Moscow, Idaho

File:UI-arboretum-spring-moscow-id-us.png north entrance]]

Indigenous people who inhabited what is now Moscow, Idaho include the Nez Perce, Palouse, and the Coeur d'Alene people (Schitsu’umsh).{{cite web | url=https://www.lib.uidaho.edu/about/landacknowledgment.html#:~:text=U%20of%20I%20Moscow%20is,place%20home%2C%20since%20time%20immemorial | title=Land Acknowledgment Information }}

Miners and farmers began arriving in the northern Idaho area after the Civil War. The first permanent settlers came to the Moscow area in 1871. The abundance of camas bulbs, a favorite fodder of pigs brought by the farmers, led to naming the vicinity "Hog Heaven." When the first US post office opened in 1872, the town was called "Paradise Valley," but the name changed to "Moscow" in 1875. The name Paradise persists in the main waterway through town, Paradise Creek, which originates at the west end of the Palouse Range, flows south to the Troy Highway, and west to Pullman where it enters the South Fork of the Palouse River.

Historians have disputed the precise origin of the name Moscow. There is no conclusive proof that it is connected to the Russian capital, though various accounts suggest it purposely evoked the Russian city or was named by Russian immigrants.{{cite book |last=Monroe |first=Julie R. |year=2003 |title=Moscow: Living and Learning on the Palouse |location=Charleston, SC |publisher=Arcadia Publishing |pages=30–31 |isbn=0738524255 |oclc=52263784}} Another account claims that the name derives from a Native American tribe named "Masco".{{cite book|last=Gunther|first=John|author-link=John Gunther|title=Inside U.S.A.|page=114|location=New York, London|publisher=Harper & Brothers|year=1947}} Early settlers reported that five local men met to choose a proper name for the town, but could not agree. The postmaster, Samuel Neff, then completed the official papers for the town and chose Moscow for the name. Neff was born in Moscow, Pennsylvania.{{cite book|author=Homer David|title=Moscow at the Turn of the century|url=https://www.latahcountyhistoricalsociety.org/_files/ugd/c533b2_7434feb27aab4404953977894dfef83b.pdf|year=1979|publisher=Latah County Historical Society|language=en-US|access-date=2022-12-31}}

By 1875, the town had a business district that was a center of commerce for the region. By 1890, the Oregon Railroad and Navigation Company's rail line (later the Union Pacific) and the Northern Pacific railroad line helped boost the town's population to 2,000.

The capital of the Idaho Territory was relocated from Lewiston to Boise in December 1864. In the late 1880s, statehood for the Washington Territory was nearing. Because its commercial and transportation interests looked west, rather than south, the citizens of the Idaho Panhandle passionately lobbied for their region to join Washington, or to form an entirely separate state, rather than remain connected with the less accessible southern Idaho. To appease the residents of the north, the territorial legislature of Idaho in Boise placed the new land grant university in Moscow, which at the time was the largest city other than Boise in the state. The University of Idaho was chartered in January 1889, and first opened its doors to students in October 1892.{{cite web|last=Schwantes |first=Carlos |title=Brief History of the University of Idaho |work=About the University of Idaho |publisher=University of Idaho |year=2007 |url=http://www.ucm.uidaho.edu/default.aspx?pid=86022 |access-date=2007-04-16 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070204050404/http://www.ucm.uidaho.edu/default.aspx?pid=86022 |archive-date=February 4, 2007 }}

In March 1890, Moscow's neighboring city, Pullman, became the home of Washington's land grant institution. The college that became Washington State University opened its doors in January 1892. Washington entered the union as the 42nd state in November 1889 and Idaho entered next, eight months later, in July 1890.

{{Main|Moscow City Hall (Idaho)}}

File:Moscow City Hall 2016.jpeg

Members of the Pleiades Club and Ladies' Historical Club formed a cooperative named the Women's Reading Room Society and established a small library in the Browne building at the corner of Main and Second Streets in 1902.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=b9cyAAAAIBAJ&pg=5719%2C808512 |newspaper=Idahonian |title=Women's group started library plans rolling |last=Reed |first=Mary |agency=(Latah County Historical Society)|date=February 7, 1987 |page=10 }}

In 1904, the committee planned to raise funds for a new library building. Andrew Carnegie promised funding of $10,000 if the community agreed to maintain a free public library at the rate of at least $1000 annually. Moscow voters approved a permanent tax in 1905 and with successful fundraising by subscription of local residents and businesses, coupled with the Carnegie library money, the library construction was begun in 1905. In March 1906, the Mission Style building was ready for occupancy. Later that month, a fire at the university's Administration Building totally destroyed that structure, so the new library was used for university classes during the day and residents used the library in the evening. Beginning in 1907 the building was returned to full use as a library. The original library building (which is on the National Register of Historic Places) was expanded in 1931 and 1983. It houses a children's room named for Moscow native Carol Ryrie Brink, the author of 1936 Newbery Medal winner Caddie Woodlawn.

In 2006, the Friends of the Library celebrated a Century of Service for the organization. The current organizational structure of library service encompasses all public libraries in Latah County as the Latah County Library District. The library enjoys broad support from the citizens of Moscow and the county and is also supported by the Idaho Commission for Libraries (formerly the Idaho State Library.)

The Moscow Public Library currently houses about 60% of Latah County Library District's 100,000 volume collection. Administrative, technical, youth services, and branch services offices for the Library District are all housed at this location as well. The library offers year-round programming for all ages, including storytimes and a summer reading program for children, book clubs for teenagers and adults, and presentations by outside experts and organizations. The library also offers public Internet access computers as well as free wifi.

The library serves as resource for all the residents of Moscow, or as one essayist (Ellis Clark) in the 2006 contest states, "When time, money, or circumstances bind you to one locale, the Library is your passport for travel."{{cite news|last=Spurling|first=Carol Price|title=Moscow Public Library: a century of service 1906-2006|place=Moscow, Idaho|publisher=Moscow Public Library|year=2006}}

The opening of Moscow Mall (now Eastside Marketplace){{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=tb5eAAAAIBAJ&pg=1866,2615177|newspaper=Lewiston Morning Tribune |title=Moscow Mall moves closer to completion|date=July 9, 1978|page=1D}}{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=z7sjAAAAIBAJ&pg=2421%2C1429588 |work=Moscow-Pullman Daily News |last=White |first=Vera |title=Bennett family buys Moscow Mall |date=December 18, 1993 |page=1A}}{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=78EjAAAAIBAJ&pg=4909%2C2965670 |work=Moscow-Pullman Daily News |last=White |first=Vera |title=Eastside Marketplace replaces Moscow Mall |date=August 29, 1994 |page=1A}} and Palouse Empire Mall (now Palouse Mall) in the late 1970s{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=nE9OAAAAIBAJ&pg=6683%2C3561694 |newspaper=Spokane Daily Chronicle |last=Cross |first=Helen |title=Mall, other facilities rising at Moscow |date=April 30, 1976 |page=3 }}{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=fspeAAAAIBAJ&pg=2613,6006881|newspaper=Lewiston Morning Tribune|title=Is Moscow Mall for sale? It depends on who's talking|date=November 15, 1979|page=2C }} shifted many retail businesses away from the aging city center, with buildings dating to the 1890s.{{cite news|url=http://digital.lib.uidaho.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ott/id/105|publisher=University of Idaho Library: Ott Historical Photograph Collection|title=Moscow, Idaho (original brick buildings map) |date=c. 1970|access-date=September 5, 2012}} The city developed a revitalization project for downtown in the early 1970s that included a major traffic revision,{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=YO9LAAAAIBAJ&pg=1971,2023217|newspaper=Spokesman-Review|title=Road cost cut seen|date=June 21, 1972|page=7}}{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=IpRfAAAAIBAJ&pg=2384%2C5292300 |work=Lewiston Morning Tribune |title=Joint meeting to ponder Moscow couplet system |date=October 21, 1973 |page=11}} which was enacted in 1981.{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Yc5eAAAAIBAJ&pg=4820%2C1290114 |work=Lewiston Morning Tribune |last=Moulton |first=Kristen |title=Moscow developer draws skepticism from council |date=August 4, 1981 |page=6B}}{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Ys5eAAAAIBAJ&pg=5647%2C1716181|work=Lewiston Morning Tribune |last=Moulton |first=Kristen |title=Downtown |date=August 5, 1981 |page=1B}}{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=a85eAAAAIBAJ&pg=5421%2C5532888 |work=Lewiston Morning Tribune |title=Moscow Main Street will be ready for traffic Aug. 24 |date=August 14, 1981 |page=2B}}{{cite web|url=http://issuu.com/uidahodigital/docs/gem1982/39|publisher=Gem of the Mountains, University of Idaho yearbook|title=Which way do I go?|date=Spring 1982|page=34}} Traffic from US 95 on Main Street was diverted a block away to one-way corridors on Washington (northbound) and Jackson (southbound) streets, to alleviate congestion and improve pedestrian safety and the overall city center experience.{{cite news |url=https://digital.lib.uidaho.edu/cdm/ref/collection/argonaut/id/9738?_ga=2.19858941.474210526.1503119308-374550616.1499903542 |work=Argonaut |publisher=University of Idaho |title=One way or another |date=August 25, 1981 |page=4}} Main Street was converted from four busy lanes with metered parallel parking to two lanes of local retail traffic with free diagonal parking; its sidewalks were modified and trees were added.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=IZMrAAAAIBAJ&pg=3591%2C2596123|newspaper=Idahonian|title=A decade of difference|last=Long|first=Ben|date=July 27, 1991|page=1A}} At the north end of Moscow, southbound highway traffic divided west at 'D' Street to Jackson and returned to Main at 8th; the northbound route divided east at 8th, but returned to Main four blocks earlier in the north end, {{nowrap|at 1st Street.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=CINfAAAAIBAJ&pg=3432,1587237|newspaper=Lewiston Morning Tribune|title=Moscow agrees to traffic changes|date=July 8, 1980|page=1B}}{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=qoNfAAAAIBAJ&pg=3434%2C1041959 |newspaper=Lewiston Morning Tribune|title=United Paving low bidder for Moscow couplet|date=December 3, 1980|page=8B}}}}

The original 90-degree couplets of 1981 used existing streets of the grid. Planners intended these as temporary, but they remained for years. The primary safety hazard was inexperienced truck drivers—excessive speed through the tight corners led to toppled loads and subsequent traffic snarls, with occasional damage to adjacent structures.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=29ctAAAAIBAJ&pg=5004%2C878655|newspaper=Idahonian|last=McCann|first=Sheila R. |title=Interest stirs again for long-delayed interchange on U.S. 95|date=June 23, 1989|page=1A}} The new, straighter couplets at the north end are both over a block in length and eliminated existing structures. The return couplet from Washington Street runs from 1st Street to beyond 'A' Street; it eliminated the original front portion (white stucco chapel) of the Corner Club tavern at the northeast corner of 'A' and Main, which was demolished in early 1991{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2026&dat=19901207&id=e5MrAAAAIBAJ&pg=2366,638830

|newspaper=Idahonian|last=Long|first=Ben|title=Roadwork ends party in half of Corner Club|date=December 7, 1990|page=1A}}{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=cJMrAAAAIBAJ&pg=3129,4216759|newspaper=Idahonian|last=Long|first=Ben|title=A real bar bash: Corner Club demolished|date=January 9, 1991|page=1A}}{{cite news |url=https://digital.lib.uidaho.edu/cdm/ref/collection/argonaut/id/9072?_ga=2.217479762.57567899.1505954049-374550616.1499903542 |work=Argonaut |publisher=University of Idaho |last=Bartlett |first=Maureen |title=Local "watering hole" torn down |date=January 15, 1991 |page=17}} after staving off its elimination for over a decade.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=isNeAAAAIBAJ&pg=5285,296618 |newspaper=Lewiston Morning Tribune|last=Johnson|first=David|title=To the Club for a tub!|date=September 2, 1979|page=1B}} The building on the southeast corner, {{nowrap|the Idaho Hotel,{{cite news|url=http://digital.lib.uidaho.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ott/id/1|publisher=University of Idaho Library: Ott Historical Photograph Collection|title=Idaho Hotel |year=1975|access-date=September 3, 2012}}}} {{nowrap|built in 1890,}} was razed for the traffic project in 1977 and was a vacant lot for {{nowrap|over a decade.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=PlZOAAAAIBAJ&pg=5587,3502524|newspaper=Spokane Daily Chronicle|last=Cross|first=Helen|title=Hotel yields to cars|date=May 27, 1977|page=3}}{{cite web|url=http://digital.lib.uidaho.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ott/id/67|publisher=University of Idaho Library: Ott Historical Photograph Collection|title=Formerly the Location of the Idaho Hotel |date=July 13, 1977|access-date=September 3, 2012}}}}

The first of the new couplets was completed during the summer of 1991.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2026&dat=19910604&id=7ZMrAAAAIBAJ&pg=1627,523166 |newspaper=Idahonian|last=Long|first=Ben|title=Crews start rerouting Moscow street|date=June 4, 1991|page=12A}}{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=G5MrAAAAIBAJ&pg=2509,958861|newspaper=Idahonian|last=Goetsch|first=Lara|title=1st traffic flow through Moscow couplet|date=July 10, 1991|page=12A}} The new southbound couplet to Jackson Street was completed the following year in 1992{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=scUjAAAAIBAJ&pg=2082,5543532|newspaper=Moscow-Pullman Daily News|title=Clarkston firm wins Moscow project|date=March 27, 1992|page=12A}} and begins north of 'C' Street. It eliminated a former service station at the northwest corner of 'C' and Main, which had been converted to other retail for over a decade. The critical couplet at the south end of the city was delayed several times for various reasons.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=tookAAAAIBAJ&pg=6351,1584546|newspaper=Moscow-Pullman Daily News|last=LaBoe|first=Barbara|title=South couplet back to drawing board|date=December 17, 1994|page=10A}}{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=tookAAAAIBAJ&pg=6351,1584546 |newspaper=Moscow-Pullman Daily News |last=LaBoe |first=Barbara |title=City makes pitch for south couplet |date=May 16, 1995|page=10A}}{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Xs0qAAAAIBAJ&sjid=iNAFAAAAIBAJ&pg=5154%2C2138057|work=Moscow-Pullman Daily News |last=Burton |first=Gregory H. |title=New state plan will remake Moscow's southern entrance |date=October 25, 1996 |page=1A}}{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=MookAAAAIBAJ&pg=5793,1977440 |newspaper=Moscow-Pullman Daily News |last=Boswell |first=Nina |title=Moscow will move ahead with couplet |date=April 25, 1998|page=1A}} Completed in 2000,{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=1rVeAAAAIBAJ&pg=2016,3190670 |newspaper=Lewiston Morning Tribune |title=Moscow work will divert traffic |date=July 27, 2000 |page=7A}} it is two blocks south and one block east of the 1981 divider at 8th Street. After Sweet Avenue, northbound Main Street bends a block east to align with northbound one-way Washington Street, intersecting the two-way Troy Highway from the southeast. Southbound US 95 traffic joins the intersection from the northwest, arriving on a one-way diagonal from Jackson Street. Agricultural buildings on the block between Jackson and Main (College St. to Lewis St.) were razed in the late 1990s to complete this new corridor. The completion of the south couplet allowed Gritman Medical Center to expand southward, over Eighth Street.

Another significant change to local commerce was the increase of the state's legal drinking age to 21 in April 1987,{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=sZMrAAAAIBAJ&pg=3109%2C1088682|title=Late birthday means two-year wait to drink|newspaper=Idahonian|last=Trillhase|first=Marty|date=April 10, 1987|page=1}}{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=g4NOAAAAIBAJ&pg=5045%2C2169544|newspaper=Spokane Chronicle|agency=Associated Press|title=In Idaho, be 19 today, or gone tomorrow|date=April 10, 1987|page=1}} after nearly fifteen years at age 19.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ae9LAAAAIBAJ&pg=7404%2C5645510|newspaper=Spokesman-Review|title=Bar business boom?|date=June 30, 1972|page=9}}{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=MaNYAAAAIBAJ&pg=7224%2C4260481 |newspaper=Spokane Daily Chronicle |agency=UPI |title=Idahoans to see several changes|date=June 30, 1972|page=6}} Many establishments that relied on revenues from 19- and 20-year-olds from the two university communities had to adjust or cease operations.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=RpQrAAAAIBAJ&pg=2211%2C141287 |newspaper=Idahonian |title=The Palouse in review: #3 - A new legal drinking age |date=January 1, 1988 |page=1A}} Prior to the lowering to 19 in July 1972, the drinking age in Idaho was 20 for beer and 21 for liquor and wine.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=B9ovAAAAIBAJ&pg=4452,1019951 |newspaper=Spokesman-Review |title=Bills lower drinking age to 19 in Idaho |agency=Associated Press |date=March 18, 1972 |page=1}}

File:Moscow-id-us-main-st-rain.png

A fixture of the Moscow skyline for nearly a century,{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=WnxWAAAAIBAJ&pg=6990%2C3987271 |newspaper=Spokesman-Review |agency=(aerial photo)|title=Moscow, Idaho, second in air series, shows its postwar growth |date=July 21, 1952 |page=14 }} the concrete grain elevators on south Main Street were demolished in March 2007.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=OXhfAAAAIBAJ&pg=5983,3668137 |newspaper=Lewiston Tribune |last=Mills |first=Joel |title=Moscow skyline is getting a new look|date=February 13, 2007|page=1A}} Located on the southwest corner of 8th & Main, the elevators were last operated by the Latah County Grain Growers.{{cite web|url=http://digital.lib.uidaho.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ott/id/421|publisher=University of Idaho Library: Ott historical photograph collection|title=SW corner, 8th & Main streets|year=1930|access-date=September 1, 2012}}{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=7alfAAAAIBAJ&pg=4716%2C2614089 |newspaper=Lewiston Tribune|title=Going down|last=Mills |first=Joel |date=March 25, 2007 |page=1A}}{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=wNsyAAAAIBAJ&pg=3358%2C1985932|newspaper=Moscow-Pullman Daily News|title=Wrecking ball of change|date=March 16, 2007|page=1A}} The other major concrete elevator complex, on Jackson Street south of 6th,{{cite web|url=http://digital.lib.uidaho.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ott/id/447|publisher=University of Idaho Library: Ott historical photograph collection|title=6th & Jackson streets|date=July 31, 1980|access-date=September 1, 2012}}{{cite web|url=http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WMCCPP|work=Waymarking.com|title=Latah County Grain Growers Inc - Miller Elevator - Moscow ID.|access-date=September 1, 2012}} was also slated for the wrecking ball. Idle since 2005, a preservationist group saved it in 2007.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=xF4zAAAAIBAJ&pg=1992,2310110|newspaper=Moscow-Pullman Daily News|last=Drawhorn|first=Omie|title=Grain elevators to be spared|date=February 20, 2007 |page=1A}}{{Cite web |date=July 24, 2007 |title=Group buys Moscow grain elevator, saving it from destruction |url=http://www.agweekly.com/articles/2007/07/28/news/ag_news/news14.txt#selection-1313.9-1313.22 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130116150932/http://www.agweekly.com/articles/2007/07/28/news/ag_news/news14.txt#selection-1313.9-1313.22 |archive-date=January 16, 2013 |access-date=September 1, 2012 |website=Ag Weekly}}{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=VGpfAAAAIBAJ&pg=4259%2C2231778 |newspaper=Lewiston Tribune |last=Mills |first=Joel |title=Investment group keeps Moscow elevator standing|date=July 23, 2007|page=4A}} Its newer large-diameter metal silo hosted summer theater productions in 2011.{{cite news|url=http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2017482540_apidshakespeareinasilo1stldwritethru.html |newspaper=Seattle Times|agency=Associated Press|last=Geranios|first=Nicholas K.|title=New Moscow theater located in grain silo|date=February 11, 2012}}

Moscow is known internationally as the location of Christ Church and its associated ministries: Canon Press and New Saint Andrews College, as well as Logos School. Crawford Gribben suggests that Moscow is "America's most postmillennial town", since the town's two explicitly postmillennial congregations (Christ Church and Trinity Reformed Church), make up about 10% of the town's permanent population.{{cite book |last1=Gribben |first1=Crawford |title=Survival and Resistance in Evangelical America: Christian Reconstruction in the Pacific Northwest |date=2021 |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=53 |isbn=978-0-19-937022-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Q78cEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA53 |access-date=9 May 2021}}

In the early morning hours of November 13, 2022, four University of Idaho students were stabbed to death in an off-campus rented home in Moscow by one or more attackers using one or more long knives. The authorities have identified a suspect who faces four counts of first degree murder and one count burglary.{{cite web |last=Elamroussi |first=Aya |date=2022-11-19 |title=Here's what we know – and don't know – about the killings of 4 University of Idaho students as a suspect has yet to be identified |url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/19/us/university-of-idaho-killings-saturday/index.html |access-date=2022-11-19 |website=CNN |language=en}}{{cite news |last1=Krutzig |first1=Sally |last2=Goodwin |first2=Shaun |date=November 19, 2022 |title=How did things unfold before, after University of Idaho killings? A timeline of events |work=The Idaho Statesman |url=https://www.idahostatesman.com/news/local/crime/article268898017.html}}{{cite web |last=Kuiper |first=Anthony |date=2023-03-05|title=Moscow Murders |url=https://www.lmtribune.com/northwest/moscow-murders-what-we-know-now/article_72609dde-b2b6-57f4-9f2e-434a231f09f2.html|access-date=2023-05-31 |website=LM Tribune |language=en}}

Main Street runs north–south through Moscow along the 117th meridian west.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of {{convert|6.85|sqmi|sqkm}}, all of it land.{{cite web |title=US Gazetteer files 2010 |url=https://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/files/Gaz_places_national.txt |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=2012-12-18 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120702145235/http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/files/Gaz_places_national.txt |archive-date=2012-07-02 }}

Moscow lies on the eastern edge of the Palouse region of north central Idaho in the Columbia River Plateau. East of the city is a valley within the mountains of the Palouse Range to the northeast, whose highest point is Moscow Mountain at {{convert|4983|ft}} above sea level.{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=eMBeAAAAIBAJ&sjid=bDEMAAAAIBAJ&pg=4992%2C1188822 |work=Lewiston Morning Tribune |last=Vogt |first=Andrea |title=Taking a stand |date=January 20, 1997 |page=1A}} The less prominent Paradise Ridge at {{convert|3702|ft}} and Tomer Butte at {{convert|3474|ft}} are southeast of the city.{{cite web|title=Geographic Names Information System|work=U.S. Geological Survey|publisher=U.S. Department of the Interior|year=1979|url=http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/|access-date=2007-03-26}} Paradise Creek, with headwaters on Moscow Mountain to the northeast, flows through Moscow, then crosses the state border and joins the south fork of the Palouse River near Pullman, which eventually drains into the Snake River and Columbia River on its way to the Pacific Ocean.{{cite journal|last=Cronin|first=Amanda|title=Restoring Paradise in Moscow, Idaho|journal=Land and Water: The Magazine of Natural Resource Management and Restoration|volume=47|issue=2|pages=18–26|publisher=Land and Water, Inc|year=2003|url=http://www.landandwater.com/features/vol47no2/vol47no2_1.html|issn=0192-9453|access-date=2007-03-28}}

The geology in and around Moscow represents varied formations: very old intrusive granite structures of the Jurassic−Eocene Idaho Batholith, fertile fields atop rolling hills of deep Pleistocene loess of the Palouse Formation deposited after the last ice age by westerly winds, and flood-worn channels of the Columbia River Basalt Group.{{cite web|author=Gunter, Mickey|title=Geologic history of Latah County, Idaho|work=Mineralogy of Latah County, Idaho|year=1995|url=http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~mgunter/geol249/latah/latahgeo.html|access-date=2007-03-26|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040615095650/http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~mgunter/geol249/latah/latahgeo.html|archive-date=2004-06-15|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|author=Harvey, J., V. Taube and D. Boyack|title=Idaho Batholith|work=Digital Atlas of Idaho|year=n.d.|url=http://imnh.isu.edu/digitalatlas/geo/bathlith/bathdex.htm|access-date=2012-05-15}}

There is a variety of flora and fauna within the vicinity of Moscow. An amphibian, the Rough-skinned Newt, has a disjunctive population at Moscow; this species is found typically along the Pacific coast of the US.'Rough-skinned Newt (Taricha granulosa)', Globaltwitcher, ed. N. Stromberg {{cite web |url=http://www.globaltwitcher.com/artspec_information.asp?thingid=43182 |title=Rough-Skinned Newt (Taricha granulosa ) - - GlobalTwitcher.com |access-date=2009-04-06 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090527153302/http://www.globaltwitcher.com/artspec_information.asp?thingid=43182 |archive-date=2009-05-27 }} The city sits at the boundary between the Palouse grasslands and wheat fields, and the conifer forests of the Rocky Mountains to the east.

According to the Köppen climate classification system, Moscow has either a warm-summer Mediterranean climate (Csb) or a dry-summer continental climate (Dsb).{{Cite web|title=Moscow climate: Average Temperature, weather by month, Moscow weather averages - Climate-Data.org|url=https://en.climate-data.org/north-america/united-states-of-america/idaho/moscow-16110/|access-date=2021-12-25|website=en.climate-data.org}}

{{Weather box

|location = Moscow, Idaho (University of Idaho), 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1893–present

|single line = Yes

|collapsed = yes

|Jan record high F = 58

|Feb record high F = 66

|Mar record high F = 73

|Apr record high F = 88

|May record high F = 94

|Jun record high F = 105

|Jul record high F = 105

|Aug record high F = 109

|Sep record high F = 100

|Oct record high F = 88

|Nov record high F = 73

|Dec record high F = 61

|Jan avg record high F = 49.5

|Feb avg record high F = 53.5

|Mar avg record high F = 64.6

|Apr avg record high F = 74.8

|May avg record high F = 83.2

|Jun avg record high F = 88.6

|Jul avg record high F = 96.6

|Aug avg record high F = 98.2

|Sep avg record high F = 91.9

|Oct avg record high F = 78.3

|Nov avg record high F = 60.2

|Dec avg record high F = 49.4

|year avg record high F = 99.1

|Jan high F = 37.4

|Feb high F = 42.0

|Mar high F = 50.1

|Apr high F = 58.0

|May high F = 67.3

|Jun high F = 73.4

|Jul high F = 84.4

|Aug high F = 85.6

|Sep high F = 76.2

|Oct high F = 60.5

|Nov high F = 44.9

|Dec high F = 36.4

|year high F =

|Jan mean F = 29.8

|Feb mean F = 32.9

|Mar mean F = 39.0

|Apr mean F = 45.0

|May mean F = 52.6

|Jun mean F = 57.7

|Jul mean F = 64.9

|Aug mean F = 65.4

|Sep mean F = 57.9

|Oct mean F = 46.6

|Nov mean F = 36.2

|Dec mean F = 29.0

|year mean F =

|Jan low F = 22.2

|Feb low F = 23.8

|Mar low F = 28.0

|Apr low F = 32.0

|May low F = 37.9

|Jun low F = 42.0

|Jul low F = 45.3

|Aug low F = 45.2

|Sep low F = 39.7

|Oct low F = 32.8

|Nov low F = 27.4

|Dec low F = 21.6

|year low F =

|Jan avg record low F = 4.2

|Feb avg record low F = 9.8

|Mar avg record low F = 16.8

|Apr avg record low F = 24.9

|May avg record low F = 28.2

|Jun avg record low F = 33.7

|Jul avg record low F = 37.3

|Aug avg record low F = 36.2

|Sep avg record low F = 29.0

|Oct avg record low F = 20.1

|Nov avg record low F = 13.2

|Dec avg record low F = 5.7

|year avg record low F = -4.8

|Jan record low F = -26

|Feb record low F = -26

|Mar record low F = -10

|Apr record low F = 11

|May record low F = 19

|Jun record low F = 28

|Jul record low F = 31

|Aug record low F = 30

|Sep record low F = 20

|Oct record low F = 2

|Nov record low F = -14

|Dec record low F = -42

|precipitation colour = green

|Jan precipitation inch = 3.33

|Feb precipitation inch = 2.56

|Mar precipitation inch = 3.05

|Apr precipitation inch = 2.75

|May precipitation inch = 2.60

|Jun precipitation inch = 1.73

|Jul precipitation inch = 0.66

|Aug precipitation inch = 0.70

|Sep precipitation inch = 1.01

|Oct precipitation inch = 2.40

|Nov precipitation inch = 3.52

|Dec precipitation inch = 3.47

|year precipitation inch =

|unit precipitation days = 0.01 in

|Jan precipitation days = 16.0

|Feb precipitation days = 13.9

|Mar precipitation days = 15.5

|Apr precipitation days = 13.4

|May precipitation days = 11.4

|Jun precipitation days = 9.3

|Jul precipitation days = 4.4

|Aug precipitation days = 3.6

|Sep precipitation days = 5.5

|Oct precipitation days = 10.9

|Nov precipitation days = 16.1

|Dec precipitation days = 15.9

|snow colour = green

|Jan snow inch = 14.5

|Feb snow inch = 8.6

|Mar snow inch = 4.9

|Apr snow inch = 1.0

|May snow inch = 0.2

|Jun snow inch = 0.0

|Jul snow inch = 0.0

|Aug snow inch = 0.0

|Sep snow inch = 0.0

|Oct snow inch = 0.2

|Nov snow inch = 6.0

|Dec snow inch = 15.5

|year snow inch =

|unit snow days = 0.1 in

|Jan snow days = 6.3

|Feb snow days = 5.0

|Mar snow days = 3.2

|Apr snow days = 1.1

|May snow days = 0.3

|Jun snow days = 0.0

|Jul snow days = 0.0

|Aug snow days = 0.0

|Sep snow days = 0.0

|Oct snow days = 0.3

|Nov snow days = 3.2

|Dec snow days = 7.8

|Jan snow depth inch = 9.0

|Feb snow depth inch = 5.3

|Mar snow depth inch = 2.5

|Apr snow depth inch = 0.1

|May snow depth inch = 0.0

|Jun snow depth inch = 0.0

|Jul snow depth inch = 0.0

|Aug snow depth inch = 0.0

|Sep snow depth inch = 0.0

|Oct snow depth inch = 0.0

|Nov snow depth inch = 2.5

|Dec snow depth inch = 7.0

|year snow depth inch = 11.7

|source 1 = NOAA

{{cite web

|url = https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/services/data/v1?dataset=normals-monthly-1991-2020&stations=USC00106152&format=pdf&dataTypes=MLY-TMAX-NORMAL,MLY-TMIN-NORMAL,MLY-TAVG-NORMAL,MLY-PRCP-NORMAL,MLY-SNOW-NORMAL

|publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

|title = U.S. Climate Normals Quick Access – Station: Moscow U of I, ID

|access-date = February 18, 2023

}}

|source 2 = National Weather Service

{{cite web

|url = https://www.weather.gov/wrh/climate?wfo=otx

|publisher = National Weather Service

|title = NOAA Online Weather Data – NWS Spokane

|access-date = February 18, 2023

}}

}}

{{US Census population

|1880= 76

|1890= 1280

|1900= 2484

|1910= 3670

|1920= 3956

|1930= 4476

|1940= 6014

|1950= 10593

|1960= 11183

|1970= 14146

|1980= 16513

|1990= 18519

|2000= 21291

|2010= 23800

|2020= 25435

|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=Census of Population and Housing|publisher=Census.gov|access-date=June 4, 2015}} 2020{{cite web |title=2020 Census Data |url=https://data.census.gov/cedsci/profile?g=1600000US1654550 |website=data.census.gov}}

}}

As of the census{{cite web|title=U.S. Census website|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=2012-12-18}} of 2010, there were 23,800 people, 9,180 households, and 4,335 families residing in the city. The population density was {{convert|3474.5|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|inhabitants |inhabitants|}}. There were 9,879 housing units at an average density of {{convert|1442.2|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|units |units|}}. The racial makeup of the city was 90.9% White, 1.1% African American, 0.6% Native American, 3.1% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 1.4% from other races, and 2.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.6% of the population.

There were 9,180 households, of which 22.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.8% were married couples living together, 6.1% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.4% had a male householder with no wife present, and 52.8% were non-families. 31.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.91.

The median age in the city was 24.2 years. 16.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 36.1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 24.7% were from 25 to 44; 15.6% were from 45 to 64; and 7.4% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 51.8% male and 48.2% female.

As of the census{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=2008-01-31|title=U.S. Census website}} of 2000, there were 21,291 people, 7,724 households, and 3,869 families residing in the city. The population density was {{convert|3,460.6|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|people |people|}}. There were 8,029 housing units at an average density of {{convert|1,305.0|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|units |units|}}. The racial makeup of the city was:

• 92.23% White
• 0.91% African American
• 0.80% Native American
• 3.13% Asian
• 0.14% Pacific Islander
• 0.97% from other races
• 1.82% from two or more races

Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.47% of the population.

There were 7,724 households, out of which 24.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.0% were married couples living together, 6.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 49.9% were non-families. 29.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.25 and the average family size was 2.87.

In the city, the age distribution of the population shows:

• 16.1% under the age of 18
• 35.8% from 18 to 24
• 26.3% from 25 to 44
• 14.0% from 45 to 64
• 7.8% 65 years of age or older

The median age was 24 years. For every 100 females, there were 109.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 110.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $26,884, and the median income for a family was $46,331. Males had a median income of $35,494 versus $24,560 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,930. About 9.5% of families and 22.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.2% of those under age 18 and 4.5% of those age 65 or over.

The city was highlighted in a comedy special at University of Idaho by actor-comedian Yakov Smirnoff, filmed in late 1990.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=cpMrAAAAIBAJ&pg=2762,254980|newspaper=Idahonian|last=White|first=Vera|title=Warm humor, cold line|date=December 3, 1990|page=1A }} Using Moscow as its setting pokes fun at Smirnoff emigrating from Moscow, Russia.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=qmtXAAAAIBAJ&pg=3503,7234301|newspaper=The Spokesman-Review|last=Kershner|first=Jim|title=Yakov: live from Moscow...Idaho |date=November 29, 1990|page=C1 }}{{cite web|url=http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,313577,00.html|work=EW.com|title=Back to the USSR|last=Anzelowitz|first=Lois|date=March 8, 1991|access-date=December 8, 2012|archive-date=December 21, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091221075407/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,313577,00.html|url-status=dead}}

{| class="wikitable"

|-

! Name !! Dates !! Location !! Notes

|-

| Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival

| April, second to last weekend

| Multiple venues

| Main concerts: Idaho Central Credit Union Arena

|-

| Moscow Hemp Fest

| April, mid-month

| East City Park

|

|-

| Renaissance Fair

| May, first weekend

| East City Park

| Multiple stages and events

|-

| Farmers Market

| May–October, Saturdays

| Main Street

| 8am - 1pm

|-

| Rendezvous in the Park

| July, third week

| East City Park

|

|-

| Light up the Night Parade

| December 1

| Main Street

|

|}

File:Moscow, Idaho Renaissance Fair Maypole Dance.jpg

File:East-city-park-2-moscow-id-us.png

There are seventeen neighborhood parks located throughout the town offering a wide variety of venues for outdoor activities. These parks fall under the jurisdiction of the Moscow Parks and Recreation Department. The Moscow Pathways Commission{{cite web|url=https://www.ci.moscow.id.us/commissions/Pages/moscow-pathways.aspx|title=Moscow Pathways Commission|website=Ci.moscow.id.us|access-date=27 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160406162304/http://www.ci.moscow.id.us/commissions/Pages/moscow-pathways.aspx|archive-date=6 April 2016|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}} (formerly Paradise Path Task Force) is a citizen committee seeking to develop a system of linearly connected parks throughout the area. Carol Ryrie Brink Nature Park was a community collaboration between the Palouse Clearwater Environmental Institute and local volunteers to remeander Paradise Creek and add riparian plantings. The Moscow community, including schools and the city, led by local youth, raised money over several years to fund, design, and build a skate park that was completed in 2000. A park just north of the university is named for Admiral Robert Ghormley,{{cite web|title=Ghormley Park|url=http://www.ci.moscow.id.us/parks-rec/parks/Pages/ghormley.aspx|publisher=City of Moscow|access-date=2 March 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140430061702/http://www.ci.moscow.id.us/parks-rec/parks/Pages/ghormley.aspx|archive-date=30 April 2014|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}} from 1933 to 1997, it was the site of the city's outdoor swimming pool.{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=G08tAAAAIBAJ&sjid=utAFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4948%2C764433|work=Moscow-Pullman Daily News |last=Boswell |first=Nina |title=Quick fix |date=June 23, 1997 |page=1A}}{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Q74jAAAAIBAJ&sjid=xdAFAAAAIBAJ&pg=6322%2C277988 |work=Moscow-Pullman Daily News |last=Boswell |first=Nina |title=Ghormley's toxic water |date=July 5, 1997 |page=3A}}{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=SL4jAAAAIBAJ&sjid=xdAFAAAAIBAJ&pg=2581%2C713752 |work=Moscow-Pullman Daily News |last=Boswell |first=Nina |title=Ghormley pool won't be opening |date=July 11, 1997 |page=1A}}{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=oZUrAAAAIBAJ&sjid=1dAFAAAAIBAJ&pg=5555%2C2024964 |work=Moscow-Pullman Daily News |last=Boswell |first=Nina |title=Let's go swimming |date=May 27, 1998 |page=1A}}{{cite news |url=https://www.ci.moscow.id.us/DocumentCenter/View/18600/Ghormley-Park |publisher=City of Moscow |title=Ghormley Park |date=2015 |accessdate=April 1, 2022}} Its replacement, the Hamilton-Lowe Aquatics Center in northeast Moscow, opened in June 2000.{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=r7ojAAAAIBAJ&sjid=n9AFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4988%2C488359 |work=Moscow-Pullman Daily News |last=McDonough |first=Ted |title=Palouse dive time nears |date=May 27, 2000 |page=1A}}{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=0KZCP5UExFUC&dat=20000605&printsec=frontpage&hl=en |work=Moscow-Pullman Daily News |last=McDonough |first=Ted |title=Wet, wild, wow |date=June 5, 2000 |page=1A}}

The Latah Trail, completed in October 2008, extends from the eastern edge of Moscow bike path system to Troy, parallel to the Troy Highway (SH-8) for most of its {{convert|12|mi|spell=in}}. On the west side of Moscow, the Bill Chipman Palouse Trail connects the two university communities of the Palouse. Starting at the University of Idaho's Perimeter Road, it gradually descends with Paradise Creek for {{convert|8|mi|spell=in}} to Pullman through Whitman County, alongside the Moscow-Pullman Highway. Completed in April 1998,{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=KIokAAAAIBAJ&pg=5920%2C373589 |newspaper=Moscow-Pullman Daily News |last=LaBoe |first=Barbara |title=All-weather trail: rain doesn't dampen the fun as Chipman trail officially opens|date=April 6, 1998|page=1A}} the trail honors a Pullman businessman (and UI alumnus) who died two years earlier, following a winter highway accident in Spokane County.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=OYokAAAAIBAJ&pg=2972,662849 |newspaper=Moscow-Pullman Daily News |title=Pullman businessman remembered as man of integrity|date=January 11, 1996|page=1A}}{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=jcwqAAAAIBAJ&pg=5907,1216228&|newspaper=Moscow-Pullman Daily News|title=Bill Chipman hospitalized after accident|date=December 16, 1995|page=10A}} The Paradise Path bridges the gap in Moscow between the endpoints of the Chipman and Latah trails, passing through the north and east edges of the UI campus. The trail systems together constitute a continuous {{convert|22|mi|km|adj=on}} paved linear park from Pullman to Troy, extending in Troy beyond the eastern boundary of the Palouse ecosystem. From Pullman to the western boundary of Moscow (the state line), it follows the right of way of a dismantled Union Pacific railroad line, and east of US-95 it follows the right of way of a dismantled BNSF railroad line that junctioned at Arrow on the Clearwater River by way of Troy, Kendrick, and Juliaetta.

The defunct Tamarack Ski Area was on the east-facing slope of East Moscow Mountain;{{cite news |url=https://www.latahcountyhistoricalsociety.org/post/the-tamarack-ski-lodge |publisher=Latah County (Idaho) Historical Society |last1=Burns |first1=Ariana |last2=Fleener |first2=Dusty |agency=(Palouse Anthropology) |title=The Tamarack Ski Lodge |date=January 7, 2021 |accessdate=April 1, 2022}} a grove of ancient red cedar trees is nearby, just northeast of Moscow Mountain's summit.

File:Moscow-id-us-mcconnell-house.png]]

Moscow has a Mayor-Council form of government consisting of six Council members (at large) and a Mayor. These positions are elected separately and serve four year terms. Council member elections are held in odd-numbered years in November, with terms staggered so that three of the six seats are open at each election. Mayoral elections are held the November after a US presidential election.

The Council elects a President and vice-president from among its members at its first meeting in January each year. These two officers may stand in for the mayor as necessary. Council is the legislative and judicial arm of Moscow's City government; enacting ordinances and resolutions. This body confirms the Mayor's appointments of City officials and citizen advisory commission members. Council approves the city's annual budget and serves as the convening body for public hearings and appeals of other City Boards and Commissions. Meetings are generally scheduled for the first and third Monday of each month, beginning at 7:00 p.m.{{cite web|url=http://www.moscow.id.us/council/index.asp|title=Moscow City Council|access-date=2007-03-25|author=City of Moscow|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070303202114/http://www.moscow.id.us/council/index.asp |archive-date = 2007-03-03}}

File:UI-fountain-moscow-id-us.png

The University of Idaho (officially abbreviated "U of I") is Idaho's oldest public university, located in the city of Moscow in Latah County in the northern portion of the state. It is the state's flagship, land-grant, and primary research university. The University of Idaho was the state's sole university for 71 years, until 1963, and its College of Law, established in 1909, was first accredited by the American Bar Association in 1925.

Formed by the territorial legislature on January 30, 1889, the university opened its doors in 1892 on October 3, with an initial class of 40 students. The first graduating class in 1896 contained two men and two women. It presently has an enrollment exceeding 12,000, with over 11,000 on the Moscow campus. The university offers 142 degree programs, including bachelor's, master's, doctoral, and specialists' degrees. Certificates of completion are offered in 30 areas of study. At 25% and 53%, its 4 and 6 year graduation rates{{cite web|url=http://www.boardofed.idaho.gov/communications_center/documents/publications/2012_higher_ed_factbook.pdf |title=There's Been An Error! |work=idaho.gov |access-date=7 March 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120505142449/http://www.boardofed.idaho.gov/communications_center/documents/publications/2012_higher_ed_factbook.pdf |archive-date=May 5, 2012 }} are the highest of any public university in Idaho, and it generates 74% of all research money in the state, with research expenditures of $100 million in 2010 alone.

As a land-grant university and the primary research university in the state, UI has the largest campus in the state at {{convert|1585|acre|km2|1}}, located in the hills of the Palouse region.[http://msrmaps.com/image.aspx?T=2&S=12&Z=11&X=624&Y=6468&W=2&qs=%7cMoscow%7cID%7c Topographic map] from USGS The National Map {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150904054759/http://msrmaps.com/image.aspx?T=2&S=12&Z=11&X=624&Y=6468&W=2&qs=%7CMoscow%7CID%7C |date=2015-09-04 }} The school is home to the Idaho Vandals, who competed on the Division I FBS (formerly I-A) level through the 2017 season before dropping down to the FCS level in 2018.{{cite web|url=http://www.idahostatesman.com/sports/college/university-of-idaho/article74259832.html|title=Source: Vandals dropping to FCS, joining the Big Sky|website=Idahostatesman.com|access-date=27 August 2017}} In addition to the main campus in Moscow, the UI has branch campuses in Coeur d'Alene, Boise, Twin Falls, and Idaho Falls. It also operates a research park in Post Falls and dozens of extension offices statewide.{{Cite web|title=University of Idaho Research Park|url=https://www.uidaho.edu/cda/uirp|access-date=2021-12-25|website=www.uidaho.edu}}

New Saint Andrews College opened in 1994 and moved to its present campus on Main Street in 2003.{{cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=OF8zAAAAIBAJ&pg=6337%2C2901365 |newspaper=Moscow-Pullman Daily News |last=Bacharach |first=Alexis |title=President not surprised by opposition to college |date=January 26, 2005 |page=1A }}

The Moscow School District #281, which covers the entire city limits,{{cite web|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st16_id/schooldistrict_maps/c16057_latah/DC20SD_C16057.pdf|title=2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Latah County, ID|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau|access-date=2024-03-30}} - [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st16_id/schooldistrict_maps/c16057_latah/DC20SD_C16057_SD2MS.txt Text list] operates Moscow High School (9-12), an alternative high school, a middle school (6-8), and four elementary schools (two K-5, one K-2, one 3–5).{{cite web |url=http://msd281.org/about-msd/ |publisher=Moscow School District |title=About MSD |access-date=September 7, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150901060021/http://msd281.org/about-msd/ |archive-date=2015-09-01 |url-status=dead }}

There are two public charter schools and three private schools in the city.

{{clear}}

• Moscow High School (9–12)

• Paradise Creek Regional High School (10–12)

• Moscow Middle School (6–8)
• Palouse Prairie Charter School (K–8)

• Lena Whitmore Elementary School (K–5)
• A.B. McDonald Elementary School (K–5)
• John Russell Elementary School(Closed since 2024) (3–5)
• West Park Elementary School (K–2)
• Palouse Prairie Charter School (K–8)

US-95 connects Moscow to Coeur d'Alene, Lewiston, and the Treasure Valley with onward connections to Boise. ID-8 runs east–west through Moscow and travels to Pullman in the west and Troy to the east.

Pullman–Moscow Regional Airport is {{convert|4|mi|0}} west, just east of the Washington State University campus. Other nearby airports are the Lewiston-Nez Perce County Airport, {{convert|34|mi}} south, and Spokane International, {{convert|90|mi|-1}} north.

The Moscow Intermodal Transit Center is the transport hub for SMART (Sustainable Moscow Area Transit Service){{Cite web |title=SMART Transit – Regional Public Transportation |url=https://www.smarttransit.org/ |access-date=2022-05-20 |language=en-US}} transit and intercity bus services.{{Cite web |title=Intermodal Transit Center {{!}} Moscow, ID |url=https://www.ci.moscow.id.us/165/Intermodal-Transit-Center |access-date=2022-05-20 |website=www.ci.moscow.id.us}} Bus service to Spokane and Boise is offered by Northwestern Trailways. Wheatland Express also provides service to Spokane.

The Paradise Path is an east-to-west multi-use path that connects to shopping centers, the University of Idaho, and city parks.{{Cite web |title=Paradise Path - Moscow, ID |url=https://www.ci.moscow.id.us/DocumentCenter/View/18606/Paradise-Path |access-date=19 May 2022}} A small network of bike lanes and sharrows connects the Paradise Path to downtown and residential areas to the east. There are intercity bike trail connections with the Bill Chipman Palouse Trail to Pullman, Washington and the Latah Trail{{Cite web |title=About |url=https://www.latahtrail.org/about |access-date=2022-05-20 |website=Latah Trail Foundation |language=en}} to the eastern town of Troy.

• Shanin Blake (born 1994), pop singer, artist, influencer and model
• Carol Ryrie Brink (1895–1981), author
• Bryce Callahan (1991–), Former NFL cornerback, with the Chicago Bears and the Denver Broncos
• Joel Courtney (1996–), actor
• Darren Doane (1972–) filmmaker and music video director
• Hec Edmundson (1886–1964), basketball and track coach, state's first Olympian (1912)
• Burton L. French (1875–1954), congressman from Idaho for 26 years
• Jackson Gillis (1916–2010), screenwriter
• Abe M. Goff (1899–1984), congressman (1947–49), served in military in both world wars
• Shay Hatten (1993-), screenwriter and film producer
• Samuel D. Hunter (1981–), playwright, 2014 MacArthur Fellowship recipient
• Robert Jessup (1952–), artist
• Kelli Johnson, news anchor for NBC Sports Bay Area
• Lawrence H. Johnston (1918–2011), Manhattan Project physicist
• Luke Kruytbosch (1961–2008), thoroughbred horse racing announcer
• Andrea Lloyd-Curry (1965–), retired women's basketball player, Olympic gold medalist
• Tom McCall (1913–83), Governor of Oregon (1967–75), Moscow newspaper reporter (1937–42)
• William J. McConnell (1839–1925), Governor of Idaho (1893–97), father-in-law of Senator William Borah
• Dan Monson (1961–), college basketball coach
• James C. Nelson, attorney and former Justice of the Montana Supreme Court
• Dan O'Brien (1966–) Olympic and world champion decathlete; Moscow resident (1984–1997)
• Malcolm Renfrew (1910–2013), chemist and author of the first scientific papers on Teflon
• Doug Riesenberg (1965–), retired NFL lineman, Super Bowl champion
• Josh Ritter (1976–), singer-songwriter and author
• Frank B. Robinson (1886–1948), founder of spiritual movement, Psychiana
• Dayton Leroy Rogers (1953–), Serial killer known as the “Mollala Forest Killer”
• Lyle Smith (1916–2017), football coach and athletic director at Boise State
• Willis Sweet (1856–1925), Idaho's first congressman after statehood (1890–95)
• Paul Wheaton, permaculture theorist, software engineer
• Douglas James Wilson (1953–), theologian
• N. D. Wilson (1978–), author
• Jonathan M. Woodward (1973–), stage and screen actor

Moscow has one sister city, as designated by Sister Cities International:

• {{flagdeco|Nicaragua}} Villa Carlos Fonseca, Nicaragua

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• {{official website|http://www.ci.moscow.id.us/}}

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Category:Cities in Idaho

Category:County seats in Idaho

Category:Cities in Latah County, Idaho

Category:Micropolitan areas of Idaho

Category:Populated places established in 1871

Category:1871 establishments in Idaho Territory