Transforming Van Horn Lake
Benton County officials hatch a plan to drain, clean, and restock a local lake for recreational fishing.
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.
If plans outlined by the Benton County Game Commission materialize, Van Horn Lake, near Richland, will be converted into a fishing and camping resort. The commission intends to drain the lake, remove the carp, and stock the water with bass fry and perch. County Game Warden O’Connell has arranged to secure several thousand perch from lakes near Spokane. The commission also plans to lease shore lands for use as public picnic grounds and camping sites.
“The idea upon which the commission is working is to drain the lake, clean it out, destroy the carp and then stock it with bass fry and perch.”
The management of local water bodies remains a central issue in the Tri-Cities. The 1913 attempt to convert a utilitarian lake into a public amenity reflects the early 20th-century push to formalize 'leisure space' in Eastern Washington.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.