The Spokane International Railway:
A Short History

The Spokane International Railway (SI),
was a small Class I Railroad built in 1905 by D.C. Corbin. The railroad operated a 140 mile rail line from Spokane, Washington to Eastport, Idaho with a branch line connecting to the town of Coeur d'Alene. The railroad existed independently from 1906 to 1958. The SI primarily moved interchange traffic from the Canadian
border to the Pacific Northwest.

At Spokane, the SI connected with the Union Pacific, Great Northern, Northern Pacific, and the Milwaukee Road. The dispatcher's office was located at the Spokane Railroad station but the yard office headquarters was located at Spokane Shops (m.p. 2.7), located two miles from downtown.

Continuing East, the railroad entered the Millwood-Trentwood industrial area. (m.p. 6.8) The SI served the Inland Empire Paper company located along a long spur line called the Irvin Branch that paralleled the Spokane River. The SI also delivered to the Perfect Cement Plant located at the end of the Irvin spur. The main line continued east and crossed the Spokane River. The Kaiser Aluminum Plant and a Naval Supply Depot at Trentwood-Velox (m.p.10.8) were few other customers that the railroad served.

Leaving the industrial suburb, the main line headed for the Washington-Idaho state line. Traveling along the Spokane Valley, the SI reached Grand Junction, Idaho. (m.p.22.1) The SI interchanged with the Milwaukee Road at this location. The SI would transport MILW hoppers loaded with phosphate rock up to the Canadian border along with other commodities. Three miles east was the Coeur d'Alene Junction. (m.p. 25.5) This was a nine mile branchline that ran south to serve lumber related industries in Coeur d' Alene area. At Corbin Junction, the line ran up to Bayview located along the south point of Lake Pend Oreille (pronounced "pon-der-aya") A barge would be unloaded with gondolas carrying limestone for cement plants in the Spokane area.