100 years ago in the north-west of the country: Two old Spokane homesteads are moving to the castle near Twin Lakes

A “rustic castle” near Twin Lakes is where “one of Spokane’s oldest pioneers and a buddy from his youth spend their years together,” said a reporter for the Spokane Daily Chronicle.

The castle – actually more of an elaborate hut with a two-story turret – was the work of Frank Loacker, who had lived in Spokane since 1886.

“He built his house there so he and ‘Jakie’ (Jack Miller) could be together while the snow piles up around their heads,” the newspaper said. “The two friends have been spending their summers there for several years.”

Both men were in their 70s. They met in Colorado in 1874 and later met in Spokane. Loacker’s wife died five years ago and he decided to build this “castle” on Miller’s land next to Miller’s smaller cabin. The “castle” had a spiral staircase that led to the tower, complete with wooden blocks to underline the castle-like architecture.

“The idea came to me from the castles on the Rhine when I was in my old homeland,” says Loacker.

Loacker said he probably won’t live entirely there – he could go to California in the winter. But he will keep coming back because “it’s so quiet and peaceful”.

“We’ve known each other for 47 years and we’ve never had a crossword,” Miller said. “And we don’t plan to start now.”

From the shipwreck strike: A Spokane grandmother received good news. She had feared that her one-year-old granddaughter Betty Jane had drowned in the wreck of the steamer Alaska in California.

The little girl and her parents were thrown into the water by the impact. The parents lost sight of their daughter. The parents were saved hours later without the little girl.

While they were recovering in a Eureka hospital, a stranger came in with Betty Jane. The stranger saved the infant, who “felt a little worse about the experience”.