‘Burn it no matter what’: Montague Center bonfire tradition continues despite wet weather

Published: 07-04-2023 1:23 PM

MONTAGUE CENTER — With rain soaking the massive wood pile at the Montague Center baseball field just as dusk fell on Monday, things started looking dark for one of the village’s most iconic traditions. But what shone through was the philosophy of faithful attendees: “burn it no matter what.”

“I think it’s important for people who have lived in town a long time because it’s one of the things that’s lasted a long, long time,” said Montague Center Fire Chief Dave Hansen, adding that he’s attended Montague Center’s annual bonfire for about four decades. “Times change, but this seems to be one of the constant things the town has always had.”

According to Larry Peters Jr. of the hosting Montague Center Firefighters Association, inclement weather has been an extreme rarity over the course of the tradition’s history, which reaches back more than half a century. He recalled only one other year over the past four decades of his attendance in which rain fell during the event.

Despite these circumstances being unusual, however, not much was impacted — the fire was still massive, reaching dozens of feet in the air and emitting simmering heat upon approach.

“Pine burns quick, it’s easy to catch fire and it provides the biggest glow,” Peters said of this year’s wood pile, which was composed of pine slabs donated by Deerfield’s Lamore Lumber Post & Beam.

When prompted to compare this year’s fire to those in prior years, though, Peters simply laughed. The bonfires some decades ago were constructed with full 8-by-8 and 6-by-6 posts, were “built just like a tower” and would dwarf the fires in recent years.

Still, even with smaller fires and wet weather, the love for the occasion has remained steadfast. All while rain was falling Monday night, children played baseball, the Fire Department grilled up burgers and hot dogs, and dozens gathered under umbrellas to enjoy this year’s bonfire.

“Just listen — the people are talking,” Peters said. “They’re not on their phones, you know what I mean? It’s the way it used to be before technology. It’s hard to put into words.”

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