50 years ago in Expo history: Police get ready for Expo ‘74 traffic jams

Law enforcement agencies were gearing up for unprecedented traffic jams around the Independence Day holiday – largely because of Expo ’74 events.

A Washington State Patrol official said that they would deploy a full complement of troopers on the highways coming into the city. He admitted that Expo traffic had already increased his agency’s workload for the entire spring/summer season.

Huge crowds were also expected to gather at Albi Stadium, where a gigantic Expo ’74 fireworks display was expected to sell out. About 25 extra traffic officers would be deployed around the stadium.

Speaking of jams, the Energy Pavilion at Expo ’74 was featuring a film related to a different kind of jams, ice jams. The film was called “Great Spokane Flood,” and told the story of what happened about 18,000 years ago when the glacial ice dams burst on Glacial Lake Missoula and flooded huge parts of the Northwest.

From 100 years ago: The city threatened to arrest anyone found sprinkling their lawns in the midst of a dangerous Spokane water shortage due to a heat wave.

The shortage came at a particularly dangerous time. The water pressure in the city’s mains were only about half of normal, “which greatly increases the fire hazard over the Fourth,” the city said.

Also on this day

(From onthisday.com)

1863: Battle of Gettysburg, largest battle fought on the American continent, ends in a major victory for the Union during the U.S. Civil War.