1936 Map of Newport

About this map

The Pend Oreille River corridor in the mid-1930s is defined by a dense network of timber-country settlements and rural school districts. Near the bend in the river, the Indian Mission and settlements like Cusick, Usk, and Dalkena served as hubs for the surrounding logging and agricultural land. The transportation geography is dominated by competing rail lines, including the Great Northern and the Chicago Milwaukee St Paul and Pacific, which trace the riverbanks and facilitate movement across the Washington-Idaho border. To the west, the rugged terrain of the Kaniksu National Forest rises toward Calispell Pk, while the southern lowlands are dotted with numerous small lakes like Diamond Lake and Eloika Lake. This map reveals a landscape of community-centered education, with numerous local institutions such as Sherman Sch, Rogers Sch, and Fertile Valley Sch serving families in these isolated valleys before school consolidation moved these centers into larger towns like Newport.