- Newport — Thumbnail History (historylink.org)
Newport, the county seat of Pend Oreille County, is roughly 45 miles north of Spokane on the bank of the Pend Oreille River. The area is still the home of the Kalispel Indians, with human habitation going back some 10,000 years. David Thompson (1770-1857), North West Company fur trader and explorer, passed through the present Newport area in 1809 and 1810…