Nez Perce County Historical Society

05/30/2026

05/28/2026

Mark your calendars for these upcoming presentations hosted by the Lewiston City Library and NPCHS Museum. These presentations are part of the America 250 celebration at the library, 2nd floor, large event space.

05/28/2026

The NPCHS is co-hosting with the Lewiston City Library the upcoming presentation by Hank Heusinkveld titled, "U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Afghanistan: Winning Hearts and Minds, Rebuilding Infrastructure". Hope you can join us listening to one of the America's 250 celebration presentations at the library.

Date: Tuesday, June 9
Time: 5:30 PM
Location: Event Space
Ages: Teen & Adult

Former U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Public Affairs Specialist Hank Heusinkveld spent 14 months reporting on the Corps' efforts to help rebuild Afghanistan from October of 2009 to December of 2010. Join him as he gives a pictorial presentation that shows how the Corps A historic drawing of an old-timey town filled with horse-drawn carriages hired Afghans to rebuild their country and to mentor Afghan engineers to rebuild their badly damaged infrastructure left untouched after years of fighting.

05/21/2026

Today, we are backing up in the history time line.

Nez Perce County was originally established on December 20, 1861, by the Washington Territorial Legislature. It was reorganized as an original county by the Idaho Territorial Legislature on February 4, 1864. It is named after the Nez Perce Tribe.
Nez Perce County was one of the four original Idaho counties from which all 44 of the state's modern counties have been carved. NPC had included what is now Latah, Clearwater, Lewis and Kootenai Counties. The present boundaries of Nez Perce County were set in 1911.

05/20/2026

For those who could not attend Steven Branting's presentation on May 13th at the Lewiston City Library, here is your chance. Please click on this link to our NPCHS YouTube channel. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PH-Cx_uGdVg&t=25s. Thanks to Steve and the Lewiston City Library.

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05/15/2026

Today, the Lewiston High School Construction Class completed the setup of the Miranda Cabin. The NPCHS would like to thank the class, Mr. Johnson, John Fisher, and Garry Bush for all their hard work in placing the cabin in its permanent home on the museum campus. Also, congratulations to the students in the class who are graduating this year; we wish them all the best in their futures.

05/14/2026

Lewiston High School Construction Class, with their instructor Stuart Johnson, Garry Bush, and John Fisher, moved the Miranda Cabin to its permanent spot on the new concrete pad in our museum campus yesterday. We greatly appreciate Stuart and his hardworking students. Great job, boys!

05/13/2026

Lewiston High School Construction Class, with their instructor Stuart Johnson, Garry Bush, and John Fisher, prepare the concrete pad for the permanent home of the Miranda Cabin on our museum campus, April 30th. Next is the moving of the cabin onto the concrete pad by the class. We greatly appreciate Stuart and his hard working students. Great job boys!

05/13/2026

The Lewiston Fire Department traces its origins back to 1865 when the city's first bucket and hose cart brigades were formed. Formally established in 1891 under its first paid fire chief, the agency serves as one of the oldest structured fire services in the state.
1865: Volunteer hose cart brigades assemble to handle early frontier fires.
1891: The city formally establishes a dedicated department under a paid chief.
1910: The department transitions completely from volunteers to professional staff.
1938: Heavy fire losses prompt a major reorganization, leading to a new central station on 3rd Street.Originally constructed in 1909 and fully rebuilt in 1938 to mitigate rising regional fire losses, this historic facility doubled as a firehouse and City Hall before the station functions were eventually relocated during the city's mid-century expansion.

05/12/2026

"Genesee and the Nimiipuu" will be presented by Earl Bennett on May 22nd; 6PM at the Genesee Senior Center on 140 E Walnut, Genesee. This is a free event.