Museum of North Idaho Winter 2021 Quarterly Newsletter

NEWSLETTER | WINTER 2021 | VOLUME 41 | NUMBER 1

Looking east toward Hayden Lake with Maple Ave. extending across the bottom intersecting with Honeysuckle Ave., Finucane’s “modern home” in the center and the Lochaven Farms in the clump of trees on the right, 1950s.

Photo courtesy of Mickey Blakely

The History of Lochaven Farms

by Deb Mitchell and Dorothy Dahlgren

Today, on the corner of Honeysuckle and 4th, there stands a large barn, a two-story home and several other faded-white buildings surrounded by a once-white board fence that were part of Finucane’s Lochaven Farms. It encompassed 400 acres straddling Honeysuckle Avenue from Government Way to Strahorn Road. The Finucanes (fin-uke-inn) arrived on the scene

in 1948, which made us wonder about the history of this area.

The first white settlers in the Hayden area included Mathew Hayden. He acquired several hundred acres around present day Honeysuckle Beach and built a log cabin west of the beach. He was also one of the early settlers to plant an orchard in this area and see

its potential. An 1880 bill of sale from The Dalles Nursery shows a variety of fruit trees and berry plants delivered to Mathew Hayden in Coeur d'Alene.

Hayden died 10 years later at age 72.

Irrigation Company began purchasing thousands of acres of land in the area. They advertised 5- and 10acre tracts for $125 and $150 per acre. By 1908 the price was $150 to $250 per acre. A March 22, 1908 Spokesman-Review ad encouraged the home seeker A town site called Monaghan was planned near and fruit grower to visit the Hayden Lake irrigated Honeysuckle and 4th St. Mathew Hayden was district. The ad touted rich, black, sandy loam soil, the working on a town in this area. James Monaghan was electric line running through the center of the district Mathew Hayden’s friend and executor of his estate. and every tract having 4-inch mains. The ad also Monaghan, born in 1839, moved to Spokane in the mentioned this being the first opportunity for the 1880s, making his fortune in banking, railroading public to secure business and residence lots near and real estate. The Granite Investment Company Hayden Lake. “Monaghan is sure to be a prosperous with James Monaghan as president was responsible little town, as it has the support of a farming and for developing the town of Monaghan. lumbering community.”

In the early 1900s, the Justis Mercantile and Hayden Lake’s second post office, known as the Monaghan Post Office, were located in Monaghan. Before 1910, the store was sold and along with the post office, was moved to the present day Avondale Lake area.

Water piped from Hayden Lake was used for irrigation.

The pipes were installed above ground supplying water to the irrigation districts of Hayden Lake

The Granite Investment Company laid off and platted the tract of land known as Monaghan. The dedication of the forty-acre town on section 24 was dated April 14, 1908 with James Monaghan, President and Edward O’Shea, Secretary.

Street names in the town were Lincoln Road and O’Brien, Monaghan, Railroad, Idaho, Cowley and King avenues. This would be in the area of the present day Finucane Drive neighborhood. None of these street names exist today.

The Monaghan map shows the Monaghan Station, located on the electric line railroad, near present day Strahorn Ave. The extension of the Coeur d'Alene & Spokane electric line railroad (renamed the Spokane and Inland Empire) from Coeur d'Alene to Hayden Lake was important for the development of the Hayden Lake area. The electric line arrived in the city of Coeur d'Alene in 1903, and by 1906 the line extended to the Bozanta Tavern (Hayden Lake Country Club) with stops along the way, including one near 12th and Harrison and another at Dalton Gardens.

Irrigation companies and land promoters played an important role in attracting farmers to the Monaghan area. In 1906 the Malloy Brothers, along with investors, doing business as the Interstate

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The Spokesman-Review (Spokane, Washington), March 22, 1908

and Dalton Gardens. As promised, in the Malloy Brothers’ ads, with irrigation and dependable rail transportation, fruit produce farmers thrived in the area. In 1913, the Interstate Irrigation Company became a municipal corporation.

The railroad at Monaghan connected with a spur to Frank and Charles Woods’ mill at Honeysuckle Beach. They operated the mill from 1906 to 1909.

Timber felled around Hayden Lake was towed to the site where it was transferred to railroad cars and hauled to area sawmills. Corbin’s spur headed west to the Spokane International Railroad’s main line in the Garwood/Chilco area. D.C. Corbin organized the Spokane International Railway Company in 1905, which included James Monaghan on its board.

It is unclear what became of the town site of Monaghan. The 1912-13 City Directory lists it as a station of the S&IE Ry (electric line), but no residents or businesses were listed. It was not listed in 1914.

Electric line passenger services to Hayden Lake remained strong until about 1917. With improved roads and increased use of automobiles, rail travel became less popular. The Spokane and Inland Empire Railway went into receivership in January 1920. In 1927 the Great Northern Railway acquired the electric line.

In 1931, the Interstate Commerce Commission authorized abandonment of 1.65 miles of track, including the loop at Hayden Lake. However, freight service still operated from Coeur d'Alene to the Dalton Gardens and Honeysuckle (4th and Honeysuckle) apple-packing warehouses and the spur extending from Honeysuckle east to the lake.

There, logs were loaded onto railcars for transport to area mills.

Beginning Oct. 31, 1935, negative temperatures killed all the cherry and many of the pear and apple trees, ending the success of many of the fruit farmers. Only a few orchards managed to survive.

Rail freight revenue declined, with no revenue by 1939. There was still some farm production, but the principal reason for the rail decline was the popularity of travel by automobiles and trucking.

The track on the branch from Coeur d’Alene to Honeysuckle Farms was removed in 1940. As promised in the Malloy Brothers’ ads, farmers thrived. One of the most successful farms was the property that became the Finucane’s Lochaven Farms.

equipped with a 26-stanchion cow barn, creamery with boilers, horse barn, icehouse, and a grain silo.

Fifty acres had been cultivated and the rest of the acreage was in pasture and timber. In 1918, Mr. Sims built a two-story home with four bedrooms upstairs and two bedrooms on the main floor. A centrally located wood stove heated the house, and cooking was done on a wood cook stove. Indoor plumbing was a modern convenience. The house still stands at 4th and Honeysuckle.

George had six workhorses for farming hay or vegetables and 25 to 30 Guernsey cows to milk, twice a day, by hand. The milk and cream were sold to Van's Creamery in Coeur d’Alene and transported via the train. Chickens, pigs, and beef cattle were also raised on the farm and all of the children helped out with various tasks. Eventually, more land was needed to pasture the many animals or grow hay , so the Sims purchased an additional 160 acres near Wyoming Avenue.

During haying season, Mr. Sims would hire young men to help. Brothers Neil and Gene Hyde and Norm and Harold Bratlie were friends with Walter, the youngest Sims son. Occasionally, work could turn into a goodnatured, yet competitive, game to decide who would drive the 1938 Chevy flatbed truck, bought from Walt Bennett, through the fields. Two would walk alongside the truck, throwing bundles up in the flatbed, while the third, often Walter, kept them neatly stacked.

Ice was used at the dairy to keep the milk cool, so Walter and his father took a bobsled down to the lake where they cut blocks of ice. Straw was packed around the chunks so they wouldn't freeze together on the

George and Nellie Sims (nee Kraemer) of Mt. Hope, Spokane County, purchased the 400-acre Honeysuckle Dairy Farm in 1918 from the F. Lewis Clark Estate for $12,000.

It was here on the southwest corner of Hayden Lake where they built a house, raised their 11 children, cleared more land, worked the dairy, and served as leaders of the Dalton Gardens Grange.

When Sims purchased the Honeysuckle Dairy, it was already

Jake Moser and Walter Sims at Honeysuckle Dairy farm, circa 1935. Agr-1-119

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enjoying the ranch, the lake, the Hayden Lake Country Club and entertaining. The rest of their time was spent traveling the world or living on the east coast, near Washington D.C. and at Vero Beach, Florida.

The old two-story home on the south side was remodeled from six to four bedrooms to create more living space on the main floor, and it would become the home for the ranch manager. The dairy The Finucane's “modern” home and pool on the north side of Honeysuckle Ave., 1962. Agr-7-381 farm operation was way home. Once they got back to the icehouse, they switched out to become a first-class cattle ranch, used sawdust to pack around the ice to keep it from raising registered Black Angus. Carl and Nita melting too fast.

Cantonwine were managing the ranch in January 1962 when the Coeur d'Alene Press reported that In 1948, when Charles C. and Marion (nee Burke) an 80-foot loafing shed collapsed under a heavy Finucane purchased the Sims farm from Nellie Sims, snow, killing prize-winning cows and calves valued they were living in a 15-room, French Revival home at at $20,000. While the Cantonwines were at West 506 Sumner, Spokane. Charles was Vice Lochaven, they held auctions twice yearly at the President of the Sweeney Investment Company and ranch, and the land surrounding Avondale Lake principal stockholder of the Davenport Hotel. Charles with a large barn was leased to provide more was born in Spokane in 1905 to Francis J. and Mary pasture.

Gertrude (Sweeney) Finucane. He graduated from Yale University in 1928 and married Marion Burke of From 1963 to 1977, Mick Blakely, Sr., was the ranch Connecticut the day after graduation. manager at Lochaven. He, his wife, Naomi, and their four children, Linda, Mickey, Don, and Joyce, Following a 3-month honeymoon in Europe they lived in the two-story home on the south side of came home to Spokane. Charles served with the Navy Honeysuckle. They kept a milk cow, chickens, and reserves and was called to active duty during WWII. a garden for their own use. An average of eight His maternal grandfather, Charles Sweeny, had made working horses for use on the ranch were kept in a fortune in the Coeur d’Alene mines and real estate stalls near the manager’s house and the big white in the late 1800s.After buying the Sims’ farm, the barn. The barn and corral were used for breeding Finucanes temporarily moved into a smaller guest and medically treating the cattle. A hay barn was house behind the two-story house and built a more located towards the lake. modern home with a pool on the north side of Honeysuckle. The Finucane home of the 1950s Mick Blakely, Sr., remembered artifacts that told of through 1970s was a series of both newer and older earlier times. The driveway to the Finucane house buildings connected by breezeways. It included a had evidence of a railroad even though the rails guest house, butler’s quarters, separate kitchen, and a were gone. The land near the dike at Honeysuckle large, awe-inspiring office filled with framed beach had sections of a wide-diameter, wooden certificates, photographs with distinguished leaders, irrigation pipe wrapped with metal that probably and gifts from around the world. The Finucanes only was part of the original irrigation system for Dalton lived at their Lochaven home during the summers, Gardens and Hayden Lake irrigated tracts.

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Government Way flanked the property surrounding the main buildings on the southwest, Maple on the northwest, the Hayden Lake dike to the east and Prairie Avenue to the south. Honeysuckle Avenue and 4th Street crisscrossed it and those roads were fenced with sturdy white horizontal boards and posts. Son Mickey Blakely remembers repairing fence after the winter of 1969 when the snowplows pushed the fences over because the drifts were so high that the plow driver couldn’t see them. He also remembers the arduous job of clipping the grass Marion Finucane on the right on an auction day in the 1950s. Photo courtesy of Mickey Blakely around the bottoms of those bright white posts. “Hundreds of them,” he said, Besides the success at the ranch, Charles Finucane “and by hand, not a gas-powered weed whacker. In was appointed by President Dwight Eisenhower as those days, the ranch was immaculate.”

Assistant Secretary of the Army in 1956, served as a member of the Armed Forces Security Council, and Back then, the dike at Honeysuckle did not stop water in 1958 was approved by the Senate as Assistant from seeping around it in the spring, and the Secretary of Defense for two years. His memorabilia Finucane’s field between the dike and Hayden Lake and personal papers, including some from Road would fill with water and fish. One year, a Lochaven, are kept at the Eisenhower Library in newspaper article jokingly exclaimed that the fishing Abilene, Kansas. was good at Finucane Lake!

The Finucanes began selling off parts of the ranch The Finucanes expanded their land holdings with in 1978. Charles Finucane died in 1983, and Marion several parcels extending north to Lacey. An followed him in 1987. A 10-acre piece on the corner additional 1,000 acres on the prairie brought the of 4th and Prairie was given to the City of Hayden total to 1,800 acres that had to be irrigated with for Finucane Park. The land on the hill to the movable pipes, which provided summer work for the southeast would become Woodland Heights, youth around Hayden and Coeur d’Alene. In 1969, Hayden View Estates and Loch Haven Hills.

Charles Finucane won the title of Idaho Grass Woodland Meadows and a commercial area were Grower of the Year. developed later from lands west of 4th Street. More houses, a church and a lodge sit on the land north of There were no auctions at the ranch when the Honeysuckle Avenue. The only two pieces of the Blakely’s were there. Instead, the cattle were Lochaven Farms land recognizable today include transported to auctions, such as at Davenport, the original ranch buildings on approximately 20 Washington. Other times, trucks would move the acres against the hill at the southeast corner of 4th cattle to feed lots or other breeding ranches. When and Honeysuckle and the Finucane home site the trucks showed up, Naomi prepared a large hidden by trees on the north side of Honeysuckle. breakfast for all participants. The Finucanes were often there on these big days. One time, 11 semi-truck loads of cattle were shipped out.

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MUSEUM NEWS

From the Board President

Monetary Donations

The Museum of North Idaho (MNI) team welcomed the New Year with tremendous optimism! We continue to move full-speed ahead developing new programs and working to make a new museum become reality.

Up to $100 Laura Severs * Eric Rude * Donna Christianson * Rosalyn Young * Sharon Nelson * Kyle Hart * Keith & Janette Spencer * Pat Barber * Robert & Carol Dahlberg * Sue Stiner * Wade Bilbrey * Christopher Stafford * Mae Ann Henderson * Patricia Delport * Mike & Laure Dixon * Dick Jensen * Chuck Hosack

The MNI Board met in January to celebrate our 2020 accomplishments and to outline plans for future success.

We approved a 2021 budget designed to bring exciting growth in the services MNI offers the community.

Work continues behind the scenes on our building project. In late 2020, a team of representatives from MNI, Johnson Construction, Architects West and Alchemy of Design developed a space plan design for the new museum complex. The design is stunning and we invite you to take a virtual tour of the concept art on MNI’s YouTube channel. Prepare to be amazed!

The design is the springboard for our capital project work plan and future fundraising efforts. In 2021, the White House will open for limited business, and we will develop final architectural and engineering construction documents for the new museum.

In 2020, MNI’s Capital Campaign raised over $675K in donations, grants and pledges. These generous donations enable MNI to complete construction necessary to open the White House for some museum business in 2021 and to develop final architectural and engineering construction documents.

The next phase of the capital campaign will extend from 2021-2023 and will raise $3.5 MM for construction of the new facility. By early 2022, we plan to have funds totaling $1.6 MM available so we may begin the first phase of construction.

$100 to $999 Bill Gundlach * Doug & Eileen Cresswell * Jay & Connie Gridley * John & Barb Schultz * Kevin & Patti Jester Marty & Julie Westbrook * Patricia & Peter Anderson Paul McCold * Stephen & Judith Meyer * Tad Johnson Tom & Patricia Norris * W. Emmett & Mary Barnes William Appleton * Sherman & Nancy Garner * John Laine Doug & Eileen Cresswell * Gail Cramer * Holly Coles Marc & Joann Schaller * Nancy Wik * Doug Schedler * John & Helen Yuditsky * Daniel McCracken * Jon Boyd * Kay & JoAnne Nelson * Marilyn & Robert Hunt * Michele Williams * Sandy & Jeanne Emerson * Jim Faucher $1,000 to $9,999 Dwight & Martha McCain * John Magnuson * Julie & Bill Gibbs * Margaret Gates * Peggy Countryman * Thomas Lee Dean Haagenson * Dennis & Kathryn Davis * Doyle Jacklin * Connie & Butch McGee * Luke & Debbie Russell $10,000 and above Cort & Brenda Sims * Dick & Judy Sheldon * Joy E Richards Steve & Marie Widmyer Corporative Giving Idaho Central Credit Union * Hecla Charitable Foundation

NEW Digital Newsletters!

Our members are the life force of our museum.

Because of your support, we are able to care for the region's priceless artifacts and produce great exhibits I sincerely thank members of our community who have given their generous support to MNI. Thanks to you, there and programs. To continue to offer you more for your membership, you can now elect to receive your are exciting times and a bright future ahead! quarterly newsletter in digital format. Going digital grants you access to even more content and updates on the museum and helps us save money on the costs of Barbara Nimke: Series of mounted railroad maps printing and postage. If you would like to opt in to the Sharon & Larry Strobel: Sheet music from the Dream digital newsletter, email bthurman@museumni.org or Theatre call 208-664-3448. Thanks for your support!

Artifact Donations

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Chapel Damaged in Storm

Hollywood of the North This season's feature exhibition will be on the history of North Idaho's connection to film industry. Featuring the Nell Shipman Studios, movie stars who lived in North Idaho, movies that were filmed here, and the local theaters, there will surely be something to delight every visitor. This new exhibit will utilize modern exhibit design techniques and interactive elements to transport visitors to the past. The exhibit opens to the public on April 1st, but MNI members get a SPECIAL PREVIEW of the exhibit on MARCH 31ST from 5- 7 pm!

Just another perk for being a Museum member.

Fundraising Updates Our hearts broke last month when we learned that the Fort Sherman Chapel was one of the casualties of the wind storm. A tree fell on the Chapel and caused serious damage to the interior and exterior of the historic building. Thanks to Specialty Tree Services, we were able to remove the tree quickly, but we now have to repair the roof, windows, plaster work, altar painting and structural damage. If you would like to contribute to the costs of repair, you can donate on our website www.museumni.org, call 208-664-3448, or mail a check to PO Box 812, Coeur d'Alene, ID 83816.

Welcome and Congrats!

Welcome new volunteers: Beth Dennis, Dorinda Thurman, Annie Maupin, Jeremy Nunez, and Lenore Strong.

Congratulations go out to Jocelyn Whitfield-Babcock for being promoted to the full-time position of Development and Marketing Director and to Robert Singletary for his new title as the Staff Historian for the Museum.

New Hours for the Museum There's just too much to do at the Museum of North Idaho this year, so we're giving you more time to experience it all.

NEW HOURS Spring (Apr 1 - May 29): Tues - Sat, 11 am - 5 pm Summer (May 30 - Sept 5): Daily, 11 am - 5 pm Fall (Sept 6 - Oct 30): Tues - Sat, 11 am - 5 pm

#GivingTuesday was a success! $3,145 was raised for the Building Fund.

MNI is participating in Idaho Gives for the 5th year in a row. This online day of giving is extended to the week of APRIL 29 - MAY 6. There are several donation levels to choose from that support our operations, programs, and the new building. MNI is seeking individuals and companies to participate in peer-to-peer fundraising through matching donations, employee challenges, or direct fundraising on behalf of MNI. During the week of Idaho Gives, MNI could win prizes based on the giving of our donors. There are several ways to donate during Idaho Gives: MNI's website www.museumni.org, mailing a check to PO Box 812, Coeur d'Alene, ID 83816, calling the museum at 208664-3448 or stopping by MNI during Idaho Gives.

Grants Idaho Humanities Council awarded the MNI $4,000 to produce a series of podcasts.

Idaho Heritage Trust awarded the Museum $8,478 to restore the floors in the J.C. White House.

Your Dollar Goes Further Select the Museum of North Idaho as your non-profit charity of choice at AmazonSmile and Fred Meyer Community Rewards. For every dollar you spend, a portion is donated right to the Museum! WIN WIN.

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PO Box 812 Coeur d'Alene, ID 83816-0812

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Renew Your Membership Friend of History Georgie Oakes* Idaho Flyer Amelia Wheaton

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Membership Benefits include: Free admission to the Museum, 10% off in the Gift Shop and on Walking Tours, Quarterly Newsletter, and Special Members-Only Previews and Events *Georgie Oakes and Friends of History memberships include NARM, which gives you free admission to over 1,000 museums Check the mailing label for your renewal date.

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The Museum of North Idaho collects, preserves, and interprets the history of the Coeur d'Alene Region to foster appreciation of the area's heritage.

Board of Directors President, Julie Gibbs Vice President, Steve Towles Secretary, Courtney Beebe Treasurer, Tom Richards Leanne Campbell, LaDonna Beaumont Joe Bohart, Ali Marienau

Staff Executive Director, Britt Thurman Development and Marketing Director, Jocelyn Whitfield-Babcock Staff Historian, Robert Singletary The Museum of North Idaho Quarterly Newsletter is published in February (Winter), May (Spring), August (Summer) and November (Fall) Editor Britt Thurman - bthurman@museumni.org The Museum of North Idaho is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization and qualifies for the Idaho income tax credit for contributions to educational institutions and museums (the Idaho State Educational Tax Credit), in addition to the usual charitable deduction. Consult your accountant.