The Temperance Revival Sweeps Olympia
Francis Murphy, the famed temperance orator, packs the Methodist Church as residents line up to sign the pledge.
Francis Murphy will be at the church tonight. The Methodist church is not capable of holding the immense throng that is unable to hear his motionless power of mingled wit, wisdom, pathos and infinite vitality. He has brought the church to be crowded from the altar rail to the outer doors. Under the leadership of Mr. Vance, the singing had been volunteered to assist. Mr. Murphy made his appearance at the side door, accompanied by Mr. and Mrs. Weir. While passing along the aisle, Mr. Murphy shook hands right and left and greeted everybody with a pleasant smile and a remark. It was informal, but it was received in the spirit in which it was given. 'Good looking young men, how are you all?' he exclaimed, grasping Judge Robinson's hand and shaking it vigorously. When the call was made for signers, old men and boys crowded up to the table where the pledge was piled. Scores of them crowded as fast as they could and young ladies tied on the blue ribbon.
“When the call was made for signers, old men and boys crowded up to the table where the pledge was piled.”
Temperance movements were a massive civic force in the late 19th century, often acting as a precursor to the political organizing that eventually led to Prohibition. Today, Olympia’s relationship with alcohol is central to its downtown culture, but the fervor of these public 'pledge' meetings mirrors the intensity of modern grassroots political or social movements.
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