CHARLES F. STINSON
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The late Charles F. Stinson who for many years was conceded to be the “Mr. Republican of Franklin County, “ arrived in little Pasco in 1906 from Iowa.
He and Charles Diemond formed a partnership that lasted for 45 years as proprietors of their store, the Western Grain and Seed Company, which also handled a line of meats and groceries.
Stinson served in the state legislature for 20 years, commencing in 1925, becoming the dean of the Senate as a result of his lengthy service. During his incumbency as our 16th District Senator he was instrumental in having the state highway department take over the “old” Pasco-Kennewick intercity bridge and having the tolls removed in 1931, and the same for the Snake River bridge, which Franklin and Walla Walla counties had built and on which they were collecting tolls.
He was instrumental in transferring Sacajawea Park to the state, thus making it a state park. He was involved with the formation of Franklin County Irrigation District No. 1, the only remaining non-federal irrigation district in Franklin County, and probably in all of southeast Washington.
As president of the Pasco Chamber of Commerce, he was a leader in the establishment of the first airport in Pasco in 1926, which was to be used by Varney Airlines when they established regular scheduled airmail service between Pasco and Elko, Nevada that same year. Stinson passed away in March, 1968.
