Kendrick, Idaho — Town at the Bottom of the Hill

Kendrick sits below the Palouse in the Potlatch River valley, and the descent into town feels like crossing into a different climate.

Open wheat country narrows into a warmer corridor with trees and steep hillsides. That lower elevation once supported orchards and gardens alongside grain arriving from the uplands.

The settlement was first called Latah before taking the name Kendrick for a Northern Pacific railroad official.

Rail lines made the valley a shipping point for grain, livestock, fruit and timber. Fires later destroyed substantial portions of the early wooden business district, and rebuilding brought more brick downtown.

Modern highways replaced much of the railroad's importance, but the elevation difference remains obvious.

Kendrick is close to the Palouse in miles. Gravity makes it feel farther away.