Cats and Trails and Garden Tales
Musings on cats, travel, gardens and life
Squares from Spokane – Remnants from a World’s Fair
I was born and raised in Seattle and have traveled extensively throughout Washington State. But I’ve only been to Spokane, Washington’s second largest city, a couple of times, usually on the way to someplace else. Sorry, Spokane. (Granted it’s a five-hour drive east.)
So when we actually stopped and spent the night there a few years ago, I was surprised to find a charming city center, mostly on the site of the 1974 World’s Fair.
After looking back at photos from that trip, I realized they would work well for Becky’s GeometricJanuary challenge, so I squared them.
I’ll start with the 1902 Clock Tower, a remnant of the Great Northern Railroad Depot. Though the depot and railroad next to the Spokane River was demolished in advance of the 1974 Expo, the tower was saved and is now part of Riverfront Park. The blocks add a nice touch, don’t you think?
The Pavillion and Sky Ride also come from Riverfront Park, the site of Expo ’74: you can read more about it here if you like: World’s Fair in Spokane
The Red Flyer Wagon (the largest in the world) was built in 1989, not part of the fair, but a welcome addition to Spokane, for children of all ages (including my husband.)
World Fairs seem to be a thing of the past, but they left behind some interesting geometric structures, like this one, from the Seattle World’s Fair in 1962.
And that will do.
~ Susanne
Cats and Trails and Garden Tales 
I like that giant Red Flyer! The underside of the tower looks like the underside of some kinds of mushrooms. 😊 The stone work on the tower is very beautiful, it’s nice that the tower was left there. 😊
Thanks, John. I loved seeing the big red wagon, too! And it was definitely smart of Spokane to keep the historic clock tower standing. It adds character to the park.
It sure does, a lovely structure. I hope the clock works.
Yes, I believe it does.
Very nice!
Well, you’ve spent more time in Spokane than I did when I lived in Washington! I like the cable cars and the tower. Glad they preserved that. Is the handle of the red wagon a kid’s slide? It looks like it.
If you live on the west side, I don’t think there’s much reason to visit Spokane. But I know some young families who moved there for a smaller town, less traffic and affordable homes. And yes, that’s a slide. 😊
hope you went down the slide!
Should have but probably didn’t! Got a good picture of Bob, though. did you see him up there? 😉 🙂
I did – most impressed 🙂
The 1974 World’s Fair in Spokane was the only one I’ve ever attended.
For some reason, I didn’t go; probably too young and no car. 🙂
Love the children’s blocks they are such a fun bonus, and so many great shapes in your other squares too
as I was scrolling through I was thinking that World Fairs seem to have stopped, but google suggests that World Expos still happen. Last one in 2022 and the next one is this year in Japan?!
Thanks, Becky, I liked the blocks, too. 🙂 Perhaps we just haven’t had them in North America for a while. A trip to Japan would be fun!
a rare sight in the UK too these days, and yes I would love to go there too
I was interested to see something of Spokane as we didn’t go there on our WA road trip. The Space Needle however we did see of course – one of my (many) highlights in fact 😀
Probably not worth a visit just to see Spokane, alone. But if you’re going I-90 across, it’s worth a stop. But Seattle is always worth a visit! (I’m not biased.) 🙂
A fun diversion to be sure!
It was exactly that! A fun diversion off I90, on our way to someplace else. 😉
A World’s Fair seems to be something uniquely American. In the UK we had the Festival of Britain in 1951, (the year before I was born) but nothing like that since. I like the big red wagon that is also a slide. Best wishes, Pete.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Festival_of_Britain
Hi Pete, The definition of what constitutes a World’s Fair is confusing, though implies it is international. We had the world’s fair here in Seattle in 1962, and I also remember attending one in Vancouver, B.C. in 1986. They’re also called World Expositions or Expos, like the one in Spokane. Apparently, they still exist but seem to be on the decline.
I was at the Spokane World’s Fair in 1974. Had a great time!
Wonderful! I didn’t go, not sure why. Still a bit young, and no car, I guess!
I was pregnant with my daughter who is now (gulp) 50!
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I love your views of Spokane, Susanne! The downtown and Riverfront Park areas are chock-full of photo-ops! Love the blocks and the cable cars for Becky’s squares. At least you have visited Spokane; I haven’t even visited the west side yet! The perspective of the Needle is gorgeous!
Thanks, Terri! I was happy to finally see some of downtown Spokane after so many years of passing by on I-90. I’ll probably stop by again on my next road trip to someplace else! 😉 You definitely need to come over to the west side, not only for the Needle, but for the wonderful national parks! 🙂
Nicely geometric!
Thank you!
😊