Based on existing remnants, historic photographs, and topographic surveys, the Corbin & Moore-Turner Heritage Gardens represent landmark examples of private residential landscapes adapted in the country garden look of the Arts and Crafts style. The historic gardens were developed in two phases from 1889 to 1895 and from 1896 to 1932.  For more details, check out the Special Features page.

The D.C. Corbin House is listed on the Spokane Register of Historic Places and is significant because of its association with its builder and owner, Daniel Chase Corbin. A pioneer in transportation and other successful business ventures in the Inland Northwest, Mr. Corbin commissioned his former-son-in-law and noted architect Kirtland Cutter to design his home.

The 2½ story cream colored brick house faces Seventh Avenue. The Georgian Revival structure is brick and frame with a wrap-around veranda, shuttered windows, and a Palladian gable dormer in a hipped roof. Originally consisting of five landscaped acres, the estate sat on the hillside overlooking the city, directly under the basalt cliff that rims the lower South Hill. The home’s front grounds gently sloped north to Seventh Avenue, with a circular drive leading to the house. The Stevens Street extension in the 1960s altered the front lawn and circular drive.

When the Spokane City Park Board purchased the property in 1945, the grounds of the home and the adjacent Turner property were combined to form Pioneer Park. In 1963 the Corbin house became offices for the City of Spokane Parks and Recreation Department and for the Corbin Arts and Crafts program. In the 1970s the house officially became known as the Corbin Art Center.

Sitting south of and adjacent to the historic D.C. Corbin house, the Corbin garden is primarily Arts and Crafts style with a castle overlook as a main feature. The pine footbridge and pine railings were a use of the local materials, as well as the basalt rock used to create the castle overlook. 

The Frank Rockwood Moore house, built in 1889, was constructed of wood, stucco, and granite.  Designed by Cutter and Malmgren, the house was 2½ stories, with thirteen rooms, located on 5 ½ acres. The house was reached by a curving drive lined with magnificent trees. After the death of Moore in 1895, the home was purchased by Senator George Turner and his wife Bertha. After the death of George Turner in 1932, the bank obtained the house on a foreclosure. After futile attempts to sell the house, it was demolished in January 1940 to save taxes. In 1945 the site was purchased by the Spokane City Park Board, along with the Corbin property.

The beautifully landscaped grounds of the Turner home, which extended up over the cliff, were the site for the Turners’ many elegant summer parties. Although there is correspondence between George Turner and John C. Olmstead regarding the landscaping, the project was supervised by Hugh Bryan from Portland, Oregon.