Bonfires and Hypnotism on the Columbia River
Seventy-five young residents gathered at the Columbia riverfront for a night of roasted wienies, marshmallows, and questionable mesmerism.
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.
A record-breaking crowd turned out for the weinie and marshmallow roast given by the young people’s society of the Methodist church. The party gathered at the church and proceeded to the boat landing on the Columbia river, where a large bonfire was built. Later, a hike was taken along the beach to a point near the outlet of the new drainage ditch where a much larger fire was started and where the stunts of the evening were indulged in. Signor Svengali, in the person of our genial superintendent of schools, C. D. Lilly, did some great work in mesmerizing Bill Hopp and Clarence Yedica. While Hopp’s powerful will was too strong for the professor, Clarence responded to the powers of the noted hypnotist and as a result did a hitch kick which landed on the head of little Forrest O'Connell, nearly laying him out. Wienies and marshmallows were roasted on sticks, and over seventy-five people turned out to the beach party.
“Signor Svengali, in the person of our genial superintendent of schools, C. D. Lilly, did some great work in mesmerizing Bill Hopp and Clarence Yedica.”
While Richland is now defined by its history as a Cold War company town, this 1915 account captures the quiet riverside social life of the agricultural settlement that preceded it. The 'new drainage ditch' mentioned was part of the massive irrigation effort that turned the arid landscape into an orchard district, forever altering the local geography of the Columbia river bank.
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