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Major Earthquake Rocks Idaho Panhandle and the Pacific Northwest [otd 12/14]
Late on the evening of Saturday, December 14, 1872, residents in North Idaho felt a major earthquake that swayed buildings, caused shelved objects to rattle around, and agitated animals. In its report...
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Freighter, Mining Investor, and U. S. Marshall Joe Pinkham [otd 12/15]
Marshal Pinkham.Illustrated History.U. S. Marshal Joseph Pinkham was born December 15, 1833 in Canada. His grandparents were Welsh and had emigrated many years earlier to what became the state of...
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Mining Investor and Idaho Governor Frank W. Hunt [otd 12/16]
Governor Hunt. J. H. Hawley photo.Idaho Governor Frank W. Hunt was born December 16, 1861 in Newport, Kentucky, just across the river from Cincinnati, Ohio. His father was an officer in the U.S. Army,...
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Unjustly-Convicted “Diamondfield Jack” Davis Finally Released from Prison...
Diamondfield Jack Davis.Denver Public Library, Western Collection.On December 17, 1902, the Idaho Board of Pardons annulled the life sentence of cowboy-gunman Jackson Lee Davis – better known as...
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Weiser Signal Newspaper Publishes Its first Issue [otd 12/18]
On December 18, 1890, Robert E. Lockwood published the first issue of the Weiser Signal newspaper.Vintage printing press.American Local History Network,Clark County, Wisconsin.Lockwood was born in...
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Fire Destroys Saloon, Bank, and Other Buildings in Grangeville [otd 12/19]
Early on the morning of Sunday, December 19, 1897, a major fire broke out in downtown Grangeville. The fire started in a two-story brewery/saloon. The account in the Idaho County Free Press noted that,...
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Prominent Boise Area and Twin Falls County Architect Benjamin Nisbet [otd 12/19]
Architect Nisbet. Family archives.Benjamin Morgan Nisbet, who made his name as a fine Idaho architect, was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on December 19, 1873. At age seventeen, Ben began an...
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Mountain Man Osborne Russell Becomes a "Free" Trapper [otd 12/20]
On December 20, 1835, trapper Osborne Russell said he “bid adieu to the ‘Columbia River Fishing and Trading Company’ and started in company with 15 of my old Messmates to pass the winter at a place...
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Boise Valley Stockman, Irrigator, and Eagle Developer Truman C. Catlin [otd...
Truman Catlin. J. H. Hawley photo.Rancher and developer Truman C. Catlin was born December 21, 1839 in Farmingdale, Illinois, about eight miles west of Springfield.In 1862, he boarded a Missouri River...
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Civil Engineer, Idaho Falls Mayor, and Idaho Governor Barzilla Clark [otd 12/22]
Governor Barzilla Clark.Bonneville County Historical Society.Barzilla Worth Clark, sixteenth Governor of the state of Idaho, was born December 22, 1881 in Hadley, Indiana, about twenty miles west of...
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Kidnapping and Murder in the Coeur d'Alene Mining Districts [otd 12/23]
On the evening of December 23, 1897, “persons unknown” kidnapped mine foreman Fred D. Whitney from his apartment in Frisco, about four miles northeast of Wallace, Idaho. Then he apparently broke for...
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Murray Newspaperman and Developer Adam Aulbach [otd 12/24]
Prominent Murray, Idaho newspaperman Adam Aulbach was born December 24, 1846 in Belleville, Illinois, 4-5 miles southeast of St. Louis, Missouri. He started early in the newspaper business, first in...
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Civil Engineer and Western Dam Builder John Savage [otd 12/25]
Jack Savage. National Academy of Sciences.On December 25, 1879, world-renowned civil engineer John Lucian Savage was born on a farm about twenty miles south of Madison, Wisconsin. After graduating from...
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Canal Builder and Idaho Falls Mayor Joseph Clark [otd 12/26]
Mayor Clark. Idaho Falls Post-Register.On December 26, 1837, future Idaho Falls Mayor Joseph A. Clark was born in Randolph County, North Carolina, south of Greensboro. The family owned slaves, but...
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New Home Dedicated for Neglected Children in Boise [otd 12/27]
On December 27, 1910, a new, larger building was dedicated for use by the Children’s Home Finding and Aid Society. This ceremony was the culmination of over three years of effort, and continued a...
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Award-Winning Children’s Author Carol Ryrie Brink [otd 12/28]
Author Brink. Publisher photo.Writer Caroline Ryrie was born December 28, 1895 in Moscow, Idaho. Misfortune dimmed her early years. When she was five, her father died of tuberculosis.The following...
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Moses Goodwin: Pioneer Builder, Mine Operator, Rancher and More [otd 12/29]
Moses Hubbard Goodwin, pioneer builder, mine operator, rancher, and lumber man, was born December 29, 1834 in Waldo County, Maine, northwest of Penobscot Bay. His grandfather, Aaron, was a ship’s boy...
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Ex-Governor Frank Steunenberg Assassinated, Fire Destroys Post Falls Sawmill...
Governor Steunenberg. University of Utah.On December 30, 1905, an assassin’s bomb murdered former Idaho Governor Frank Steunenberg. The resulting investigation, arrests, and trials had worldwide...
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Mining Investor, Legislator, and Federal Marshal James Crutcher [otd 12/31]
James Crutcher. Illustrated History.On December 31, 1835, U. S. Marshal James I. Crutcher was born in Shelby County, Kentucky, east of Louisville. In 1860, James followed the rush to the gold fields of...
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Snake Brigade Leader Peter Ogden Laments Fur Trade Deaths [otd 01/01]
Peter Skene Ogden.Oregon Historical Society. On New Year's Day, 1829, Peter Skene Ogden wrote in his journal, “One of the trappers left in charge of the sick man arrived with his horse fatigued and...
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