Spokane

Best friends Michaela Orton and Nycolle Benham made the trek to the Christmas Bureau on Tuesday afternoon in search of gifts to make their children’s holiday bright and cheerful, knowing it wasn’t something they could do without help.

From 1974: Mayor David H. Rodgers ripped the City Council and city management for “inept operations” and stepping “into a trap of our own making.”

A day of snow and rain Monday did not temper the long lines of people seeking a bit of help this holiday as long lines continued for the Christmas Bureau at the Spokane County Fair and Expo Center.

From 1974: The Spokane City Council “lapsed into shock” when it learned that its utility budget was deep in the red.

The fiancée of a man shot and killed by Spokane police officers may soon receive $500,000 to settle a wrongful death claim, according to briefing documents presented Monday to the Spokane City Council.

The lines have been long to get into the Christmas Bureau since it opened Thursday, when volunteers were overwhelmed by the number of people seeking help and had to turn away nearly 400 people.

Fidelity Mutual Savings erected their new eight-story building at Howard Street and Riverside Avenue in 1953. A few years later, some smaller buildings north of the bank were torn down around 1957, and Fidelity added north-facing retail spaces, calling the area Fidelity Plaza.

From 1974: A new report attempted to show how crucial the aluminum industry was to Spokane’s economy.

While some politicians, business groups and their supporters accuse the city of Spokane and the Spokane Police Department of not enforcing laws on the homeless, one patrol officer is spending his time in the area around Second Avenue and Division Street sometimes 10 times a day.

From 1974: The Ricky Anthony Young mail-bomb murder trial ended in a mistrial after the jury failed to reach a verdict.

Waiting in line at the Christmas Bureau at the Spokane County Fair and Expo Center can sometimes be a lengthy process, but there’s a full schedule of musicians and singers to help entertain people and make waiting more enjoyable.

From 1974: Whitworth College was offering a new and startling course titled “Sexual Identity and the Development of Human Potential.”

The Christmas Bureau was almost immediately overwhelmed by the sheer number of people who showed up at the Spokane County Fair & Expo Center in search of grocery vouchers, gifts and books when it opened for the season Thursday morning.

From 1974: The jury was deliberating in the Ricky A. Young mail-bomb murder case following closing arguments.

Pack your gloves, your coat and your hand warmers – the Manito Park Holiday Lights show is ready to delight Spokane with a different type of magic this year.

Looking after your soil’s health is the most important task a gardener can have.

When you Google Kevin King’s address, it pops up as “Star Wars Christmas Spectacular,” so there isn’t any mystery about this collector’s passion.

The doors of the Christmas Bureau open to the public Thursday morning at 10 .

From 1974: Jaime Weaver, a 9-year-old student of Bancroft School in Spokane, met with First Lady Betty Ford at the White House. Weaver, who was blind, earlier had been named the 1975 March of Dimes Poster Child.