For the Danes, Midsummer's night meant beach bonfires, signifying the confluence of the four elements of life: fire, water, earth, and air. Latvians believed that beach bonfires had special powers: Jumping over one would take your bad thoughts and illnesses away with the smoke. Jumping over one with your sweetheart ensured eternal love. The Colonials of the Eastern Shore built fires as a substitute for lighthouses - at least until the pirates caught on and used them to lure unsuspecting ships aground.

The bonfires of Dewey Beach had no such special significance. They were for fun, to keep warm, and for clambakes or weiner roasts. There was a time when those bonfires filled each summer night, from Memorial Day to Labor Day, but those days are gone. Most towns today forbid or severely limit the building of fires on the beaches.

Other activities remain, and new ones are added. Modern youth swim, surf, sunbathe and skimboard during the day, then hit the nightclubs lining the highway at night. But the beach will always remember those bonfires with fondness.