Mr. Rosalia in the News:
Everyone in Whitman County knows Mike Day…or at least they should.
For years, Mike has been known as "Mr. Rosalia". However, as of this summer he has a new position and title in Rosalia—the Station Manager for the Rosalia Visitor Resource and Interpretive Center (some now also refer to Mike as "Mr. Texaco"). Better known as the Rosalia Visitor Center, the restored 1923 Texaco was originally named The Central Service Station. Restoration work was completed in 2004 with grant funding from local, county, state and federal sources.
Normally during the school year, you will see Mike at just about every game
and special event at the Rosalia School. He proudly wears Rosalia School
colors and keeps score and/ or video tapes event after event. He sells
tickets and promotes community projects and is an active member of the Rosalia
Lions and Chamber of Commerce
.
Over the years, Mr. Rosalia helped with many Class B tournaments in Spokane.
In fact, this year he received the Curt and Chee-Chee Bruskland Meritorious
Service Award from the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association.
But things slow way down for Mike once school lets out for summer vacation. That wasn't the case this year. The center needed someone to open it daily, so the Restoration Committee asked Mike if he would operate the Texaco as the station manager. After showing Mike an official Texaco uniform donated by the Texaco Retired Employees of Washington State—Mike said, "I'm your man".
He began his volunteer manager's job on Battle Days this year selling T-shirts, souvenir license plates and passing out information to visitors. He delights in showing people the license plate wall of the individuals, businesses and organizations that have become supporters and sponsors of this state and national award winning restoration project.
Mike also hands out maps and brochures from Whitman County communities, Washington, Montana, Idaho and Wyoming as well as other miscellaneous information from the region (i.e. Spokane's MAC museum). The most recent information includes EWU's publication of the Steptoe Battle and a Auto Tour brochure tracing the running battle.
But, Mike's favorite time is getting people to sign the guest book, which seems to initiate a conversation about the Texaco or the Steptoe Battlefield and the many items the center offers. At the end of each day, Mike reports to the Texaco Restoration Committee members and gives them a full report of the happenings of the day. Who stopped, where they hailed from and what souvenir items may have sold. The guest book shows that since June, 2004 visitors not only came from all over Washington State, but an amazing number of national and international visitors that came through the Texaco "green" door.
Here's the list:
National Visitors:
Idaho, Oregon, Alaska, Montana, Wyoming, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, California, New Jersey, Florida, Nevada, Texas, Illinois, Arizona, Indiana, Colorado, Georgia, Wisconsin, Michigan, Louisiana, Virginia, Minnesota, New York, Washington D.C.
International Visitors:
Canada, Ukraine, Denmark, South Africa, Australia, England, Scotland and Ireland.
But, Mike the Manager's day is not just greeting visitors and answering questions. A number of humorous and unique situations often occur. For example, one nightly report included a story about a man from Orofino, Idaho that drove up to the inside of the pump island. Obviously, he thought the Texaco was a real gas station and summoned Mike over to his car. He asked Mike if he would please clean the bugs off his windshield. and "fill her up". Mike tried to tell him that the Texaco was not a working gas station. The man kept on insisting on service, so Mike went back inside and came out with a bottle of Windex and a towel. The guy even pointed out bug spots that Mike had missed. After trying again to buy gas—he finally noticed the large sign next to the front door and then realized the Rosalia Visitor Resource and Interpretive Center was not a real gas station. The man was so embarrassed he sheepishly left the station but not before giving Mike a sincere "Thank You" and a $5.00 tip.
Well, the summer has nearly ended and so is Mike the Station Manager's job at the old Texaco. Mike will resume his volunteer role at the school. But, mark your calendar for June 1, 2007—when Mr. Texaco will be back to ask you to "Sign the Guest book, Please!" We're hoping to have visitors from the remaining 26 states—and we hope to see you, too!
Overview
Long time residents, new comers and visitors alike to the Town of Rosalia Washington, have often made comments over the last several years that "It sure would be nice if we (they) could do something with that quaint little old service station that has been standing empty for so many years", since the early 1980's. Good ideas came from all directions, but one huge problem stood in the way of any improvements…
The old Texaco gas station, established in 1923 and located on the corner of Whitman & 6th, was jointly owned by several family members, all of whom had neither the interest nor the resources necessary to make the badly needed improvements to the property. The most daunting hurdle was the necessity for removing the old buried gas tanks that were very likely leaking contaminates into the ground after all these years.
While browsing through possible ideas at a Rosalia Chamber of Commerce meeting in the spring of 2001, the question was raised "If the property was publicly owned, is it possible that there are any grants that would help us remove those tanks." Washington State Senator Larry Sheahan (Webpage) looked into the possibility. The return answer was YES. The EPA USTfields Initiative Pilot Project Grant Application was available.
From that point, Rosalia attorney Don Sheahan acquired the agreement from family owners of the property, to donate the property to the Rosalia Chamber of Commerce, if we received funds from the grant application. The following is the record, in documents, pictures, media reports, and commentary as to how this venture has progressed. This is one of many ongoing projects, not only in the Town of Rosalia but in communities throughout Whitman County that is breathing fresh new life into Southeastern Washington.
Enjoy your visit here at our web site. Then come and visit us in reality. Whitman County has a particularly unique geography and a rich history that you shouldn't miss and we want to share it with you.
Our Mission
Our Mission is to renovate a 1923 Texaco station into an interpretive and informational visitor's center to promote the resources and historical assets of Rosalia and surrounding towns on the Palouse and in Whitman County, while also serving as a multi-use retail outlet and 24 hour public restroom facility.
Information about this historical building, it's history and proposed future, as well as the current status of this project can be found by exploring the links above with descriptions below.
In 1912 the Town of Rosalia had its first automobile, startling the horses and beginning a new era for Rosalia. In 1922 Whitman Street was paved, and in 1923 the gasoline station that stands today on the corner of Whitman and 6th was built. It has since seen many changes in ownership and management through the generations.
Beginning in the spring of 2001 and continuing today with the help of many interested sponsors, work to refurbish this quaint old building continues. The goal is to open and dedicate this building as the Rosalia Visitor Resource and Interpretive Center at the 2004 annual Battle Days Celebration.
Once the initial refurbishing is complete on the Visitor Center, fund raising will begin toward building another structure on the property. At this time the plan is to have a structure that can house, a 24 hour restroom facility, a farmer's market, space to display and sell local products, and grow encourage growth of regional businesses.
Landscaping the grounds with native plants and sample agricultural products will finish off the goal to provide educational and historical information to all who visit our Town of Rosalia, a great place to live!
Contact Information
The Rosalia Visitors and Interpretive Center can be reached for more information on this project, tourism in Whitman County and the Palouse, and information on relocation to Rosalia Washington and surrounding areas.
- Telephone
- 509-523-4200
- FAX
- Postal address Physical address
- Rosalia Visitors Center Rosalia Visitors Center
- PO Box 22 534 South Whitman Street
- Rosalia, Washington 99170 Rosalia, Washington 99170
- Electronic mail addresses:
- Webmaster
- General Information
- Maps and Driving Directions:
- Maps Provided by Yahoo! Maps
-
Driving Directions from Spokane can be found here.