As Expo's 50th draws near, city and local organizations prepare for nine weeks of celebration

Believe it or not, Riverfront Park wasn't always referred to as "Spokane's gem."

Just over 50 years ago, Spokane was an industrial hub. The vibrant lilacs and towering oak trees that we admire today were planted just 50 years ago, a transformative time in Spokane's history. It was then our fair home was preparing to become the smallest city to ever host a World's Fair by beautifying the landscape and building new structures that would one day become Spokane landmarks.

Yesterday, with two of those landmarks in view, several city officials gathered to announce the plans they've been working on for a nine-week celebration of the 50th anniversary of Expo '74.

"Expo '74 was an amazing thing in our city's history," said Mayor Lisa Brown. "We welcomed 5 million people to Spokane from all across the world. We were the smallest city to host a World's Fair and we took a progressive stance with the theme of environmental stewardship. Now, 50 years later, we're looking forward to doing it all again."

Over the last few weeks, a community calendar has been filling up with over 90 events and counting that Spokanites and visitors can attend throughout the nine-week celebration.

Highlights include historic walking tours, an exhibition at the Northwest Museum of Arts & Culture, a vendor village and community stage, plus many more.

We're less than a month out from the 50th anniversary opening celebration set to be held under the Pavilion on Saturday, May 4.

"May 4 is significant because it was the date of the opening ceremonies of the World's Fair in 1974," said Matt Santangelo, program director of the Expo 50th celebration. "There will be a pillar procession showcasing the five pillars: arts and culture, environmental stewardship, tribal culture, Expo legacy and sport and recreation."

The opening ceremonies will also include readings from local poets including Spokane's newest poet laureate, Mery Smith, musical theater performances, cultural performances from the Spokane Chinese Association dance troupe, the Indian Youth Club of Spokane and, of course, a beer garden and food trucks.

Other Spokane organizations are getting involved in the fun of the Expo anniversary. Spokane Public Libraries is hosting a smattering of events, local universities are hosting educational seminars and exhibitions and The Lands Council is aiming to plant 500 trees during the first week of festivities in honor of the pillar of environmental stewardship.


The Spokane Indians baseball team is celebrating with new jerseys that they'll wear four times throughout their current season. The jerseys feature the original Expo '74 font and the iconic green, blue and white colors that we now associate with the 1974 World's Fair. The jerseys are available for the public to purchase.

"We will have a game on May 4 where these uniforms will be debuted," says Otto Klein, the Senior Vice President of the Spokane Indians. "The uniforms that the players will be wearing this summer will be auctioned off with a portion of the proceeds going to plant more lilac trees in the community."

To stay updated with the Expo 50th anniversary festivities, go to visitspokane.com/expo-50.