Official Name: | Green Bluff, Washington |
Pushpin Map: | Washington |
Subdivision Type: | Country |
Subdivision Name: | United States |
Subdivision Type1: | State |
Subdivision Name1: | Washington |
Subdivision Type2: | County |
Subdivision Name2: | Spokane |
Timezone: | Pacific (PST) |
Utc Offset: | -8 |
Timezone Dst: | PDT |
Utc Offset Dst: | -7 |
Elevation Ft: | 2310 |
Coordinates: | 47.8272°N -117.2714°W |
Postal Code Type: | ZIP code |
Postal Code: | 99005, 99021 |
Area Code: | 509 |
Blank Name: | GNIS feature ID |
Blank Info: | 1512254 |
Green Bluff is a small unincorporated farming community and census-designated place in Spokane County, Washington, it is named after a nearby cliff. Its elevation is .
The 2010 census population was 761. The 2010 census was the first time the community has been recognized by the U.S. Census Bureau. The town has a grange hall, church, fire station and general store and is known for equestrian properties as well as small farms. Located just 15 minutes drive north of Spokane, Green Bluff is a popular destination among locals for fruit picking.[1] It hosts various festivals throughout the year, highlighted by the annual fall festival during the apple and pumpkin harvests.[2]
Long ago Native Americans burned away the underbrush on the bluff to give them better vision while they hunted game. A repercussion of this act was the growth of thick green grass around the evergreen trees, giving the area a park-like appearance. The bluff was given the name "Green Bluff" by early pioneers.
Peone Prairie, a valley to the south of the bluff was a gathering place for Native American tribes who frequented Green Bluff. Baptiste Peone was chief of the valley camp, and his wife and children were baptized by Ref. J.M. Cataldo in 1864. Cataldo became missionary for the Spokane people in 1867, and soon baptized every member of the camp.
As many as 500 Native Americans gathered in the valley for horse races. Green Bluff was favored as a lookout spot and hunting ground for the natives of the area. Most of the trappers and hunters eventually moved on, and a lumber industry with several saw mills arose in the area. Some pioneers took logs to Newman Lake, and traded them for lumber. Many homes were built from the area’s wood.[3]
Some families from Germany moved into the area around 1889. There were still many pine and fir tree roots on the bluff, so much of the early work by these settlers was removal of the roots, which took a great deal of work and time. As time passed, the area was opened up to farming.[4] There were few trails and no roads on the bluff, so transportation was difficult. Because of the vast amount of roots that needed to be cleared, the early settlers had to find a crop that would grow between tree stumps. Strawberries were the early choice, and were picked for years.[5]
Since Green Bluff was a day’s ride by wagon northeast of Spokane, in 1909 the area was officially called the "Green Bluff Township #20." Officers who carried out governing duties such as a clerk, assessor and treasurer were elected by the community and held monthly and annual meetings until 1972, when the township was disbanded by demand of the county. It was one of the last townships in the area.[6]
The Green Bluff Grange is described as "an agricultural fraternity and its purpose is to build a program of fellowship, service and member activities."[7] Green Bluff Grange #300 was first organized in 1909, and meetings were held twice a month, on the second and fourth Saturdays of the month. In March 1909, the idea of building a community hall was proposed, and the hall was soon built by many local people who purchased shares. Meetings were held in the hall except when the $5 a month rent could not be paid. On those months, meetings were held in the schoolhouse. Then in 1916 the Hall burned down. There were long periods of inactivity at this point, until 1929 when the idea of building a new Grange Hall was proposed. It wasn’t until 1934 that an old boarding house in Elk, Washington was torn down and the wood was used to build the new Grange Hall. It was completed in May 1935.[8]
There are many farms on Green Bluff which can be found at GreenbluffGrowers.com. Green Bluff is known for dry land farming and is home to breweries, a winery, cidery, meadery, and catering company, as well as an abundance of fresh produce including strawberries, rhubarb, lavender, cherries, raspberries, apricots, peaches, pears, blackberries, apples, nectarines, potatoes, carrots, cabbages, christmas trees and more.
Green Bluff is located in northeastern Spokane County on a bluff of the same name which rises to a plateau 500 feet above the Peone Prairie immediately to the south and the Valley Prairie immediately to the north. An intermittent stream cuts a thin, steep valley through the center of the Green Bluff area, which Day Mount Spokane Road follows into the community. The terrain where the farming takes place in Green Bluff is a relatively flat plateau compared to the bluffs which surround it.[9] To the east of Green Bluff rise the foothills of Mount Spokane.[10]
The community of Colbert is located approximately two miles west and the community of Mead is approximately three miles to the southwest. These two areas are on the suburban edge of the Spokane urban area. The nearest highways are Washington State Route 206 two miles south of Green Bluff and U.S. 2 a mile and a half to the west.
In addition to the farm and residential buildings, the Green Bluff community is home to a handful of other buildings.
In 1952 it was faced with brick, and in 1969 a third classroom was added. In 1970 its doors were closed, until 1972 when it became the Green Bluff Learning Center, which was an alternative school for boys with special learning needs. That lasted until 1976. Then in 1977, because of crowded conditions, all first-graders from Colbert Elementary School were transferred to Green Bluff’s school, which continued until 1980, the last year that students were taught at the school.[11] It was later purchase by the local church, serving as a community center and pre-school.