Historical Marker · No. 505
Company Town
Latah County · Idaho
Potlatch would not sell anyone a lot. Patterned largely on Pullman's company town in Illinois, it rented its houses to married couples working for the company, ran the town dry, and paid every teacher's salary, and neighbors in Latah County called the arrangement un-American; Moscow's mayor, visiting in the town's first year, admitted he had been among them. The company incorporated the town in 1952 and began selling houses to those who wanted to buy. The last company property was sold in 1982, the year after the mill closed.
What the plaque says
Company Town Built as a model town, Potlatch was owned by Weyerhaeuser's Potlatch Lumber Company. Spokane architect C. Ferris White designed the new community in 1905. Workers' housing stood close to the mill. Managers' homes were built away from the plant's noise and smoke. The railroad depot separated town from industry. All company owned. Potlatch was complete with churches, school, gym, hospital, opera house, and company store. 505 Text prepared by the Potlatch Historical Committee and the Idaho State Historical Society. Marker made and installed by Idaho Transportation Department.
Where it stands
46.92501, -116.90282 · Directions
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