SPOKANE, Wash – In 1972, when Jerry Quinn Sr. heard the Great Northern and Union train stations were set for demolition ahead of the World’s Fair, he knew he had to do something.
“It just seemed natural to me to try and save something that was important to Spokane,” Quinn said.
Quinn said at the time that he felt there was a narrow-minded plan for Lilac City: “There was an attitude that was so pervasive about the failure of expo would be an embarrassment for Spokane, that anything, considered an obstacle, was a hindrance to the success.”
Quinn and others started the ‘Save Our Stations’ Campaign and gathered 15,000 signatures for the cause, “I was hoping for a groundswell of support, and I think we got quite a bit of it.”
Jerry Quinn Jr., who was only seven years old at the time, accompanied his father to City Hall, and he said 50 years later, the experience is still with him.
“It was far more formative than I would have thought at that time. Because you know how many parents go out there to try to fight City Hall to save old buildings,” said Quinn Jr.
At the time, Quinn Sr. said he received backlash for his efforts. He recalled a phone call with an unknown and unhappy Spokanite who asked him what he thought he was doing. Before Quinn could answer, the caller hung up. But 50 years later, here is what Quinn would have said, “if I had a chance to answer who I think I am. Who do I have to be? How long do you have to live here to care about saving what I thought was part of Spokane’s history?”
The effort to save the stations fell just short, garnering just over 40% of the vote. However, the city did save the now iconic clock tower. Quinn told NonStop Local he saw this as a failure at the time. However, Quinn’s daughter, Bonnie Quinn Clausen, begs to differ.
“Wait, they kept the clock tower because you spoke up because you thought for it. And I’d like to me that was like that was everything,” Quinn Clausen said.
When the World’s Fair started, the clock tower loomed over the proceedings, a symbol, Quinn Clausen believes, of her father’s bravery and now, 50 years later, his lasting legacy.
“It represents a man who had the courage to stand up against city hall, and he won something even though he didn’t win what he intended. So we couldn’t be more proud.”
