Places: Bassett Cabin
In 1871 Wilbur Bassett, his wife Adelia and son Herman traveled to Spokan Falls where Wilbur immediately found work building a sawmill on the river for Scranton and Downing Company. The family of three shared living space in Scranton's 12 x 24 foot cabin which was near the sawmill. Today there is a small monument marking the spot near the old Washington Water Power building by the falls.
While they were living in that cabin, their daughter, Minnie Maria Bassett was born on January 2, 1872. She is reckoned to be the first white child born in the area. That same year, ...
Cheney’s County Courthouse
Named for a Native American word, Spokane, which means “Child of the Sun," the original Spokane County was merged into Stevens County in 1864. Cheney’s Daniel Percival and Spokan Falls’ John Glover didn’t realize the drama they were setting in motion when they championed a bill in the territorial legislature that recreated Spokane County in October of 1879.
Spokan Falls was designated the temporary county seat until there could be a vote of the people in November 1880. A committee of men representing the precincts of the new county met to discuss options. Cheney ...
Winter Camp of Spokane Indians
In 1959, Sam Webb recalled that back in the 1880s a family of Spokane Indians camped on the site of the new Gibson's Grocery (1011 1st Street) every winter. He said the camp was made up of about 10 to 15 teepees. This site is on high ground near the spring of water that gave Cheney its original name of Willow Springs.
Sam came to Cheney as a boy with his family on the first passenger train on the Northern Pacific Railroad line.
The Cheney area is part of the Spokane Tribe of Indians territory. 
Crunk’s Hill & Cheney’s First School
Located on the west side of North 6th Street near the corner of Mike McKeehan Way, Crunk's Hill was leveled to create sport fields. There is a plaque at the restrooms.
George W. Crunk came west from Tennessee. He served in the Union Army during the Civil War as a Private with the 20th Regiment, Kentucky Infantry, Company C. We don’t know when he came west, but by June 1878, he was farming this land with his wife, Annah, and their three children. The Crunk family did not stay long in the area, they moved to Oregon in 1883, but hill is remembered as part of Cheney lore ...
WWI at Home Pt 50
Fred Erickson was 28 years old when he enlisted in the National Army at Fort George Wright on December 14, 1917. He was a wagoneer with Company C 20th Engineers. Fred served overseas from February 1918 to May 29, 1919. He was discharged from the Army on June 10, 1919 and married his Cheney sweetheart, Mabel Bedker that September, returning to farming.
Herbert Francis Erickson was a laborer at the Pine Creek Dairy in the Pioneer Township south of Cheney when he enlisted in the National Army at Fort George Wright on December 14, 1917. He joined the Army with his older ...
WWI at Home Pt 40
Born near Bonnie Lake, Cleve Crosley was inducted into the Army on October 5, 1917 at Spokane. He served with the Machine Gun Company 361st Infantry, the 434th Aeronautical Construction Squadron Signal Corps, and the Headquarters Spruce Production Squadron at Vancouver, Washington. Cleve was discharged December 17, 1918. He returned to farming south of Cheney after the war.
Organized as 434th Aero Squadron at Vancouver Barracks in Washington, it was re-designated 69th Spruce Squadron, July 1918 and transferred to Clatsop, Oregon and assigned to Spruce Production ...
The USS Leviathan
USS Leviathan returned to civilian duty after serving the US Navy during WWI
1930 – Fisher Building to School House Lofts
Hallways retain many of their features, including lockers, classroom doors, and the trophy case.
WWI at Home Pt 18
Leo LeVeque Whalen of Cheney, was working as an electrician with Cheney Light & Power when he joined the Navy at age 22 on June 30, 1917. He was assigned to the 6th Marines, 2nd Division medical department as a corpsmen. He was sent to France with the 2nd Division serving at the battles of Bois de Belleau at Aisine-Marne, Soissons, St Mihiel, Champagne, and Argonne. Whalen was awarded the Croix de Guerre and the Navy Distinguished Service Cross for his actions at Soissons.
“The Navy Cross is awarded to Hospital Apprentice First Class LeVeque L. Whalen, United ...
WWI at Home Pt 15
Uri Oscar Attebery graduated from Cheney Normal School in May 1917. He had been an active student serving as Class President in 1914 and 1915, Captain of the baseball team in 1915, and a member of the Kinnikinick staff in 1917. Uri Oscar Attebury was a 23-year-old teacher and farmer of medium height and build with blue eyes and brown hair living near Latah and taking care of his father.
J. Wayne Davis was a student at the Normal School who came from Cloverland, Washington, which was a farming community south of Asotin. Today it consists of a church and abandoned store.
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