Then and Now: Cheney Interurban depot

Demand for commuter train access between Spokane and the West Plains accelerated in 1907, as the state college had become one of the largest teacher-training colleges in the Northwest.

Section:Gallery

Sun., March 7, 2021

Circa 1908: A short electric train of just a few cars approaches the Cheney depot built in 1908 after a new company, Spokane Interurban Railway, completed the 11-mile section to Cheney from the Hayford stop on the Washington Water Power train line to Medical Lake. Several times a day, slow-moving cars with passengers and cargo took about an hour to go from Spokane to Cheney.

Courtesy Mac
Present day: The depot built for the Spokane Interurban Railway in 1908 is now a Mexican restaurant called El Rodeo at 2nd Street and College Avenue. The depot was used for about 15 years until autos and trucks took over the commuter traffic to the Cheney area. The building has since been used as a nursing home, an antique store, a laundry business and a bus station. It’s been a Mexican restaurant since 2007.

Jesse Tinsley The Spokesman-Review Buy this photo