Welcome to the information page for Spokane. Here you will find facts and history about Spokane.
Spokane is a city located in the Northwestern United States in the state of Washington. Spokane is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington,as well as the metropolitan center of the Inland Northwest region. The city is located on the Spokane River in Eastern Washington and is 110 miles (180 km) south of the Canadian border, approximately 20 miles (32 km) from the Washington- Idaho border, and 231 miles (372 km) east of Seattle.
Canadian David Thompson explored the Spokane area and began European settlement of Spokane with the westward expansion and establishment of the North West Company s Spokane House in 1810. The Spokane House was the first long-term European settlement in Washington state and the center of the fur trade between the Rockies and the Cascades for 16 years. In the late 1800s, gold and silver were discovered in the Inland Northwest. The Spokane area is considered to be one of the most productive and reformed mining districts in North America. Spokanes economy has traditionally been natural resource based, however, the citys economy has diversified to encompass other industries, including the high-tech and biotech sectors.
The city of Spokan Falls (the "e" was added in 1883 and "Falls" dropped in 1891) was settled in 1871 and officially incorporated as a city on November 29, 1881. The city's name is drawn from the Native American tribe known as the Spokane, which means "Children of the Sun" in Salish.The name is often mispronounced "Spo-CAIN", while the correct pronunciation is "Spo-CAN". Spokane's official nickname is the " Lilac City", named after the flowers that have flourished since their introduction to the area in the early 20th century.Completion of the Northern Pacific Railway in 1881 brought major settlement to the Spokane area.
With a population of 198,081 as of 2006, Spokane is the second largest city in Washington, and the fifth largest in the Pacific Northwest, behind Vancouver, British Columbia, Seattle, Portland, Oregon, Boise, Idaho, and slightly larger than Tacoma, Washington. Spokane is the principal city of the Spokane Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is coterminous with Spokane County. As of 2006, the metropolitan area had a population of 446,706. find out more at wikipedia©
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