Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1906-04-14
SHELL AND BARGE
ON SALTA|R WATER
NobIest Of All Sports May be
Revived at Lake This
Summer.
WATER IS FASTEST KNOWN.
In Old Days Rowing Clubs Made
Phenomenal Records in Annual
Mcets--iiistory Of Sport.

The spring awakening has come to
Salt Lake In every line Of sports from
socker football to trap shooting, with
fight fans and baseball fans and track
fans and bicycle fans seeing glorious
futures right ahead Of them.
Now comes boating into the field,
md a boat club for Great Salt lake Is
demanded. once upon time there
Was one and why the sport died. to-
rether with how Il can be resurrected
is the thing that is now agtating the
minds of the old oarsmen.
The hopes Of Il renaissance In local
boating this spring and summer may
develop into what may eventually re-
new the scenes of the late eighties
when Salt Lake ogden and Provo
were 80 stirred up on the subject that
four clubs fourished In these three
cities. and Chicago rowing associa-
ton came all the way out here to hold
r regatta.
The disappearance Of Lake Park and
Garfield as. lake resorts. the failure OF
Saltair mahagements to size up the
value Of scientific rowing on the great
lake. and the lack of facilities for pro-
perly caring for the boats, resulted In
Inc elfnllullpll u Bbhu IbMlnb ilpiii
the lake as far MS Salt Lake was con-
cerned, while the closing of SYRIA
cuse MS bathing resort proved dis
8strous for Ogden. AT Provo the IN
terest died out because OF the failure
OF rowing at Salt Lake and ogden.
PROSPECTS BRIGHT.
However, the present management
at Saltair Is ready to confer with a
committee Of Salt Lake rowing men
this spring with view to resumption
of systematic rowing at the beach, and
the extension of such accommodation
as may be necessary to enable the
oarsmen TO do their part
Many old oarsmen hope that both
parties will be able to reach such an
agreement as will effectively promote
the resumption of the fine exercise on
the great lake.
ROWING CLUB STILL LIVES.
The Salt Lake Rowing club never dis
banded II is still in existence; 1t mere
ly went TO sleep and may awake the
stronger for its long rest H. A. Penn
broke Is the president, Harry Shear
man, secretary and treasurer and Wal
ter Jennings Is the captain. The mem
bership includes about n men, and
regularly IN eastern sportsmen's annu-
ais.
GARFIELD CLUB.
The Garfield Rowing club was the
oth.r local organization, and it died
some time before Garfield went out of
commission. Its official roster was
weighty with high sounding titles as
its executive officer was an admiral, the
title given to Bill Gasmann now of
Ogden who was its first executive.
Then there was n vice admiral, and
pretty much the whole list of naval off,
cial titles, which was the occasion at
the time OF more or less banter, most
of which was directed at Glasmann.
ORIGIN OF THE SPORT.
The interest In rowing from the sci
entific standpoint of college standards
was started in this city in the spring
of 1887 by an enthusiastic eastern coll
legian who had been through the milf
himself. He succeeded In interesting
the Lake Park and Rio Grande West
ern people, and the railroad men organ
lied the Salt Lake Rowing club, 1t was
sort of annex to the passenger de-
partment for 1t helped their excursion
business, and the Utah & Nevada rail-
road, not to be outdone at Garfield, re-
SpbHutu SOME lliile dIltINdIuS WIN AHc
Garfield Rowing club.
SOME OLD BATTLES.
The feeling between the two resorts
at the time was very strong, and j. II.
Bennett and Sam Fenton Of the Rio
Grande and T. & ~ roads respectively
had their scalping knives out looking
for each other" and II one had boat
club, the other must have one, also.
h. H.. 4 "a l.awN l.nI aWa1N
five yawls and some light sailboats.
But in the spring of 1883 arrangements
were made for regatta on the Great
Salt Lake under the auspices Of the
Mississippi Valley Amateur Rowing IS
ISOLATION. with headquarters In Chi
cago The association came with
crews from the Farragut tChicago),
Moline Gllnols). Modoc (St Louis), and
Grand Rapids clubs, and a number OF
prominent single and double scullers.
VISITING OARsMEN.
The visiting oarsmen brought a long
express car full of singles, doubles.
pair oars. and four-oared shells and
excitement In town was stirred to
fever heat. Blaze coats and caps and
fancy rowing costumes were every
where, and the youth OF the town talk
ed of nothing else. Two days Of racing
we're tgTeel upon, over one ana nun
mile courses with turn the first day
at Lake Park and the second at Gar
field and local merchants we're per-
suaded to declare half holiday for the
days that everybody might attend the
races. The two railroad companies
kissed and made up" for the time be-
ing, and consolidated their rolling stock,
which they could readily do, both being
narrow gage.
THE SPLASH OF DEFEAT.
The best races were at Lake Park,
where the Modoc four won the big race
In unprecedented time showing that
Great Salt lake water Is the fastest In
the world except that Of the Dead Sea,
when II Is quiet. DR.. Plummer was
stroke Of the Farragut four, which APP
parently had the race In hand at tn.
turn, But he didn't know what he had
10 deal with In Great Salt lake water,
and In suddenly reversing his oar to
start the turn. the oar splashed a show
or OF the brine into his mouth and eyes.
For the time DR.. Plummer was a back
number, but he finally rallied. and did
his best, ~but too late; and the elegans
Faragut four came In third.
The visiting oarsmen sold nearly all
their boats to the local clubs, who thus
received their first good start. and the
shells shown In the picture above were
from this lot.
THE EQUIPMENT,
The Salt Lake Rowing club after
ward bought two fine six-oared paper