Narrowly escaping a 1921 fire which levelled the rest of the block on which it stands, the hall was the seat of government of Opportunity Township for over 60 years, until the legislature repealed taxing authority of rural townships in 1969 and Spokane County voters dissolved local townships in 1974. During that time the building served as as the seat of Opportunity's township government. It also served as a community hall, library, church, and hosted weddings, civic organization meetings, rummage sales, bingo games, and movies.
Standing empty for several years, the building, then under the control of the Parks and Recreation Department, was leased as a framing shop and art gallery for a short time.
When ownership was transferred to the newly formed city of Spokane Valley they, in turn, turned it over to the Spokane Valley Legacy Foundation, a nonprofit organization, the intent being to use the building as a heritage museum. This came to pass in 2005, with the opening of the museum in that year. Also in 2005 the building was entered in the National Register of Historic Places.
Today the city of Spokane Valley runs east from Spokane, all the way to the Idaho border. Incorporated as the City of Spokane Valley on March 31, 2003, its present population stands at 95,000, give or take a few inhabitants.
The city was formed from a merger of the unincorporated census-designated places (CDPs) of Dishman, Opportunity, Trentwood, Veradale, as well as the western section of the CDP of Greenacres. Unlike the other five towns, Millwood avoided becoming part of Spokane Valley by incorporating itself in 1927, although it is part of the Greater Spokane Valley Chamber of Commerce.
The history of the settlement of the Spokane Valley predates the history of the city of Spokane, Washington. Spokane Valley holds many of the “firsts” for the Spokane area. In addition to being home to the area’s first settler, Antoine Plante, the Spokane Valley had the first business and first ferry in 1850; the first store (1862) and bridge (1864); the first house (1866); and the first post office (1867). All these firsts occurred before the 1873 arrival of James N. Glover, considered the founding father of Spokane.
Before the turn of the century, early pioneers, many of them silver miners, arrived from the East by way of the Northern Pacific and Great Northern railroads, for which Spokane was a major hub. By 1883, the first transcontinental rail was established. The railroad activity created support for extensive shops and facilities. Within a few years, Spokane was tied to the outside world by five transcontinental railroads, making it the hub of commerce it remains today.
From Wiki
Initially a farming and fruit and vegetable growing area, a few years of poor returns caused many farmers and orchardists to sell their lands in small (5 to 20 acre) parcels which were developed into suburban residential areas. Spokane Valley began to attract retirees because of its relatively mild, dry climate. After the completion of the Grand Coulee Dam, cheap electricity promoted the growth of manufacturing in Spokane Valley, further displacing agriculture as a mainstay industry. Today much of Spokane Valley remains a suburban area, with small scale manufacturing throughout the valley.
Opportunity Township Hall
Opportunity Township Hall, a rectangular one-story building, is located in the newly formed city of Spokane Valley. The Township Hall, erected in 1912 (with a rear 1948 addition), stands on the earliest commercial block in the former township of Opportunity. Spokane architect C. Harvey Smith, a resident of Opportunity Township, designed the building in a Mission/Spanish Colonial Revival Style.
In 1921, a fire destroyed most of the wooden buildings on the block, including the Knight buildings, and gutted the IOOF Hall. Opportunity Township Hall, located west of the commercial brick buildings, escaped the fire of 1921. The IOOF Hall was repaired after the fire. The Knight buildings were rebuilt with brick. Thus, in the 1920s the block held a continuous strip of adjacent commercial brick buildings consisting (from east to west) of Opportunity State Bank, the IOOF Hall, and the Knight buildings.
The hall served as a public building for the enactment and administration of laws, rules, and regulations. The hall also served as a community center. The hall's design and structure represents an early example of the Mission/Spanish Colonial Revival Style, a rare though not unknown architectural style in the Inland Northwest.
Only two counties in Washington state, Spokane and Whatcom, adopted township organization. Spokane County citizens first voted on township organization in the general election of November 1906. A majority of electors who voted on the issue favored organization, but only 39 percent of those who voted cast their votes on the issue. Since the state constitution required a favorable vote from the majority of total electors, Spokane County failed to adopt the organization of townships in 1906. In the November 1908 general election, a majority of Spokane County electors voted to adopt township organization. After the election, the Spokane County Commissioners divided the county into forty-six townships, including Opportunity Township No. 34.
Opportunity Township Hall served many functions, not only as the seat of Opportunity's township government but also as a rental hall for community activities that included, among other things, library services, church services, weddings, civic organization meetings, rummage sales, bingo games, and movies.
By 1971, the end of Opportunity Township was a foregone conclusion, but it continued to function for another three years... Spokane County officially took over the title of Opportunity Township Hall on November 13, 1990. Six years later, the county commissioners turned control of the building over to the county Parks and Recreation Department. The building remained vacant for several years afterward as the county commissioners considered several proposals for leasing the building and entertained the thought of selling it. The county finally found a tenant in 2000 who briefly leased the Township Hall as a framing shop and art gallery.
On September 2, 2003, Spokane County transferred ownership of Opportunity Township Hall to the newly formed city of Spokane Valley. A year later, on March 10, 2004, the city of Spokane Valley turned over the property's deed to the Spokane Valley Legacy Foundation, a nonprofit organization, for the purpose of using the building as a heritage museum. The Township Hall is currently undergoing repairs on the outside and renovations on the inside to open the building as a museum.
From the NRHP Nomination Form