The Twin Cities Celebrate the Open River
Kennewick and Pasco host a grand banquet with state governors and senators to mark the new era of Columbia River navigation.
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The joint celebration by Kennewick and Pasco of the opening of the Columbia and Snake rivers to continuous navigation to the sea was brought to a close by a banquet at the Masonic hall in Pasco. About 150 people attended, including two governors, two ex-governors, two U.S. senators, and a congressman. Mayor Geo. W. Zent of Pasco introduced ex-Governor Miles C. Moore, who recounted the history of the Northwest. Senator Miles Poindexter argued that river improvements provide the best return on government investment by regulating freight rates, while Senator Wesley L. Jones highlighted the vast power potential of the Columbia and Snake rivers, noting that development could reclaim vast tracts of arid land. Governor Lister praised Kennewick and Pasco as vital distribution centers, and Assistant Attorney General Scott Z. Henderson speculated that Kennewick might one day host the state capital, owing to its strategic location and potential for wholesale development.
“There is no expenditure of government funds that yields better returns than that spent for waterway improvement.”
The 1915 'Open River' celebration reflects the massive civic ambition of the early 20th-century Tri-Cities, dreaming of becoming a major commercial hub and inland seaport. Today, the conversation has shifted from river navigation to the environmental impacts of the dams that made this dream possible, highlighting a century of tension between economic growth and river health.
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