Built as a model town, Potlatch was owned by Weyerhaueser's Potlatch Lumber Company. Spokane architect C. Ferris White designed the new community in 1905. Workers’ housing stood close to the mill, while managers’ homes were built away from the plant’s noise and smoke. The railroad depot separated town from industry. Entirely company owned, Potlatch included churches, a school, a gym, a hospital, an opera house, and a company store.