The Bank vs. The Smiths: A Benton County Foreclosure Drama
A summons filed in the Superior Court reveals a $200 debt dispute between the Bank of Kennewick and local residents F.B. and Belle Smith, highlighting the precarious financial ties between early agricultural settlers and regional lenders.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
In the Superior Court of the State of Washington, in and for the County of Benton.
The Bank of Kennewick, a corporation, plaintiff, vs. F. B. Smith and Belle Smith, his wife, defendants.
The State of Washington, to the said F. B. Smith and Belle Smith, defendants:
You are hereby summoned to appear within sixty days after the date of the first publication of this summons, to-wit, within sixty days after the 16th day of April, 1914, and defend the above entitled action in the above entitled court, and answer the complaint of the plaintiff and serve a copy of your answer upon the undersigned attorney for plaintiff, at his office below stated; and in case of your failure so to do, judgment will be rendered against you according to the demand of the complaint, which has been filed with the clerk of said court.
This suit is brought for the purpose of collection of a note, given by said F. B. Smith to plaintiff, upon which the sum of $200.00, together with interest thereon at the rate of ten per cent per annum from Nov. 27, 1913 [text error in OCR '1918' corrected to likely 1913/1914 context] until paid, and for attorney’s fees.
C. L. Rowena, Attorney for Plaintiff. P. O. Address: Kennewick, Benton County, Washington.
This legal summons offers a rare glimpse into the personal financial vulnerabilities of early settlers in the Tri-Cities area. While the front page celebrates agricultural prosperity with lists of grower payments, this back-page notice reveals that even those participating in the 'Making Good' economy were not immune to debt and foreclosure threats from local institutions like the Bank of Kennewick.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.