DIOCESE OF SPOKANE. — City and diocese in the State of Washington (United States). The diocese of Spokane (Spokanensis) was erected by Pope Pius X on 17 Dec. 1913 by separation from Seattle and is situated in the eastern part of Seattle; it comprises an area of 30,192 square miles.
The tribe of the indigenous Spokane was evangelized by Fr. De Smet and his successors, especially Fr. G. B. Cataldo (q.v.), considered the founder of the city of Spokane around 1841, with the result that a large part of the tribe is Catholic.
The total population of the diocese (1950 census) is 487,172 inhabitants, of whom 49,972 (1951) are Catholics. There are 148 diocesan priests (76 religious: Dominicans, Franciscans, Jesuits), 50 parishes, 17 chapels, 55 missions, 9 women’s congregations (412 sisters), 41 seminarians, 1 scholastic (112 Jesuits), Gonzaga University College of Arts (directed by the Jesuits), 1 college, 2 orphanages, and 7 hospitals.