefield in 1911, two time president, W. W. Zent in 1916 and 1917, Philip Brook in 1934, William Kelly in 1940, Del Cary Smith, Jr. in 1942, Herbert Hamblen in 1943, William Ennis in 1949 and Willard Roe in 1958.
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The Contest over the location of the County Seat
By Dale Raugust
In 1879, J. N. Glover, often referred to as Spokane’s founding father, traveled to Olympia and took the legislature out to dinner at Doane’s Oyster’s House for food, drinks and cigars to convince them to authorize the creation of a second county in eastern Washington, separating Steven’s county into two counties. The legislature approved the creation of Spokane County consisting of present day Spokane, Lincoln and Douglas counties. Spokane Falls was named as the temporary county seat and county officials were appointed until elections could be held to elect permanent officials and establish the permanent location of the county seat. An attorney, James Nosley, was appointed Auditor until the election. Most of the citizens of Spokane Falls wanted the county seat located there to increase land values while Northern Pacific railroad and most of the rural residents wanted the county seat at Cheney.
An election was held in November, 1880. The results were disputed from the beginning. Auditor Nosley and the Justice of the Peace and one other county official constituted the canvassing board authorized to certify the election. Nosley was also running for Auditor as was W. H. Bishop. Nosley threw out some of the ballots which he felt did not have a proper oath attached to them which resulted in his own election over Bishop as well as the election of Spokane Falls as the County seat by 7 votes.
In December, 1880, there was a lawsuit between Cheney and Spokane Falls over the results of the election for both County Auditor and the location of the county seat. John B. Allen and Thomas H. Caton, two well known pioneer lawyers, represented Cheney while J. J. Brown, Colonel Jenkins, and Judge L. B. Nash, all of Spokane Falls represented Spokane Falls. U. S. District Court Judge Wingard, sitting at Walla Walla, heard the case in a courtroom filled with men with loaded handguns and ordered a recount. Meanwhile pressure was building over Nosley’s handling of the first count and in January he resigned as Auditor and refused to contest the election for Auditor, although he continued the appeal of Judge Wingard’s decision in order, he said in his diary, to vindicate himself and reestablish his honor. In March, 1881, the Court of Appeals overruled Wingard, declaring the original count the valid count.
Pioneer justice was now to take over. The night of March 21, 1881, while the entire city of Spokane Falls was at a wedding dance, Bishop took possession of the ballots at the courthouse, which at that time was located in a building at Main and Howard. At 1 a.m. Avery A. Smith, the Probate Judge, John Still, the Cheney Justice of the Peace, and Deputy Sheriff Hatton with 6 other men stormed the courthouse and at gunpoint took possession of the ballets from Bishop. As they were leaving Spokane Falls the dogs started to bark and the night watchman fired his revolver but did not try to stop them and did not report the incident. The men took the ballets to Cheney. The next morning the Spokane Falls townspeople discovered the theft. At the time it was assumed that Bishop as well as the ballots had been kidnapped. Spokane Falls sent out a scout to find the ballets. On March 22, 1881, he reported back that the ballets were being guarded in Cheney by armed guards. Bishops then certified his own election as County Auditor and the selection of Cheney as the county seat. In 1914 Bishop, now 71 years old, admitted in an article published in the Spokane Daily Chronicle that he had conspired with the men who stole the ballots because he believed that Cheney had legitimately won the election and he wanted to avoid a long contested court battle. We can assume that he also sided with Cheney because the ballots that gave Cheney the county seat also gave him the Auditor’s office. Spokane Falls backed down and Cheney was declared the county seat by a final vote of 680 to 563 with 34 votes distributed between Marshall, Sprague, Medical Lake and Spangle. Spokane Falls grew more quickly than Cheney and in 1886, a revote changed the county seat to Spokane Falls, now renamed Spokane.
Primary sources for this article include the original court pleadings, the diary of John Mosley, and the interview of Bishop in 1914 by Herbert Gaston. Secondary sources include the 1912 history of Spokane written by N. W. Durham, the 1900 history of Spokane County written by the Rev. Jonathon Edwards and the autobiography of James Glover.
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In 1879, J. N. Glover, often referred to as Spokane’s founding father, traveled to Olympia and took the legislature out to dinner at Doane’s Oyster’s House for food, drinks and cigars to convince them to authorize the creation of a second county in eastern Washington, separating Steven’s county into two counties. The legislature approved the creation of Spokane County consisting of present day Spokane, Lincoln and Douglas counties. Spokane Falls was named as the temporary county seat and county officials were appointed until elections could be held to elect permanent officials and establish the permanent location of the county seat. An attorney, James Nosley, was appointed Auditor until the election. Most of the citizens of Spokane Falls wanted the county seat located there to increase land values while Northern Pacific railroad and most of the rural residents wanted the county seat at Cheney.
An election was held in November, 1880. The results were disputed from the beginning. Auditor Nosley and the Justice of the Peace and one other county official constituted the canvassing board authorized to certify the election. Nosley was also running for Auditor as was W. H. Bishop. Nosley threw out some of the ballots which he felt did not have a proper oath attached to them which resulted in his own election over Bishop as well as the election of Spokane Falls as the County seat by 7 votes.
In December, 1880, there was a lawsuit between Cheney and Spokane Falls over the results of the election for both County Auditor and the location of the county seat. John B. Allen and Thomas H. Caton, two well known pioneer lawyers, represented Cheney while J. J. Brown, Colonel Jenkins, and Judge L. B. Nash, all of Spokane Falls represented Spokane Falls. U. S. District Court Judge Wingard, sitting at Walla Walla, heard the case in a courtroom filled with men with loaded handguns and ordered a recount. Meanwhile pressure was building over Nosley’s handling of the first count and in January he resigned as Auditor and refused to contest the election for Auditor, although he continued the appeal of Judge Wingard’s decision in order, he said in his diary, to vindicate himself and reestablish his honor. In March, 1881, the Court of Appeals overruled Wingard, declaring the original count the valid count.
Pioneer justice was now to take over. The night of March 21, 1881, while the entire city of Spokane Falls was at a wedding dance, Bishop took possession of the ballots at the courthouse, which at that time was located in a building at Main and Howard. At 1 a.m. Avery A. Smith, the Probate Judge, John Still, the Cheney Justice of the Peace, and Deputy Sheriff Hatton with 6 other men stormed the courthouse and at gunpoint took possession of the ballets from Bishop. As they were leaving Spokane Falls the dogs started to bark and the night watchman fired his revolver but did not try to stop them and did not report the incident. The men took the ballets to Cheney. The next morning the Spokane Falls townspeople discovered the theft. At the time it was assumed that Bishop as well as the ballots had been kidnapped. Spokane Falls sent out a scout to find the ballets. On March 22, 1881, he reported back that the ballets were being guarded in Cheney by armed guards. Bishops then certified his own election as County Auditor and the selection of Cheney as the county seat. In 1914 Bishop, now 71 years old, admitted in an article published in the Spokane Daily Chronicle that he had conspired with the men who stole the ballots because he believed that Cheney had legitimately won the election and he wanted to avoid a long contested court battle. We can assume that he also sided with Cheney because the ballots that gave Cheney the county seat also gave him the Auditor’s office. Spokane Falls backed down and Cheney was declared the county seat by a final vote of 680 to 563 with 34 votes distributed between Marshall, Sprague, Medical Lake and Spangle. Spokane Falls grew more quickly than Cheney and in 1886, a revote changed the county seat to Spokane Falls, now renamed Spokane.
Primary sources for this article include the original court pleadings, the diary of John Mosley, and the interview of Bishop in 1914 by Herbert Gaston. Secondary sources include the 1912 history of Spokane written by N. W. Durham, the 1900 history of Spokane County written by the Rev. Jonathon Edwards and the autobiography of James Glover.
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Senator Rebecca Jane Hurn
By Dale Raugust
Spokane resident Rebecca Jane (Reba) Hurn was not only the first woman to be admitted to the Washington State Bar, but she was also the first woman to be elected to the Washington State Senate. Reba Hurn was born in Clear Lake, Iowa in 1881. Her father, David Hurn, was a prominent lawyer, Judge, banker, newspaper man and the mayor of Clear Lake. Hurn received a BA from Northwestern University and then in 1905 moved with her father to Spokane where her father started a new law practice. Hurn taught school for two years in Spokane and Ritzville but was bored with the occupation and decided to move to Germany in 1907 to pursue a Master’s degree at Heidelberg University in order to enhance her chances of teaching German in Spokane. While in Germany she met Nathan Straus, one of the co-owners of Macy’s in New York who was in Germany perfecting a pasteurization process for milk, which he used in charity work, distributing milk to poor children. Straus and his wife became close to Reba and virtually adopted her, eventually offering her a position in New York running the charitable program. While living in New York Reba saw the terrible conditions of poverty. She also became involved in politics working with William Jennings Bryan in 1908 in his Presidential campaign and chairing the New York committee for his election.
In 1910 Reba Hurn moved back to Spokane to study law. She took classes at the University of Washington and also studied with her father, in Spokane. In 1913 she became the first woman to be admitted to the WSBA. Later she helped her father in his campaign for Spokane Superior Court Judge which he won. She was also involved in politics for her own benefit. On January 19, 1914, the Spokesman-Review reported that:, “Reba J. Hurn, Spokane’s only practicing woman attorney, is being considered as a candidate for the state legislature from the sixth district.” Reba decided not to run but remained active in local politics. In 1922 she ran for the state Senate and defeated her opponent by a 2-1 margin. As a Republican she was one of 39 Republicans in the Senate to only one Democrat, and two members of the Farmer-Labor Party, what was left of the Progressive Party. Senator Hurn, a fiscal conservative but a social liberal, quickly won the respect of her colleges and became an important and influential member of the Senate. She won reelection in 1926 without campaigning. She was defeated in 1930, a year after the start of the Great Depression as part of the Democratic landslide of that year.
After her life in the Senate Reba Hurn returned to Spokane where she continued her law practice. Although she considered running for the State Senate again she never did. She was defeated in 1936 in her attempt to become a Spokane County Superior Court Judge. She was respected and often quoted in the newspaper or consulted by party officials. Reba never married and thus had the freedom to participate in adventures. One of her great joys was travel, and not just the travel of a tourist, but totally immersing herself in a new lifestyle, living with families rather than in hotels. At the age of 65, when most people are getting ready to retire, she moved to the Middle East. She lived in Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon and Jordan. She was in the Middle East from 1946 to 1948 when the state of Israel was created and witnessed first hand the violence this created. She wrote a book on the experience which was never published. She continued her world travels up until her death in 1967 at the age of 86. (Sources: WSBA Journal, October 2007, article by George Scott; the writings of Laura Arksey, formerly of the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture; Spokesman-Review; and Senate Journals. Reba Hurn’s unpublished diary from 1907-8 is located at the NMAC.)
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Spokane resident Rebecca Jane (Reba) Hurn was not only the first woman to be admitted to the Washington State Bar, but she was also the first woman to be elected to the Washington State Senate. Reba Hurn was born in Clear Lake, Iowa in 1881. Her father, David Hurn, was a prominent lawyer, Judge, banker, newspaper man and the mayor of Clear Lake. Hurn received a BA from Northwestern University and then in 1905 moved with her father to Spokane where her father started a new law practice. Hurn taught school for two years in Spokane and Ritzville but was bored with the occupation and decided to move to Germany in 1907 to pursue a Master’s degree at Heidelberg University in order to enhance her chances of teaching German in Spokane. While in Germany she met Nathan Straus, one of the co-owners of Macy’s in New York who was in Germany perfecting a pasteurization process for milk, which he used in charity work, distributing milk to poor children. Straus and his wife became close to Reba and virtually adopted her, eventually offering her a position in New York running the charitable program. While living in New York Reba saw the terrible conditions of poverty. She also became involved in politics working with William Jennings Bryan in 1908 in his Presidential campaign and chairing the New York committee for his election.
In 1910 Reba Hurn moved back to Spokane to study law. She took classes at the University of Washington and also studied with her father, in Spokane. In 1913 she became the first woman to be admitted to the WSBA. Later she helped her father in his campaign for Spokane Superior Court Judge which he won. She was also involved in politics for her own benefit. On January 19, 1914, the Spokesman-Review reported that:, “Reba J. Hurn, Spokane’s only practicing woman attorney, is being considered as a candidate for the state legislature from the sixth district.” Reba decided not to run but remained active in local politics. In 1922 she ran for the state Senate and defeated her opponent by a 2-1 margin. As a Republican she was one of 39 Republicans in the Senate to only one Democrat, and two members of the Farmer-Labor Party, what was left of the Progressive Party. Senator Hurn, a fiscal conservative but a social liberal, quickly won the respect of her colleges and became an important and influential member of the Senate. She won reelection in 1926 without campaigning. She was defeated in 1930, a year after the start of the Great Depression as part of the Democratic landslide of that year.
After her life in the Senate Reba Hurn returned to Spokane where she continued her law practice. Although she considered running for the State Senate again she never did. She was defeated in 1936 in her attempt to become a Spokane County Superior Court Judge. She was respected and often quoted in the newspaper or consulted by party officials. Reba never married and thus had the freedom to participate in adventures. One of her great joys was travel, and not just the travel of a tourist, but totally immersing herself in a new lifestyle, living with families rather than in hotels. At the age of 65, when most people are getting ready to retire, she moved to the Middle East. She lived in Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon and Jordan. She was in the Middle East from 1946 to 1948 when the state of Israel was created and witnessed first hand the violence this created. She wrote a book on the experience which was never published. She continued her world travels up until her death in 1967 at the age of 86. (Sources: WSBA Journal, October 2007, article by George Scott; the writings of Laura Arksey, formerly of the Northwest Museum of Arts and Culture; Spokesman-Review; and Senate Journals. Reba Hurn’s unpublished diary from 1907-8 is located at the NMAC.)
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Spokane's first Lawyer: J. J. Browne
By Dale Raugust
John J. Browne, known as J.J. to his friends, was born in Ohio on April 28, 1843, a third generation American from Irish stock on his father’s side and German on his mother’s. He attended Wabash College in Crawfordville and then took up the profession of teaching high school in Columbia City, Indiana. After teaching for a few years Mr. Brown decided to attend law school at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor graduating in 1868. He then set up a law practice in Columbia City and then for 4 years in Kansas before the call of the west brought him to Portland Oregon. He married in Portland in 1874 but suffered from bronchial affections in the moist climate and so sought a dryer climate which brought him and his new wife to Spokane Falls in 1878. Mrs. Browne described her reaction to the little town of Spokane Falls which at that time had 7 families and 54 residents: “as we swung up to the platform beside the little wooden store building on the southwest corner of Howard and Front (now Spokane Falls Boulevard) my heart went down…I felt I was coming into a desolate place.” The Browne family, which included 11 month old Guy, had no place to live so arrangements were made with the family of Frederick Post, the miller, (for whom Post street and Post Falls were named) to live in his large house on the North side of the river. There the family stayed until the spring of 1879. Mrs. Browne described her host as a gentleman of grace and generosity always willing to do what he could to help his neighbor.
On the boat ride up the Columbia from Portland Mr. Browne met A. M. Cannon who was heading to Spangle. Browne talked him into coming to Spokane Falls. Browne and Cannon became partners and purchased for $5,000 a half interest in James Glover’s 120 acres located in what would become the heart of Spokane. Glover originally had 160 acres but sold 40 areas to Post on the condition that Post would open a flour mill on the river. Later Post sold his downtown holdings, a lot at a time, and moved his mill to what would become Post Falls. Mr. Cannon also purchased Mr. Glover’s store at Howard and Front. Mr. Brown purchased another quarter section south of the river and west of the downtown area which he later developed as Browne’s Addition while Cannon purchased land further south which would become Cannon’s Addition and Canon Park. It should be noted that these “purchases” were actually quarter section homesteads filed with the federal government which of course ignored the rights of the native population. At that time the Spokane native population coexisted with the white population. Native villages existed at what is now called Peaceful Valley and also near the falls. Mrs. Browne wrote of the native horse races which would start at her house and end near the downtown area.
In the spring of 1879, Browne built his first house on his land at the present day address of 1717 West Pacific. The house was very basic, built of clap boards with no windows, only openings in the walls that he put boards over when it rained. The floor was originally dirt but before the first winter clap boards were also placed on the floor. Over the years he added to his house, building a new addition with the arrival of each child, while selling lots to the new arrivals and the founding fathers. Eventually his addition became the home of the most prominent and wealthiest Spokane residents. Mr. Brown became rich not only with land speculation but also in a number of other businesses. He associated with A. J. Ross in the construction of the first railway, and together they founded the first newspaper, the Spokane Chronicle. With Cannon he built the Auditorium, at the time the finest theater in the west. He had an interest in the Spokane Mill Company and the Spokane Cracker Company. All of his businesses were successful and eventually he sold them for a substantial profit except the Browne National Bank founded in 1888, which failed in 1893 during the panic which swept the country. Browne personally assumed the obligations of the bank and not a creditor lost money. Browne also purchased more land and at the time of his death on March 25, 1912, was the largest land tax payer in Spokane County. Mr. Browne was also involved in civic and educational work, perhaps as a result of his early experiences as a teacher. He served on the school board and was influential within local politics. While he is regarded as Spokane’s first attorney he did not practice law for more than about 7 years, giving up the profession in 1885 to focus on his business ventures.
Primary sources for this biography include Anne Browne’s interview with the Spokane Daily Chronicle given in 1914. Secondary sources include several histories written of early Spokane published between 1900 and 1912.
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John J. Browne, known as J.J. to his friends, was born in Ohio on April 28, 1843, a third generation American from Irish stock on his father’s side and German on his mother’s. He attended Wabash College in Crawfordville and then took up the profession of teaching high school in Columbia City, Indiana. After teaching for a few years Mr. Brown decided to attend law school at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor graduating in 1868. He then set up a law practice in Columbia City and then for 4 years in Kansas before the call of the west brought him to Portland Oregon. He married in Portland in 1874 but suffered from bronchial affections in the moist climate and so sought a dryer climate which brought him and his new wife to Spokane Falls in 1878. Mrs. Browne described her reaction to the little town of Spokane Falls which at that time had 7 families and 54 residents: “as we swung up to the platform beside the little wooden store building on the southwest corner of Howard and Front (now Spokane Falls Boulevard) my heart went down…I felt I was coming into a desolate place.” The Browne family, which included 11 month old Guy, had no place to live so arrangements were made with the family of Frederick Post, the miller, (for whom Post street and Post Falls were named) to live in his large house on the North side of the river. There the family stayed until the spring of 1879. Mrs. Browne described her host as a gentleman of grace and generosity always willing to do what he could to help his neighbor.
On the boat ride up the Columbia from Portland Mr. Browne met A. M. Cannon who was heading to Spangle. Browne talked him into coming to Spokane Falls. Browne and Cannon became partners and purchased for $5,000 a half interest in James Glover’s 120 acres located in what would become the heart of Spokane. Glover originally had 160 acres but sold 40 areas to Post on the condition that Post would open a flour mill on the river. Later Post sold his downtown holdings, a lot at a time, and moved his mill to what would become Post Falls. Mr. Cannon also purchased Mr. Glover’s store at Howard and Front. Mr. Brown purchased another quarter section south of the river and west of the downtown area which he later developed as Browne’s Addition while Cannon purchased land further south which would become Cannon’s Addition and Canon Park. It should be noted that these “purchases” were actually quarter section homesteads filed with the federal government which of course ignored the rights of the native population. At that time the Spokane native population coexisted with the white population. Native villages existed at what is now called Peaceful Valley and also near the falls. Mrs. Browne wrote of the native horse races which would start at her house and end near the downtown area.
In the spring of 1879, Browne built his first house on his land at the present day address of 1717 West Pacific. The house was very basic, built of clap boards with no windows, only openings in the walls that he put boards over when it rained. The floor was originally dirt but before the first winter clap boards were also placed on the floor. Over the years he added to his house, building a new addition with the arrival of each child, while selling lots to the new arrivals and the founding fathers. Eventually his addition became the home of the most prominent and wealthiest Spokane residents. Mr. Brown became rich not only with land speculation but also in a number of other businesses. He associated with A. J. Ross in the construction of the first railway, and together they founded the first newspaper, the Spokane Chronicle. With Cannon he built the Auditorium, at the time the finest theater in the west. He had an interest in the Spokane Mill Company and the Spokane Cracker Company. All of his businesses were successful and eventually he sold them for a substantial profit except the Browne National Bank founded in 1888, which failed in 1893 during the panic which swept the country. Browne personally assumed the obligations of the bank and not a creditor lost money. Browne also purchased more land and at the time of his death on March 25, 1912, was the largest land tax payer in Spokane County. Mr. Browne was also involved in civic and educational work, perhaps as a result of his early experiences as a teacher. He served on the school board and was influential within local politics. While he is regarded as Spokane’s first attorney he did not practice law for more than about 7 years, giving up the profession in 1885 to focus on his business ventures.
Primary sources for this biography include Anne Browne’s interview with the Spokane Daily Chronicle given in 1914. Secondary sources include several histories written of early Spokane published between 1900 and 1912.
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