THE CAMP 14 CAMPFIRE PROGRAM

The program would begin with community singing, accompanied by words on slides projected on the screen at the back of the stage. They seemed to sing the same songs night after night, as there was undoubtedly a limited number of slides. A Ranger-Naturalist was the master of ceremonies, and led the singing. Long-term campers knew the words of almost all the songs, but the slides were helpful to newcomers or to those who were forgetful of lyrics. Some of the most popular songs were “Let Me Call You Sweetheart,” “There’s a Long, Long Trail A’winding” and “The End of a Perfect Day” which seemed so appropriate amid the glories of Yosemite Valley.
Particularly popular, especially among children, was “Little Tommy Tinker.” At the risk of annoying the reader, I offer the complete lyrics of this song, sung in three parts

Little Tommy Tinker
Sat on a clinker
And he began to cry:
“Ma! Pa!”
Poor little innocent guy

The audience was divided into three groups; one group would start with “Little Tommy Tinker,” then the second group, then the third group, and as each group sang “Ma!” and “Pa!” they would stand up. Of course, people sometimes got confused and stood up at the wrong time, but we thought it was hilarious, and it was enjoyed by all, young and old alike. I had no idea what a “clinker” was, and only learned its meaning as an adult. Somehow we understood that it was something uncomfortable, probably hot, to be sitting on.
Click here to to listen to "Little Tommy Tinker."

I don’t remember any special Yosemite songs, although there were and are many in existence (Bopp 1999). For example, Ranger-Naturalist Harwell composed the words to a song, sung to the tune of “In the Big Rock Candy Mountain” (printed in Yosemite Nature Notes by popular demand: Harwell 1934:55).

THE BIG YOSEMITE MOUNTAINS
One evening as the sun went down,
And the campfires all were burning,
Down the trail came a hiker hiking,
And he says. “Boys I’m not turning,
I’m headed for a land that’s far, away
beside the crystal fountains,
So come with me and we’ll go and see
The Big Yosemite Mountains!”
In the Big Yosemite Mountains
There’s a land that’s fair and bright,
Where you can swim, to suit your whim,
And the fire falls every night.
The trails are never dusty,
’Cause we sprinkle them every day;
And you can hike, forty miles or more,
Your nose never burns, nor your feet get sore!
In the Big Yosemite Mountains.

After the community singing there was usually some form of amateur entertainment. According to O’Neill this was inspired by a popular amateur hour program of the time, presumably Major Bowes’. For those unfamiliar with Major Bowes’ Amateur Hour, one could describe it as sort of an early-day Gong Show without the gong, and we loved it.
Rangers were supposed to audition applicants, but it is not clear whether the rangers did a perfunctory job, or whether the talent pool was limited. O’Neill (1988:138) claims that “their efforts must have been sketchy. Some of the acts were terrible.” I can attest to that. There seemed to be no shortage of campers who could sing, play musical instruments, recite poetry, or who at least believed they could. (I don’t think there was a piano, so singers were usually unaccompanied) Some musical renditions were quite original, as people performed on harmonicas, musical saws, rubber bands, washboards, tin cans, tissue paper w/ comb or jaw harps, and there was the inescapable virtuoso accordionist playing “Lady of Spain.” One declaimer who seemed to return time and time again loved to recite the poems of Robert Service about Alaska and the frozen Yukon. When he came on stage my father would groan, because he thought they were awfully “corny,” but most of us enjoyed them, especially “The Cremation of Sam McGee” and “Dangerous Dan McGrew,” of which the performer gave spirited renditions, not missing a beat Click here to listen to "The Cremation of Sam McGee."

They saved what many of us considered the best part for next to last: a talk by a ranger-naturalist about some aspect of the natural or human history of Yosemite, usually illustrated with slides. I don’t believe I ever heard the same talk twice. On different evenings different rangers participated, each one dealing with one of his specialties. If the subject was birds, the presenter was invariably Park Naturalist C. A. (Bert) Harwell. His extraordinary ability to imitate bird calls enriched his illustrated talk. Then on such an evening, at the end of the program, we were treated to his beautifully whistled rendition of “Indian Love Call,” as the Firefall plunged off the cliff at Glacier Point. The amphitheater in Camp 14, as well as the campfire circle in Camp 7, not to mention the amphitheater at Camp Curry, were particularly chosen to permit excellent views of the Firefall.
Click here to listen to "Indian Love Call."