Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
This excellent museum features 15 original and re-created pioneer buildings. A 19th-century cemetery containing the bodies of both Native Amer-
icans and cavalry soldiers borders the property. A short nature trail and campground is nearby.
Visit the
Kirkman House
(214 N. Colville, 509/529-4373,
www.kirkmanhousemuseum.org
, 10 A.M.-4 P.M. Wed.-Sat., 1-4 P.M. Sun., $5
adults, $2 students and seniors), a redbrick mansion built in 1880 by entrepreneur William Kirkman. The ornate Italianate-style structure features
a widow's walk and figurehead keystones and is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Kids will be nearly overcome with wonder and delight at the
Children's Museum of Walla Walla
(77 Wainwright Place, 509/526-7529,
www.cmwallawalla.org
, 10 A.M.-5 P.M. Thurs.-Sun., $4). The tykes can jump around on stage in costume along with life-size puppets at the
Enchanted Theater. The Bug Patch Party Room is full of flowers and various kinds of insects. Kids can pretend to shop at the Wee Walla Walla
Harvest Market, and visit a make-believe doctor's office, Mexican restaurant, or Construction Junction. Check the website for special events
planned throughout the year.
See
ONION POWER
Walking Tour
Pick up a brochure from the chamber of commerce for a walking tour of the historic downtown area. Some of the sights you'll pass are the 1917
Liberty Theatre,
built on the site of the original army fort at W. Main and Colville, and the
Dacres Hotel,
built in 1899 at W. Main and 4th. The
Reynolds-Day Building,
on Main between 1st and 2nd, was constructed in 1874. Washington's first State Constitutional Convention was held
here in 1878. It's hard to miss the 10-story
Marcus Whitman Hotel,
built in 1928 at 2nd and W. Rose, the brick centerpiece of downtown. The
Baker Boyer Bank
is the oldest bank in Washington and one of the few independent banks left in the state. Its seven-story home office at the
corner of Main and 2nd Streets was built in 1910 and was the town's first “skyscraper.”
Founded in 1859,
Whitman University
(
www.whitman.edu
) was the first higher education center in the West and is home to 1,300 students.
The campus is just west of downtown Walla Walla. The tall clock tower, built in 1900, is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Big Trees and Parks
Walla Walla is famous for its tall, stately trees, a heritage from pioneer settlers who wanted a reminder of their eastern homes. A booklet, available
at the chamber of commerce, describes some of the largest of these, including the 25 different individual trees among the biggest in Washington.
One of the trees, a 21-foot-in-circumference catalpa on the Whitman College campus, is the largest in America. The 47-acre
Pioneer Park
(Alder
St. and Division St.) contains many more state-record trees. This well-kept city park was originally a cow pasture but now includes—in addition
to marvelous forested areas—an aviary, rose garden, duck pond, swimming pool, gazebo, brass cannon, and picnic tables. The design for Pioneer
Park came from John C. Olmstead, creator of New York's Central Park.
Fort Walla Walla Park
is home to more tall trees, along with the Fort
Walla Walla Museum.
Mountain View Cemetery
(on S. 2nd Ave. near Abbott Rd.) dates back to 1853 and is considered one of the most attract-
ive in the state.
Farm Tours
West from Walla Walla lies farming country with a Midwestern look; this could just as well be Nebraska. Far to the southeast lie rolling tree-
covered hills that rise into the Blue Mountains. A blanket of snow covers the summits till late summer.
Take a dip in a sea of purple at the
Blue Mountain Lavender Farm
(345 Short Rd., 509/529-3276,
www.bluemountainlavender.com
) in nearby
Lowden. Owned by a French-American family, the farm was inspired by nostalgia for the extensive lavender fields in the south of France. An
on-site gift shop sells dozens of luxurious items made from the local crop. Call ahead for tours.
Whitman Mission
You can get the whole story of Marcus and Narcissa Whitman's pioneer mission on the Oregon Trail at the Whitman Mission National Historic Site
(28 Whitman Mission Rd., 509/529-2761,
www.nps.gov/whmi
)
, seven miles west of Walla Walla on Highway 12. None of the original buildings
remain, but you can walk self-guided trails to the mission site, grave, monument, and locations of the first house, blacksmith shop, and gristmill.
Cultural demonstrations—including adobe brick making, beadwork, moccasin making, and butter churning—take place on summer weekends.
Maintained by the National Park Service, the visitors center here (8 A.M.-6 P.M. daily mid-June-Labor Day, 8 A.M.-4:30 P.M. daily the rest
of the year, closed Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's, $3 adults, free for kids under 16) contains a diorama of the Whitman mission, plus
artifacts found here and an informative exhibit about the Cayuse tribe and the sad end to the Whitmans' work.
The grounds are open till dusk year-round. Be sure to walk up the hill to the
Whitman Memorial,
a 27-foot-tall obelisk overlooking this lonely
place. Come here on a late fall day with the clouds overhead, the brown grass at your feet, great blue herons on the shore of the pond, and a chilly
west wind to really appreciate the peaceful wildness that both the Cayuse and the Whitmans loved.
Wallula
The tiny settlement of Wallula stands along the east shore of Lake Wallula, the Columbia River reservoir created by McNary Dam. Look for
Two Sisters,
twin basalt pillars that the Cayuse legends said were two sisters who had been turned to stone by that trickster, Coyote. A plaque
in Wallula commemorates one of the earliest garrisons in the Northwest. In 1818, the Northwest Fur Company established
Fort Nez Percé
at the
