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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

100 years ago in Spokane: A day in the life of Camp Lewis

 (Nathanael Massey / The Spokesman-Review)

Spokesman-Review correspondent Wilbur W. Hindley accompanied 700 new draftees and recruits to the Army training camp at Camp Lewis (later Fort Lewis).

He described the colorful scene at the camp, which was jammed with units from all over the West.

“Mascots were much in evidence today,” reported Hindley. “One husky plainsman in a broad-rimmed Stetson proudly marched into camp with a small gray and white kitten perched comfortably on his shoulder. There were dogs galore … A young chap from California takes the cake when it comes to novelty mascots. He got off the train carrying a fawn in his arms and he took it to his quarters when they finally assigned him to them.”

On a Sunday, a day without drills, “baseball games were in progress in many parts of the cantonment.”

Music could be heard everywhere. Men arrived with guitars, ukuleles, mandolins and “at least one saxophone.”

A generous Tacoma woman donated a phonograph and 20 records to every company quarters, “proving a godsend to thousands of lonesome men who are spending their first Sunday in camp.”

The boys from Montana (a wet state) were peppered with inquiries from the boys from Washington (a dry state), such as, “Got any red liquor along?” and “Any moonshine in that turkey?”

That last question was assumed to be a joke, until officers confiscated three quart bottles of whisky found in a turkey.

A Montana boy sadly commented that those quarts were “the sole survivors of a contingent of 50 gallons that started when we did.”