Museum, staffed by volunteers, opens for season

The Post Falls Museum has opened for the summer season.

Established in 1988 by the Post Falls Historical Society, the museum has been at its current location — the old Chapin’s drug store, built in 1923 — since 2009.

The building itself has stories to tell. Over the decades, it’s also housed a grocery store, a laundromat, the Post Falls Police Department and the city’s Parks and Recreation Department. For 11 years, the space has been used to preserve the history of Post Falls and the surrounding areas.

“We’ve got a lot for a small museum,” said Ted Fredekind, a volunteer and guide.

Exhibits showcase the past of Post Falls, particularly relating to timber, tourism, the military and more. One space showcases items related to the old mills, while another features desks and photos from Post Falls schools that are long gone.

The museum has the only remnants of the one-mile Alan Race Track, which was built in 1907 and mysteriously burned down in the late 1920s.

Fredekind’s favorite part of the museum is a room full of furniture and household items from the 1950s.

“I was a teenager in the ’50s,” he said. “When I go in there, I feel like a teenager again.”

The museum is staffed by volunteers, Fredekind noted, who are happy to walk visitors through the exhibits and answer questions.

“They really love telling the stories of Post Falls,” he said.

Admission to the museum is free. Donations are accepted. Visitors are encouraged to wear masks and practice social distancing. Fixtures and common spaces are cleaned after each visit. Large groups are discouraged at this time.

The Post Falls Museum is at 101 E. Fourth Ave. It’s open Wednesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. through October.

Info: 208-262-9642 or www.postfallsmuseum.weebly.com.