The Pleasantville Fire Department Band has been active for over 65
years, and is the oldest Fire Department Band in New York State.
During that span, the community has enjoyed and appreciated
their performances at the annual Christmas Party, summer evening
concerts in the gazebo, and visits with local Senior Citizen groups.
The Band also marches and plays at every parade in which the Fire
Department participates.
The following is the history of the Band, originally written in 1985
by Jack Tallman and James Bailey. Their research into the past
and the care they took in putting the pieces together is gratefully acknowledged.
The history of the Pleasantville Fire Department Band basically
breaks down into three periods: 1. Formation and the Harold
Vincent Period; 2. The Post-Vincent Period; and 3. The Recent
Period.
Formation and the Harold Vincent Period (1935-1957)
Jack Tallman was the prime initiator in assembling members of
the Band, while Harold Vincent was the vital ingredient needed to
make it a success. Vincent and some of the other band members
had played together in what was called the Pleasantville Military
Band. In those days it was quite common for small communities
to have a local band. The Pleasantville band frequently played in
the downtown Plaza on Saturday nights during the summer months,
and was occasionally hired by the Fire Department to march in
parades. At that time, the Band had no connection with the Fire
Department.
Harold Vincent was a pharmacist at Cadman's Drug Store. He
directed the Fire Department Band without compensation from the
very beginning until his death in 1957. Although not a member of
the Department, he freely gave his time and wonderful talent to
help the Band. In his 22 years with the Band, he directed every
concert-- but did miss one parade! Still today, he is the only person
to be an honorary member of both Daniel P. Hays Hose and Fire
Patrol Companies.
Jack Tallman's career started as a member of Hays Hose Company,
rose to Chief of the Department, and later served on the Board
of Fire Commissioners. He was also Superintendent of Public Works
for the Village of Pleasantville. He not only organized the Band, but
was Band Manager from 1935 to 1957. Upon retiring as Manager,
he continued to play with the Band for several more years.
The Original Members
Rudy Bartsch was a "tough old Dutchman" who loved to play that
horn. In 1949, crisis struck, but the Band contributed $40 toward
a new set of false teeth so that Rudy could continue to play-- and
he did, right up to the time of his death, in 1951 at age 73.
Si Wild took an active part in the formation of the Band. In 1938 he
switched from cornet to baritone horn, but then in 1939 moved
away from Pleasantville.
Al Hutin lived in Chappaqua and played with the Band until 1951.
Francis Bell, we are told, was quite an athlete. Maybe that explains
why later on, he was willing and able to switch from clarinet to
bass horn! He lived across the street from the Bedford Road School
in the house that his sister lives in today. His father was Frank Bell
of Bells' Department Store.
Don Copple was a dentist practicing in Pleasantville. He was a
regular from 1935 to 1948, then played intermittently until
retiring in 1952.
Russ Yerks switched from baritone to bass horn in 1938. In 1946
he suffered a heart attack, but continued to play "inside," that is to
say no parades, until his retiring in 1953.
Walter Olson was a route man with the Mt. Pleasant Ice Cream Co.
in Thornwood and a stalwart member of the early Band. He was an
active member from the early beginning until his retirement in
1960.
Larry Cadman, of Cadman's drug store, played for two years, then
dropped out in 1937.
George Mager played the first year, then joined the army in the fall
of 1936. Sometime later, he was playing bass with an army band in
Panama.
Winks Cottrell was the only snare drummer for most of those early
years. That was a particularly tough assignment because, in a
parade, he had to play for the entire line of march without a break.
Following the Chappaqua parade in 1948, Winks suffered an attack
of some kind and was taken to the hospital, where he died a few
days later.
Ted Douglas was another stalwart, playing the bass drum from the
very beginning until 1955.
L.G. Pendleton played cymbals until resigning from the Band in
1938.
The origination of the Band was not sponsored or supported by
the Fire Department or the Board of Fire Commissioners. The Band
members got themselves organized and ready to perform. They
acquired some instruments and music from the old Military Band,
paying $15.00 to D.B. Miller to cover any storage charges. Later
they purchased a few new instruments as they were needed.
The first performance by the Band was at the Annual Meeting of
the Department in April 1936. The first parade was the Annual
Inspection of the Department on May 26, 1936. All 14 members
were present for both affairs. For uniforms, they wore blue and
black pants, white shirts and black ties, each man supplying his
own attire. They played for the Department for four parades in
1936, and five in 1937.
The first concert was at the Flower Show at the Brooks residence
on Bedford Road on September 28, 1937. Over the years, the Band
has given concerts at the County Home, at Grasslands, at Westfield
State Farms, at Rosary Hill, and in Pleasantville. For many years
there was an annual trip to Hudson, N.Y. to give a concert at the
Firemen's Home.
In May of 1938, the Fire Commissioners, under the leadership of
Charles E. Jahne, agreed to help with uniforms and paid for 24 sets
of emblems, 24 uniform shirts, 8 hats and 9 pairs of pants for a total
of $291.00. Those Band members who were also firemen wore
the pants and hats from their Fire Department uniforms.
Three new players joined the Band for the 1936 season, 6 more in
1937. The Band continued to grow and peaked at 29 men in line for
both the Pleasantville and Katonah parades in 1940.
We would especially like to mention someone who joined in 1936.
Arthur Garvey who played in the old Military Band, was considered
one of the keys to the new Band's success. He started in the spring
of 1936 as a clarinet player, switched to cornet in 1939, back to
clarinet in 1948, and to french horn in 1949. In 1951, he joined
the army as a musician and played for years with the band at West
Point. After retiring from the army, he rejoined the Fire
Department Band playing the french horn. He rarely missed a
rehearsal, but because of his age, was physically unable to march in
a full parade. However, he would show-up and join the Band
just in time to march past the reviewing stand.
For Labor Day 1940, the Band hired out to play for the Verplanck
Fire Department at a parade in Peekskill. The line of march was
7 1/2 miles! With 21 men in line, they were on the street from 1:15
to 5:45 p.m. The fee was $125.00.
Also in 1940, at the Mt. Kisco parade, the Band won its first of many
awards as Best Musical Unit.
In June of 1942, the Band played for the Pleasantville parade, then
disbanded for the duration of World War II. Seven members went
into military service and one, Harry Locke, Jr. was killed.
The Band reassembled in February of 1946 and has been active ever
since. With a few exceptions, they have played every single parade
the Department has participated in, anywhere from 6 to 10 a year.
The Post Vincent Period (1957-1970)
1957 saw the death of Harold Vincent and the transfer of
management of the Band from Jack Tallman to Robert Schmelke.
Bob Schmelke had joined the Band in 1941 while still in Pleasantville
high school, where he was student director of the High School Band.
Bob faced the monumental task of finding volunteers who were
qualified to direct the band and willing to put in the necessary time,
which is extremely difficult to accomplish. This is just one more
indication of what Harold Vincent meant to the Band, the
Department, and the community.
By 1964, the Band had still not found a "full-time" Director. Bob
Schmelke was serving in both roles as Director and Manager. It was
clear that for the Band to stay in existence, a new Director was
necessary. Thus, George Amick of Hartsdale became the Director in
1965 and was given a modest salary. He was a graduate of Juilliard,
but not a professional musician. He led the Band until resigning in
1970.
The Band continued to be as active as it had in prior years, marching
in parades and playing concerts in the community. However, the
personnel make up of the Band was changing. No longer were there
many members of the Department who played in the Band.
Recruitment of Band members was a constant problem and
sometimes a musician would have to be hired to fill out a certain
section.
Funds to cover the Band's cost come from annual contributions
by four of the five Fire Department companies. No funds are
provided from tax revenues, members are all volunteers (except
for an occasional hired hand) and the Band's budget is quite
modest when compared to the cost of hiring a musical unit for each
of the parades.
Several people took a turn at the Manager's job since Bob Schmelke's
tenure. Bruce Shaft, Roger Van Sise and Joseph Genovese all served
for a time. The current Manager is Rex Sims and he has held the
position for 24 years.
The Recent period (1970-2002)
George McGettrick of Hartsdale was appointed director in
September 1970. He was a teacher of
instrumental music in the Yonkers School System, a graduate of
New York University, and worked with several youth bands through-
out the county.
Under McGettrick's leadership, the Band has continued to be active
in parades and concerts, but membership has been a constant
struggle. To help stimulate more interest, a dance band was formed
as an adjunct to the marching and concert bands. The dance band
regularly puts on concerts at retirement and nursing homes in the
area and are received with much enthusiasm and appreciation.
For information on attending a concert, see the band's 2002 concert
schedule
In April of 2002, after 32 years of distinguished, faithful service, George McGettrick passed away and was succeeded by Stan Greenburg. Stan is accompinied by Joel Engelbrektson as Parade Director and Rex Simms who is the band manager.
If you are interested in joining or have other questions concerning
the Band, please send them to band@pleasantvillefire.org
