B Street: The Notorious Playground of Coulee Dam

4. B Street

4 B STREET E ntrepreneurs began arriving in Grand Coulee even before construction of the dam was approved in 1933. Most came from different parts of the state of Washington. Their goal was to set up businesses to cater to the thousands of men they knew would be moving into the area to work on the dam. They reasoned that the vacant sloping hillside and the bench above, covered by sagebrush and tumbleweed, would serve their needs. The town of Grand Coulee had the land surveyed and divided into lots along both sides of a street. The entrepreneurs purchased the lots, which they leased to those who wanted to start small businesses. They thought it was a good idea to have the lots at a distance from the small town of Grand Coulee itself. In time, the town’s residents would come to resent the behavior, noise, and distractions generated by those who frequented these establishments. As men arrived, the number of small businesses grew. The first was a restaurant run by Mrs. A. E. “Johnny” Johnson and Mrs. B. G. Raymond. Men had asked the two women to prepare meals for them. Mrs. Johnson and Mrs. Raymond served the meals on a makeshift table constructed from loose boards and sawhorses, 41 outside the tent where they lived and cooked. The business was eventually called the Grand Coulee Café. In those early days, building regulations were not enforced, and almost all of the new buildings were poorly constructed. Most owners of the small businesses knew nothing of construction or even carpentry, but this did not hold them back. Friends or family members sometimes pitched in to help as they fought the clock to get the structures up. Most of the buildings barely kept the weather out. There were cracks in the walls, and windows were not set properly. Dust penetrated to the interiors during severe windstorms, causing all kinds of havoc. The buildings were raised quickly and with no regard for design or comfort. Nearly all of the structures were made of rough lumber and tarpaper. Some were painted later. Many business owners cared only about putting up an enclosure , a place where they could make money by selling something. This assembly of poorly constructed buildings on both sides of the dusty thoroughfare became known as B Street, or, familiarly, “The Street.” Before 1934, there was no power in the area, and people used kerosene and gas lamps for light. The early businesses had to get along with this type of lighting. Water came from wells that were dug here and there or, in some cases, it was purchased from entrepreneurs who transported it on trucks in large steel tanks. Ice had to be delivered to The Street, and cakes of it were carried by hand to businesses that needed it. When electricity was connected, more businesses began to appear along B Street. There were grocery stores, restaurants, drug stores, barbershops, hardware stores, bars, taverns , dry cleaners, small hotels, and even a small movie theater and a bowling alley. A number of businesses built a second floor, with sleeping rooms for the prostitutes who would serve the thousands 42 B STREET of workingmen and later visitors who were curious about women other than their wives. Luckily, the price of goods was reasonable on B Street. A loaf of bread cost nine cents, and eggs were fifteen cents per dozen. Coffee sold for twenty-five to thirty cents per pound, while the price of two cans of milk was fifteen cents. A box of cornflakes cost fifteen cents. Bacon sold for fifteen cents per pound. The prices were comparable to those in nearby towns such as Almira, Nespelem, and Wilbur. Beer was the most popular drink on The Street. It cost ten cents a glass. Some taverns charged only five cents a glass, but people who drank it thought it was watered down. Occasionally, there were shortages of water, but the workingmen paid no attention to this because they preferred their beer. When certain places closed at 2:00 a.m., workingmen could go upstairs and pay twenty-five cents a glass for moonshine. Sometimes they enjoyed the company of the ladies of the night who were up there waiting for them. On Friday night, B Street was especially active. Friday was payday . The noise was sometimes deafening as taverns and dance halls turned up the loudspeakers playing...