Orchard Prairie is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

in Spokane County, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

Geography

Located on a prairie of the same name, Orchard Prairie is immediately to the east of and above Spokane with Bigelow Gulch Road connecting the prairie to the Hillyard neighborhood of the city. To the south on the hills descending from the prairie to the

Spokane River The Spokane River is a tributary of the Columbia River, approximately long, in northern Idaho and eastern Washington in the United States. It drains a low mountainous area east of the Columbia, passing through the Spokane Valley and the city o ...

are residential suburban developments that have been built in recent decades. Argonne Road connects the prairie with them and the other suburbs in nearby Millwood and the greater

Spokane Valley The Spokane Valley is a valley of the Spokane River through the southern Selkirk Mountains in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. The valley is home to the cities of Spokane and its suburbs Spokane Valley, Washington, Spokane Vall ...

area. To the north and northeast is the similar Peone Prairie. Argonne and Bigelow Gulch roads have seen increased traffic over the years as they provide something of a shortcut for commuters traveling between north Spokane and the Spokane Valley. The original two-lane roads have been widened over the years into four-lane roads meant to handle the current volume of traffic.

History

The community was named for fruit orchards near the original town site. The community retains much of its rural character, but due to its close proximity to

Spokane Spokane ( ) is the most populous city in eastern Washington and the county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It lies along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south ...

the area has seen growth in recent decades and has taken on aspects of an

exurb An exurb (or alternately: exurban area) is an area outside the typically denser inner suburbs, suburban area, at the edge of a metropolitan area, which has some economic and commuting connection to the metro area, low housing-density, and rela ...

an nature. This has led to controversy within the community, including a 2008 lawsuit brought against the county by Orchard Prairie residents. Orchard Prairie has its own school district consisting of one school established in 1894. The school serves kindergarten through seventh grade, combined in four classrooms. Enrollment averages 65 to 80 students each year, making it the second smallest school in Spokane, Washington.

References

Unincorporated communities in Spokane County, Washington Unincorporated communities in Washington (state) {{SpokaneCountyWA-geo-stub