Title: Economy of Spokane, Washington - Wikipedia
Headings: Economy of Spokane, Washington
Economy of Spokane, Washington
Contents
Economic history overview
Trade
Mining boom
Logging, forestry, and agribusiness
Stagnation
Economy diversification
Head offices
Prominent industries
Agriculture
Mining and forestry products
Manufacturing
Transportation and distribution
Tourism and hospitality
Energy and technology
Healthcare
Economic development
See also
References
Bibliography
External links

Content: Control of regional mines and resources became increasingly dominated by national corporations rather than local people and organizations, diverting capital outside of Spokane and decreasing growth and investment opportunities in the city. The Inland Northwest region was heavily dependent on natural resources and extractive goods produced from mines, forests, and farms, which experienced a fall in demand. After the 1929 stock market crash and during the Great Depression, the lumber industry demand began to wane and by the mid 1930s about half the woodworkers in northern Idaho were laid off and the surviving mills were producing only 160 million board feet of lumber per year. The situation improved slightly with the start of World War II as defense aluminum production commenced in Spokane due to the area's cheap electricity (produced from regional dams) and the increased demand for airplanes. The two aluminum plants, the Mead Works reduction plant and Trentwood Works rolling mill brought thousands of heavy industry manufacturing jobs to the Spokane area and supplied the materials to make landing craft for use in the Pacific Theater . Economy diversification
The growth witnessed in the late 1970s and early 1980s was interrupted by another U.S. recession in 1981, in which silver, timber, and farm prices dropped. The period of decline for the city lasted into the 1990s and was also marked by a loss of many steady family-wage jobs in the manufacturing sector. Although this was a tough period, Spokane's economy had started to benefit from some measure of economic diversification; growing companies such as Key Tronic and other research