Chief Garry Park Neighborhood Council meets on the 3rd Wednesday of each month, (except July, Aug and Dec) at 6:30 p.m. at 1831 E. Mission Ave. or Zoom (please email chiefgarryparknc@gmail.com for the Zoom link).
The Chief Garry Park neighborhood is one of Spokane’s oldest neighborhoods and includes the city’s oldest home. In 1879, U.S. District Court Judge Lucias B. Nash and his family arrived in Spokane. In 1886 he built a home near the intersection of Tilsley Place and Iowa Street. Designed by Nash’s wife, the Queen Anne mansion overlooked the Spokane River. It boasted 24 rooms and was one of the first homes in Spokane to utilize indoor plumbing.
Streetcar lines that ran along Boone to Nelson and along Nora to Green connected the neighborhood to the rest of the city and many homes along and south of Mission Avenue were built between1900 and1930. Stevens Elementary School was originally a two-room school; then in 1908-09, an eight room brick building was constructed.
From 1901 to 1916, Stevens was also a night school for Swedish and German immigrants.
During the same period from 1900 to 1930, homes and a school were built in the Parkwater area located at the extreme eastern edge of the neighborhood. Aviators began using Parkwater Aviation Field in 1913. In 1919, the Northwest Aircraft Company of Spokane leased 1,000 acres at Parkwater from the Spokane Park Board with the intention of installing hangars and starting an airline service. By 1920, the City of Spokane designated the field as its municipal airport, making it one of the first officially recognized airports in the United States.
Chief Garry Park dates back to 1912 when seven acres of land were purchased and set aside as a neighborhood park. In their 1913 Report to the Board of Park Commissioners, the Olmsteds refer to the land as “well adapted to a park and playground” and noted that “there is no immediate call for improvements, as the district is as yet sparsely populated.” In 1932 it was named to honor Chief Garry with an official dedication ceremony.
