Near the southeast corner of the fort's grounds, the powder magazine is the first building one will encounter upon entering the site. On the road leading into the fort is a large white painted archway. About 200 feet to the south of that road, the powder magazine is passed just before passing through the entrance arch. A walking trail leads to the powder magazine from near the large wood frame stable, to the west. A full description of the powder magazine, from the NRHP Inventory Sheet, is below. The inventory sheets for extant buildings include photos, architectural drawings and maps.
Built in 1880, Fort Spokane served as a frontier military post until the troops were transferred to Cuba to fight in the Spanish-American War in 1898. Government officials who ran the Colville and Spokane Indian Agencies then took over the fort and by 1900 it became the Fort Spokane Indian Boarding School. Teachers, clergy and Indian children came to live here. The last people to occupy the fort were the doctors, nurses and patients of the Tuberculosis Hospital and Sanitarium that served the tribes of the area starting in 1910 until Fort Spokane's final closure in 1929.
Fort Spokane was transferred to the National Park Service in 1960, and major restoration began on the four remaining original buildings: the Quartermaster Stable, built in 1884, the Powder Magazine, built in 1888, the Reservoir, built in 1889, and the Guardhouse, built in 1892.
The Guardhouse now serves as the visitor center and museum. The other three buildings are open to visitors from May through September. The grounds are open to explore year round. The reservoir, though restored, is outsi
Powder Magazine
Brick, rectangular (32'x 24'), one-story structure; shingled gable roof; stone foundation. Arched central double-door entrance flanked by single windows with wooden shutters; round louvered opening above entrance. Side entrance door and single window on east elevation. Single central window in west elevation.
Interior: front room has concrete floor, plaster walls and exposed wood lathe ceiling; rear room has wood floor, horizontal wood siding and wood ceiling; access to rear room is by east elevation door.
Constructed by the U.S. Army as part of the original Fort Spokane complex.
One of the five remaining intact structures from the original Fort Spokane complex, the powder magazine retains its original appearance and associations with the fort's activities.
It is considered a contributing element of the historic district.
From the NRHP Inventory Sheet