Courtesy Photo | An advertisement for the May 7, 1919 the concert published in the May 3, 1919...... read more read more
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FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa-It’s a mystery how and if a famed WW I band’s drum stayed in Harrisburg for nearly 100 years before discovery. And it’s one that Pennsylvania National Guard Military Museum curator Charlie Oellig hopes someone can help solve.
BOSTON- On May 9, 1919, Lt. James Reese Europe, a young Army lieutenant, a decorated WW I veteran and leader of a famous U.S. Army band wasn't feeling well during a tour. Despite his illness, he completed his performance at Mechanics Hall. After the show the officer met with his band and provided some critiques of their performance. One of them, drummer Herbert White, snapped and stabbed Europe in the neck with a penknife. While Europe walked away from the altercation he was never seen alive again.
Europe was an extraordinary officer in many ways. As a black man, he was a commissioned officer at a time when the U.S. Army was segregated. He saw combat with the famed 369th Infantry Regiment, the “Harlem Hellfighters,” and he loved music. He has been credited for bringing pre-jazz music or hot ragtime to France, Great Britain as well as the New York City elite. He possessed drive and talent, and played at Carnegie Hall. Many claim that Europe would have been a household name had it not been for his murder at age 38. And, according to Charlie Oellig the Pennsylvania National Guard Military Museum curator, his drum may be in the museum’s collection.
Oellig acquired the drum in 2003 from a local dealer of WW I memorabilia. “I was fascinated by its history,” he said. The dealer had purchased the drum from another reputable dealer, who had purchased it from a woman in Harrisburg who had it at her home, and stated it was part of the 369th U.S. Infantry Regiment “Hellfighters” band.
“Part of what makes this mystery so challenging is that many of the people are dead,” said Oellig. This includes one of the dealers and the woman who had the drum in her home and initially sold it. But, there is circumstantial evidence to the drum’s provenance, as well as the woman and dealer’s claim.
On that fateful tour when Europe was stabbed, the group stopped in Harrisburg to perform prior to traveling to Boston and other East Coast venues. George Homberg, a Europe enthusiast, and retired U.S. Army Band Soldier researched the tour and discovered an article from the now-defunct Harrisburg Telegraph dated May 3, 1919 describing the upcoming May 7, 1919 concert, a mere two-days before the murder took place.
“My theory is that perhaps the band members stayed at a local Harrisburg home,” said Homberg. “In 1919 hotels in Harrisburg would have been segregated, and it may have been difficult for band members to find a hotel room. For whatever reason the band member left the drum at the home, perhaps meaning to come back for it, and it stayed there until it was sold 75 years later.”
In the ensuing confusion after the murder two days later, it’s possible that the drum was forgotten, or that Europe never told his bandmates he left it there.
Oellig is looking for information about the drum, the 369th Harlem Hellfighters tour of Harrisburg, and any information about Europe or the band members’ connection to Harrisburg. Please call the Pennsylvania National Guard Military Museum at 717-861-2402.
For more information and to see the drum for yourself, please visit the Pennsylvania National Guard Military Museum at Fort Indiantown Gap. Museum hours are Monday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. http://pngmilitarymuseum.org
| Date Taken: | 05.20.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 05.20.2016 10:13 |
| Story ID: | 198630 |
| Location: | FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, PENNSYLVANIA, US |
| Web Views: | 450 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, PA National Guard Military Museum Looking to Solve a WW I-era Mystery, by LTC Angela King-Sweigart, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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