Central Valley Sub-Division
Anita
In 1792, fur trappers discovered a large lake which the Indians called Big Waters. The trappers set up camp along the shore and after several years, a small town was formed on the bluff above the lake. More trappers and others moved in to get in on the thriving fur trade.
The town's original name was Big Waters. In 1848, a small gold rush took place along the Clearwater River and the town grew larger. With the population boom, came the desire to change the name of the town. The town name was changed to Anita in honor of the mayor's beautiful and well liked daughter, who died of consumption at 19 years.
When the Spokane Pullman and Southern (SP&S) was looking for an alignment to Pullman, the towns people lobbied the railroad to run the line through Anita, with all of its lake traffic and business. In 1897 the railroad finally reached Anita and brought more prosperity to the area.
Five prominent business men in Anita soon formed the Anita Electric Company building an electric railway, Anita Electric Railway (AER), into the interior, to the towns of Sandpoint and Central Valley. With the help of the SP&S and the Federal Government, the line was completed in 1910. Anita became a hub for both rail traffic and lake traffic.
The year 1917 brought a slump to the area and the electric line was sold to investors in Central Valley. They reorganized the line and called it the Central Valley Electric Railway (CVE) which serviced the area.
David Yard, in Anita, became the interchange yard with the SP&S until track agreements were made that allowed CVE trains to run into and out of Pullman Yard.
By 1946, the CVE found their freight/passenger motors wearing out and began to replace them with the new diesels. In 1953 the overhead wire was removed and the passenger service was stopped.
Today, the Anita Trolley Museum operates a couple of the early street cars on Lake View Avenue for the public.
Sandpoint
As the gold rush along Big Water Lake died down, many of the miners moved up the Clearwater River to prospect. Though some gold was found, it wasn't enough to sustain them.
Many of the miners had been farmers before they left for the gold fields and turned back to farming the fertile Owabee Valley, named for the few Indians living in the valley.
The town, founded on the bend of the river, was given the name of Sandpoint and soon prospered from the Northern Power and Light generating plant and many farms in the area.
The towns people partitioned the Anita Electric to run the tracks to there town and on into Central Valley. However the electric line only made it as far as Sandpoint before running out of money.
With Central Valley buying the electric line and completing it, the farmers and town began to prosper. The arrival of Collins Cement Company plant really spurred the growth of the town and its industrial base and making the CVE very profitable.
Central Valley/Lynnellen
Resting along the Tacboo River, Central Valley and Lynnellen were developed as separate farming communities in the Lost Horse Valley. However, Central Valley soon became the more industrialized town with river wharfs and industries. Lynnellen developed some industries, but maintained its farm base. This allowing the towns to grow without a lot of competition, building a strong river shipping industry.
The flood of 1912 brought disaster to the two towns, wiping out the river front warehouses and inundating most of the two towns. With the great flood, it became evident to the business leaders that they needed another form of transportation and the Anita Electric Railway (AER) was the answer.
When the AER went broke building to Sandpoint, the business people of Central Valley pooled their resources and bought the electric railway. They then built it on into Central Valley/Lynnellen, stabilizing the transportation economy of the two cities.
