Chapter 5

Two of America’s Preeminent Fife and Drum Corps – the Colonial Williamsburg Fifes and Drums and the U.S. Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps Share Common Roots and Legacy

The Colonial Williamsburg Fifes and Drums made its first performance by two fifers and two drummers on July 4, 1958. During the 1960’s the CW Corps became one of the preeminent fife and drum corps in America, playing traditional historic music and wearing Revolutionary War uniforms. Over the years the CW Corps, which celebrates its 60^th anniversary in 2018, has become an iconic symbol of Colonial Williamsburg itself. 

From its earliest years, the CW Corps shared common roots and close contacts with the U.S. Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps, which also plays traditional historic music and wears Revolutionary War uniforms. The contacts between the two corps have continued for over 50 years to this day. Indeed, in many ways, it can be said the two units are sister corps.  

The U.S. Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps celebrated its 58^th anniversary in 2018.  This corps is the only unit of its kind in the U.S. Military. It is part of the 3^rd U.S. Infantry Regiment, “The Old Guard,” which is the oldest active duty infantry regiment in the U.S. Army, stationed at Ft. Myer, Virginia. The regiment received its name from General Winfield Scott during a victory parade in Mexico City in 1847 following its valorous performance in the Mexican War.  The unit plays for parades, pageants, dignitaries and historical celebrations in Washington, D.C., and around the country. 

In 1960, both corps received the same training in colonial drill, music and drumming, known as “Ancient Martial Music” or the “ancient” style. Individuals and corps that perform this style are known as “Ancients.”  This style most often is defined by authenticity of music, rudimental drumming, instruments, uniforms and drill for the colonial period and Revolutionary War, but also extending to the War of 1812 and shortly thereafter, depending on who is defining the genre. 

The cadence of the ancient style is slower than modern marching bands. The slower pace accurately recreates the marching speed of 18^th Century armies, which would be marching to the beat of the drummers. The slower tempo also reflects the “open” style of rudimental drumming authentic to the period, in which the rudiments (drum beats) are carefully and fully executed. Because drum beats were used by armies (from before the American Revolution through the Civil War) as signals to the troops, the drum beats had to have distinctive sounds so they would be understood by the troops. As a result, distinctive rudiments were developed. Rudiments to the drum are like scales to musical instruments. 

From their very beginnings both corps had similar missions that included hundreds of performances a year. The CW Corps plays for visitors to Colonial Williamsburg, the restored capital of colonial Virginia. The Old Guard Corps performs for U.S. Army ceremonies in and outside of Washington, D.C. Both units also perform for dignitaries and heads of state visiting Colonial Williamsburg or Washington, D.C., respectively, and both corps travel to events in and outside of the United States. Unique to the Old Guard Corps is the additional mission of performing at the White House for arriving dignitaries.

Such performances and schedules demanded excellence and both units established rigorous training and rehearsal schedules.  Unlike other fife and drum corps in the early 1960’s, Colonial Williamsburg and the U.S. Army had the financial resources to equip and maintain their units and, significantly, the members of both units were paid musicians. The CW Corps musicians were high school aged boys employed part time to perform with the CW Militia and the Old Guard musicians were full time U. S. Army soldiers. Within a very short time, the two corps became prominent on the national fife and drum scene and joined leaders in the then re-emerging return to the ancient style of fifing and drumming in America. The modern post WWII re-emergence of the ancient style was centered in Connecticut and the adjoining areas of New York, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. In particular, the several towns along and near the Connecticut River were the epicenter of this traditional martial music, vestiges of which had remained in these areas since colonial times.  

At the center of the ties between the two corps in 1960, and the soon to be achieved success of both units, was SP5 George P. Carroll, a percussionist with The U.S. Army Band stationed at Ft. Myer, Virginia.  He was a 27 year old self-taught drummer who had acquired a special interest in American fifing and drumming. Carroll was born in Nova Scotia, Canada, and began his musical career as a bugler at the age of 12. Within a year he taught himself to drum and switched to the snare drum. At the age of 17 he joined the Royal Canadian Navy as a drummer and served on several ships. On one voyage Carroll’s ship docked in Rhode Island where a fife and drum corps welcomed them. Carroll also saw a colonial fife and drum muster during that visit. He recalls: “that’s when I first got to hear fifes and it really grabbed my attention because it was a complete revelation to me on the American style of fifes and drums and, indeed, to have a country as modern as the U.S. to have such historic martial music.”

In 1955 Carroll joined the Black Watch Military Band. In 1957, while on a trip to Washington, D.C., to play for Queen Elizabeth, II, Carroll auditioned for The U.S. Army Band and was immediately invited to join. A year later his enlistment in the Black Watch ended and he enlisted in the U.S. Army as a percussionist in The U.S. Army Band at Ft. Meyer, Virginia.   

Carroll, in his personal capacity, began researching colonial fife and drum music at the Smithsonian Institution and the Library of Congress. He collected hundreds of period fife tunes and drum beats.  Carroll used his research to interpret and translate the old drum beatings into modern music scores.  He also wrote authentic drum parts for many historic fife tunes that had none. In 1959, he formed the Continental Boys Fife and Drum Corps in Arlington, Virginia, that played this authentic music and he was helping to train a small fife and drum corps in Alexandria, Virginia, as well.

In 1960, all of these factors came together to place Carroll at the center of creating a fife and drum corps for the U. S. Army and in the training of the then fledgling CW Corps. 

In the last months of 1959, Carroll was approached by the commander of The U.S. Army Band, LTC Hugh Curry, to help form a drum and bugle corps within The Old Guard stationed at Ft. Myer, Virginia. According to Carroll, Major General C.K. Gailey, the commander of The Military District of Washington, D.C., wanted to hear a bugle call at Ft. Myer on payday.  MG Gailey had sent word to The U.S. Army Band and The Old Guard asking if they could get a drum and bugle corps started in The Old Guard. 

At that time The Old Guard already had within its ceremonial Honor Guard Company a color guard that wore the 1784 uniform of the unit with blue coats faced with red on the cuffs and lapels. Thus, The Old Guard was the natural place for the new musical unit that would wear uniforms from the same era, but with the colors reversed. It was the 18^th Century practice for musicians, who were non-combatants, to wear the opposite colors of the men in ranks. The opposite colors would help the enemy identify the musicians and avoid firing on them. Thus, the coats of the regimental uniforms of both the CW Corps and the Old Guard Corps are red faced with blue.

LTC Curry knew that Carroll had been researching colonial fifing and drumming and had just started a boys fife and drum corps in Arlington, Virginia.  LTC Curry asked Carroll what would be needed to create a drum and bugle corps for the U.S. Army and to prepare a proposed TO&E (Table of Organization and Equipment) for such a unit.  Carroll replied that “it would not be authentic to form just a drum and bugle corps because the 3^rd Infantry dated to 1784, they would have played fifes and not bugles, and the Honor Guard Company color guard already was wearing the colonial regimental uniform from the period.” Carroll prepared a proposed TO&E, but without bugles.

Carroll recalls, “The Colonel [Curry] sent the TO&E to General Gailey who said you can have a fife and drum corps with a colonial theme and still have bugles, and when a two-star general says he wants bugles, he gets bugles, but we were able to reinstate the fife back into the U.S. Army, and it’s still there and probably always will be, and that’s a nice thing to have”. The activation orders were cut on February 23, 1960.  The Old Guard Corps was authorized ten drummers, fifteen fifers, ten buglers and a drum major.

1LT Henry G. (Glen) Watson, the Executive Officer of The Old Guard Honor Guard Company, was assigned additional duties as officer-in-charge of the new musical unit.  Carroll was detached from The U.S. Army Band to The Old Guard, and he and 1LT Watson began to organize the new unit. 

At that time the American fife and drum community was relatively small and news spread rapidly. Soon after the activation of the Old Guard Corps on February 23, 1960, Colonial Williamsburg officials learned of its formation and of the role of Carroll. Official contacts between the two organizations began just two and one-half months later on May 12, 1960.

Interestingly, Carroll already had become acquainted with Colonial Williamsburg.  In 1959, Colonial Williamsburg was still developing its fife and drum corps, which had been created in 1958.  For years, Colonial Williamsburg had been making contacts with and obtaining assistance from fife and drum leaders in the ancient style including Edward “Ed” Olsen, the President of the New York Fife and Drum Association, who later would become recognized as the foremost historian on the development of traditional American fifing and drumming.   To provide an example of a colonial period corps, Colonial Williamsburg had invited the Lancraft Fife and Drum Corps of North Haven, Connecticut, one of the oldest and best corps in the country, to perform in Williamsburg at the “Prelude to Independence” ceremonies in May of 1958 and 1959.

In May of 1959, Carroll learned of the scheduled Lancraft performance in Williamsburg.  He knew of their reputation so he traveled to Williamsburg to see them perform with the CW Militia.  Soon after his visit to Williamsburg, Carroll contacted William D. (“Bill”) Geiger, the Director of the Colonial Williamsburg Craft Shops. Geiger was a military historian and the supervisor of the CW Militia and its Fifes and Drums.  In 1953, Geiger had been responsible for preparing the organization plan for the CW Militia. From the very beginning, these plans included fifers and drummers.  Geiger was determined to see Colonial Williamsburg have a fife and drum corps performing the ancient style. In a remarkable coincidence, MG Gailey, the originator of the Old Guard Corps, and Geiger, the organizer and supervisor of the CW Corps, had WWII connections. According to Carroll, Geiger was an operations sergeant on then Colonel Gailey’s staff during the Battle of the Bulge.

In 1959, Geiger invited Carroll to Williamsburg for a meeting at which they discussed Carroll’s interest in fifing and drumming, his research, and the CW Corps. Soon after the meeting Carroll inquired about Colonial Williamsburg publishing his music. He also offered his services to help train the Colonial Williamsburg fifers and drummers.  In a letter dated September 19, 1959, Carroll inquired about his offer and concluded by saying “of course I would not want anything for this [training)] except the satisfaction of seeing Williamsburg with an authentic and proper fife and drum corps.”

In a letter dated September 27, 1959, Colonial Williamsburg thanked Carroll for his offer but advised him the program of regular militia musters would end in October and concluded with “we could not impose on your kindness at this time.  We will certainly keep this offer in mind and if you feel you can help us next year then we will get in touch with you.” That statement would prove prophetic. Within months, Carroll was at the center of creating the Old Guard Corps in the spring of 1960 and thereafter training the CW Corps.

Upon receipt of the activation orders for the Old Guard Corps in late February, 1960, 1LT Watson and Carroll needed to find musicians.  Carroll recalls, “1LT Watson said we can’t go with regular musicians because it would take too long because they would have to go through the Navy Music School.  We were in a hurry because they wanted us to perform at a ceremony on May 1^st, less than three months away.  We were told that we could get anybody from The Military District of Washington.  In other words, we could shanghai them, but we decided that would not work. Instead, we decided to ask people to join, because only if they wanted to do this, would it work.  So word went out. We advertised that the unit would restore the old fife, drum and bugle to the Army, would be wearing 18^th Century clothing and would be playing obsolete instruments.  And it worked. We ended up with 80 names.”

On March 24, 1960, the Old Guard Corps filed its first morning report, showing 16 men accounted for.  By late April the number had grown to 34.  Of the original 34 members only eight had ever played a musical instrument.  The task of training the recruits, who were infantrymen, was assigned to three members of The U.S. Army Band: SP5 Robert Sheppard was assigned the fifes; SP4 Roland Lauziere was assigned the bugles; and SP5 George Carroll was assigned the drums and as technical advisor on music and drill.  In just two months they had the Old Guard Corps ready to perform. Carroll received the Army Commendation Medal for his work in creating the Old Guard Corps.

Soon after its activation, the Old Guard Corps ordered a set of hand-made wooden, rope tensioned drums from Charles “Buck” Soistman.  These drums were the same “Grand Republic” model drums Sanford A. “Gus” Moeller had been making. Moeller was a master craftsman of handmade drums. The name was coined by Moeller to describe his drums that were 17 inches wide at the head and 21 or 22 inches long, which accurately replicate 18^th Century drums. These drums, also known as “long” or “field” drums, produce a deep drum beat that can be heard for miles, a necessity on 18^th Century battlefields because the drums were used to convey commands to the troops. Moeller also was a passionate advocate and teacher of rudimental drumming who once marched while drumming 245 miles from his home in Mt. Vernon, New York, to Boston to demonstrate the open rudimental drumming style.

Carroll knew Soistman because in 1959 The U.S. Army Band had ordered a set of drums from Moeller, but he had become ill so Soistman had to finish the set.  Carroll had picked up the drums from Soistman’s drum shop, The Rolling Drum Shop, in Middle River, a suburb of Baltimore, Maryland. While the Old Guard Corps’ drums were being made, Soistman loaned drums to the Old Guard Corps including several painted with a shield that had red and white stripes below a field of white stars on a blue background. These drums also were loaned to the CW Corps later in 1960 and they show up in the earliest photos of both corps.  

Colonel Richard M. Lee, the commanding officer of the 3^rd U.S. Infantry, was friends with Carlise Humelsine, the President of Colonial Williamsburg.  In May of 1960, COL Lee contacted Humelsine to ask for a meeting between Colonial Williamsburg and 1LT Watson and Carroll.  The purpose of the meeting was to seek aid from Colonial Williamsburg in developing the Old Guard Corps. Colonial Williamsburg, with its extensive research into the colonial period, could be a resource for the Old Guard Corps.  Mr. Humelsine asked Geiger, the supervisor of the CW Corps and the natural choice, to attend the meeting on behalf of Colonial Williamsburg.

On May 12, 1960, the meeting took place in Williamsburg.  Among other things, the Old Guard Corps made a request to borrow four original Brown Bess Muskets to be used on their first trip to a New England fife and drum muster that July. The CW Militia had been firing original muskets from its collection of firearms on display in the Powder Magazine, the restored arsenal of colonial Virginia. To help debut the new unit nationally, the Old Guard Corps had chosen to attend the Deep River Ancient Muster, in Deep River, Connecticut, the oldest and largest muster of Ancients in the country.

In a memorandum written the next day, Geiger wrote that he had met with “Lieutenant Henry G. Watson and Sergeant (sic) George P. Carroll…who were in Williamsburg to seek our aid in developing their fife and drum corps.”  The misnomer to “Sergeant” Carroll found its way into correspondence, press releases and newspaper articles in Williamsburg for years. Geiger gave LT Watson and Carroll advice on how to procure uniforms and they discussed “problems of mutual interest.” The Old Guard Corps did not start out wearing the authentic colonial uniform of the unit. For the early performances they wore the Army tropical worsted or the “Class-A” green uniform. Soon thereafter, they were able to borrow colonial uniforms, which they wore until their custom made authentic dress “regimental” uniforms were procured later that summer.

Just as important as the discussions, Geiger reported that he was “tremendously impressed with Sergeant Carroll’s knowledge of fife and drum music of this period.  He is without a doubt the best informed person in this area that I have met.” Geiger also reported that Carroll had “prepared a book, in draft form, on the music of this period, with fife and drum parts written for B-flat wooden fifes and wooden shelled rope-tied drums.”

At the May meeting Carroll renewed his offer to help train the CW Corps.  Although they had been performing for over a year with the CW Militia for visitors at weekly militia musters and at special events in Williamsburg, they had received no formal training in colonial music and rudimental drumming.  Geiger knew the CW Corps needed professional training to survive and he saw in Carroll the source of that training. He predicted “I am confident that his [Carroll’s] instructions would result in a high degree of authenticity which we presently do not have.”   Within months Geiger’s prediction became true.

The final topic discussed at the May meeting involved future joint performances to showcase the two upstart corps.  Geiger reported that “both Lieutenant Watson and Sergeant Carroll are anxious to bring this 3^rd Infantry group to Williamsburg.”  Colonial Williamsburg already was planning a special “Colonial Militia Muster” in November for the national meeting of the Associated Press Managing Editors.  Geiger immediately recognized this muster would be perfect for a visit by the Old Guard Corps. He concluded his memorandum by stating, “the 3^rd Infantry group will be ready by the time of the meeting of the AP Managing Editors…I strongly urge that we consider them for this program.”

It appears both Geiger and the Old Guard Corps recognized the numerous benefits of cooperation between their organizations.  Not only could they share research and advice but, as with any upstart endeavor, both needed to prove their worth with performances that would impress their audiences and the decision-makers in their chains of command. 

In the spring of 1960, the futures of both corps were not certain. The young CW Corps fifers and drummers were self taught and had a repertoire of only a handful of tunes and no authentic rudimental drum beatings. They had successfully joined the CW Militia with its full schedule of militia musters and special events, which had delighted visitors to the restored colonial capital, but they were far from the unit envisioned by Geiger and Colonial Williamsburg.  The mission of Colonial Williamsburg to accurately portray the past eventually would require the CW Corps to improve.  In addition, six of the first generation members of the unit would graduate from high school in 1961, thus requiring the corps to replenish its ranks. 

The Old Guard Corps faced similar concerns.  The corps was provisional, having been activated only on orders from MG Gailey. It was created using soldiers from within The Old Guard at Ft. Myer. As such, the soldier musicians remained on the rolls of their originally assigned Old Guard companies, being detached for duty to the fife and drum corps. To survive, the Old Guard Corps needed to earn its place. The music and drill would have to meet the highest standards, and the scrutiny of several critical audiences including other units in The Old Guard, the Pentagon and the U.S. Army itself.  Even if the required proficiency was achieved, the Old Guard Corps, being the first unit of its kind and a novelty, needed to be accepted by the U.S. Army.

The key for both corps in 1960 would be to learn the authentic music and drill and then to demonstrate their skills with their performances.  Also, obtaining recognition from the national fife and drum community would validate their achievements. Such recognition could come from attendance at fife and drum musters, the traditional and unique gatherings of fife and drum units.  Thus, it is no surprise the Old Guard Corps attended the 1960 Deep River Ancient Muster, the premier gathering of ancient fifing and drumming in America, and the CW Corps attended the 1961 Deep River Ancient Muster.  

The importance of such performances also was evident at the first meeting of the two units in May, at which the possibility of the Old Guard Corps attending a special muster in Williamsburg later that year was discussed.  Both organizations recognized the publicity that would come from attendance at such events.

The May 12, 1960, meeting in Williamsburg was a huge success and galvanized the relationship between the Old Guard Corps (through Carroll) and the CW Corps (through Geiger).  The meeting resulted in accelerated contacts between the organizations and the continuing exchange of information and advice. Geiger and Carroll developed a close working relationship and became friends sharing their mutual passion for historical accuracy. 

Soon after the May meeting, arrangements were made for the Old Guard Corps to receive training from the CW Militia on the Von Steuben Manual of Arms for the Brown Bess muskets they were planning to take to Deep River. A contingent of Old Guard Corps members spent several days in Williamsburg for the training. Curiously, they were quartered at the Coast Guard Station in Yorktown, Virginia. If they thought the training would be easy, they very likely were surprised. The Captain of the CW Militia was Lloyd “Nick” Payne, a former U.S. Marine Corps drill sergeant and combat veteran. 

On June 15, 1960, Geiger sent to Carroll “…information you requested on the   drum beats. The source of this information is the MILITARY GUIDE 1776.” The Old Guard Corps was learning the various colonial duty calls and was planning to make them part of their performance at the Deep River Muster in July.  Geiger also advised Carroll that the request for a loan of four muskets for the Old Guard Corps’ trip to Deep River had been sent to the Colonial Williamsburg Collections Department for approval, which approval was granted a short time later.

On July 8, 1960, Carroll and several members of the Old Guard Corps began instructing the CW Corps in Williamsburg.   For the next several months Carroll continued to make weekend trips to Williamsburg to train the CW Corps.  The CW fifers and drummers were trained exactly as the Old Guard Corps members were being trained, including a heavy dose of military discipline that understandably was met by the teenagers with some resistance.  Carroll’s research into colonial fife tunes and drum beatings had produced a body of music that became the repertoires of both corps. His music and insistence on authenticity of drill, music and rudimental drumming was the common mold from which both corps were formed.

On July 16, 1960, the Old Guard Corps attended the Deep River Ancient Muster.   Their performance showcased the authentic music and rudimental drumming the Ancients had been promoting. The Old Guard Corps also put on a demonstration of the manual of arms using duty calls to fire the original Brown Bess muskets borrowed from Colonial Williamsburg. The muskets had been flown from Williamsburg to Ft. Myer on an Army helicopter and they were returned the same way. The Old Guard Corps’ Deep River performance was a total success and received the acclaim and recognition of the Ancients.  A contingent of the Continental Boys Fife and Drum Corps also attended the muster and received praise for their performance.  

A week later, on July 23, 1960, these two corps traveled to Williamsburg to perform at a ceremony marking the first reading in 1776 of the Declaration of Independence in the colonial capital.  It was the first performance in Williamsburg of the Old Guard Corps, just five months to the day after its activation.

Sometime in the summer Colonial Williamsburg ordered its first two snare drums from Soistman adorned with a “GR” cipher on a red background.  These were the same “Grand Republic” models just purchased by the Old Guard Corps. The deep sound of the rudimental drum beatings played on these drums gave the CW Corps and Old Guard Corps a commanding presence whenever they performed.  Soistman also loaned two “shield” drums to the CW Corps. These were two of the same drums loaned to the Old Guard Corps a few months earlier. The CW Corps played these drums into 1961, when they were replaced by two more new Soistman “GR” drums ordered by Colonial Williamsburg.

The training of the CW fifers and drummers progressed rapidly and, at Carroll’s suggestion, Geiger decided to enter the CW Corps in the Southern Atlantic Regional Fife and Drum Muster in Arlington, Virginia, scheduled for November 5, 1960.   It was hoped the winning of medals at this muster would provide valuable publicity for the unit that had improved so well under Carroll’s instruction. In numerous letters and memoranda, Geiger and others in Colonial Williamsburg recognized Carroll’s responsibility for the improvement of the CW Corps.

In 1960, Carlisle Humelsine, the President of Colonial Williamsburg, also was friends with Wilbur M. Brucker, the Secretary of the Army. Humelsine knew Secretary Brucker when Humelsine worked in the State Department prior to accepting the presidency of Colonial Williamsburg.  On September 9, 1960, Humelsine invited Secretary Brucker to a “special eighteenth-century Militia ceremony in Williamsburg” to honor him.  Although Secretary Brucker could not attend, the CW Corps most certainly would have performed at the muster and it is very likely the Old Guard Corps would have been invited to perform as well.

In a letter dated September 14, 1960, Geiger and his family were invited by Col. Lee to attend the Organizational Day Ceremonies of The Old Guard on September 21, 1960.   Geiger could not attend and he so advised Col. Lee in a letter dated September 15, 1960.  In the letter Geiger also advised Col. Lee that The Old Guard could borrow for the second time “four 39-inch Brown Bess Muskets for this performance.”  

Colonial Williamsburg also loaned two spontoons to The Old Guard for the Organizational Day ceremonies.  One of these very likely was used by the Drum Major of the Old Guard Corps. To this day the Drum Major of the Old Guard Corps uses a spontoon, rather than the traditional mace, to issue silent orders to the unit.  In 1961 Colonial Williamsburg gave a spontoon to the Old Guard Corps. 

In the September 14^th letter, Geiger also formally asked if the Old Guard Corps could perform at the November 16^th special muster for the Associated Press Managing Editors, which performance had been first raised back in May.  With a bit of bravado Geiger asked that the Old Guard Corps bring only its fifes and drums, stating “we do not feel the bugles would be appropriate for this program.”

Although Geiger could not attend the September 21^st Organizational Day ceremonies, he was invited to bring members of the CW Corps to see a performance of the Old Guard Corps on September 24, 1960.  Geiger and five members of the CW Corps made the trip, which was the first visit by the CW Corps to the Old Guard Corps, and may have been the first official visit by any fife and drum corps to the Old Guard Corps.

On October 19, 1960, the Old Guard Corps and the CW Corps actually performed together at the Yorktown Day ceremonies in Yorktown, Virginia, commemorating the surrender of the British on that day in 1781. A photograph shows members of the CW Corps marching and playing in the ranks with the Old Guard Corps. This was the second joint appearance of the two corps in 1960.

On November 5, 1960, the two corps appeared together for the third time at the Southern Atlantic Regional Muster in Arlington, Virginia. The 1960 muster saw several New England corps attend, including the Mt. Vernon (N.Y.) Colonial Greens, in which Moeller had been a member. 

Another member of the Colonial Greens, who attended the Arlington muster, was Patrick (“Pat”) Cooperman. Cooperman was a drummer and part time wood turner who made drumsticks that he sold at musters. Carroll had met Cooperman at a New England muster in 1959 and had purchased some drumsticks for the Continental Boys Fife and Drum Corps. Within a short time Carroll and Cooperman became friends. In the years to come Cooperman expanded into making fifes and hand made wooden, rope tensioned drums in the tradition of Moeller and Soistman. Cooperman’s company became a supplier of fifes, drums and drumsticks for both the CW Corps and the Old Guard Corps, and remains so today.  

While at the Arlington muster it is quite likely the CW Corps and the Old Guard Corps rehearsed for the November special muster in Williamsburg.  At the Arlington muster the CW Corps won numerous medals that received the press coverage and support in Williamsburg that Geiger had hoped for.

Just 11 days later, on November 16^th, the CW Corps and the Old Guard Corps performed together for the second time at the “Colonial Militia Muster” in Williamsburg for the Associated Press Managing Editors, which first had been discussed at the May 12th meeting.  It was the two units’ fourth joint appearance in four months. This muster was important to both corps because of the press coverage that would result. At the time this muster was the biggest such event ever staged by Colonial Williamsburg. A press release publicizing the muster said “some forty costumed fifers and drummers will provide authentic military music while thirty militia men fire vollies from their 200-year-old Brown Bess muskets in a variety of formations.”  The “massed fifers and drummers” of the two corps played Three Cheers, God Save Great Washington, and On the Road to Boston.  The muster was a huge success and further solidified the close relationship of the two corps.  

Geiger invited Carroll to visit Williamsburg over the 1960 Christmas holidays to perform with the CW Corps.  By that time, at Carroll’s suggestion Geiger had implemented a rank and point system for the CW Corps, which was growing from a fledging group to a proficient and disciplined unit.  Within six months Geiger offered Carroll the position of Drum Major of the CW Corps and in June of 1961 Carroll left the Army and moved to Williamsburg. In July of 1961, the CW Corps attended the Deep River Ancient Muster and received the same acclaim the Old Guard Corps had received a year earlier.

During the next several years, contacts between the two units continued.  In 1962, Carroll hired Gene Crane, a fifer in the Old Guard Corps, to be the CW Corps’ fife instructor.  Crane was one of the Old Guard Corps members who trained the CW Corps in July of 1960. In 1966, Carroll hired George Kusel, also a fifer in the Old Guard Corps, as the fife instructor.  

The CW Corps also gave to the U.S. Military in the form of alumni who served on active duty.  Beginning in the mid 1960’s, CW Corps graduates began enlisting in the U.S. Military and nine of the “first generation” served in the U.S. Military including eight who served in Vietnam: a Seabee; an Army helicopter pilot; an Army spotter pilot (forward air control); an Army forward observer; an Army intelligence officer; an Air Force air defense officer; and an Army combat engineer; and an Army Green Beret with the Special Forces, Talmadge Alphin, who was awarded the Bronze Star and who died in combat in 1968.   Over the years dozens of CW Corps alumni have served in the U.S. Military, including several who have served in the Old Guard Corps. In 2018, four members of the Old Guard Corps, Sergeant Major William E. White, Jr., Sergeant First Class William Parks, Staff Sergeant John Parks, and Staff Sergeant Andrew Owens are alumni of the CW Corps.

In 1966 Colonial Williamsburg hosted its first Field Musick Day, a fife and drum corps muster for units from around the country.  The Old Guard Corps had a conflict but still sent a fifer and drummer.  In 1967, 1968 and 1969, the Old Guard Corps sent a full corps to the Colonial Williamsburg Field Music Days.

In April of 1967, the CW Corps joined the Old Guard Corps, the United States Marine Band and the U.S. Air Force Pipe Band for a “Great Tattoo” presented by the Smithsonian Institution on the Mall in Washington, D.C.  Carroll was largely responsible for preparing the detailed operations plan for the Tattoo. Included in the program were several performances by “massed fifes and drums,” during which the CW Corps and the Old Guard Corps performed and marched together.

Earlier in the day the CW Corps had visited Ft. Myer for a rehearsal and lunch.   Rehearsal was necessary to prepare for the combined performances during the Tattoo that included playing The Harriott, The Road to Boston, and a drum solo, The Downfall of Paris.  The two corps also practiced a series of combined marching maneuvers on the Ft. Myer parade grounds.  This was the CW Corps’ first appearance on Summerall Field. The Tattoo was a huge success and marked a milestone for the CW Corps that had progressed to be able to play as an equal with the premier musical units in the U.S. Military.            

During the 1960’s the CW Corps and the Old Guard Corps made significant contributions to the return of the ancient style of fifing and drumming in America. After World War II fifing and drumming in America had begun a comeback. The number of fife and drum corps in New England and around the country increased.  Many of the corps made progress toward the ancient style. Efforts were made to play more authentic music and rudimental drumming in particular, metal drums were replaced with hand made wooden, rope tensioned drums, and uniforms more accurately portrayed period or actual colonial units. But progress was slow and resources were limited, and the Ancients had to compete with modern corps and styles. To some degree, the ancient style was being defined and promoted by leaders and corps as they appeared at fife and drum musters that included competitions.

By the summer of 1961 the existence of the CW Corps and the Old Guard Corps had become known to the fife and drum community, as both units had appeared at the Deep River Ancient Muster, as well as other events.  The authenticity and skill of both units in the ancient style delighted and, to some degree, awakened the ancient fifing and drumming community. The emerging efforts by fife and drum corps to return to the ancient style were aided by the examples provided by these two corps.

In 1961, Ed Olsen wrote an article that best summarizes the impact of the CW Corps and the Old Guard Corps, as follows:

Too much can not be said about the fantastic developments in the State of Virginia – nor can too many laurels be directed toward the man responsible for the Drum Corps Revolution therein.

While a member of the U.S. Army Band, George Carroll chanced to witness a demonstration; given by the Lancraft FD Corps of New Haven, Conn.; and realized that this was the type of military musical aggregation for which he had always been searching.  Figuring importantly in the organization of the 3^rd Infantry – Old Guard FD Corps, he was released to this unit, on detached service, and soon produced amazing results.  The newly organized Corps was an outstanding success at the 1960 Deep River Ancient Muster and astounded Corpsmen and spectators alike, with a never forgotten exhibition of Revolutionary War calls and selections, unheard for years.  The Continental Boys of Arlington, that joined the Old Guard, during the show, was equally impressive with its strictly veracious approach. Mr. Carroll’s current charge – The Colonial Williamsburg Militia FD – is, if anything, the most uncompromisingly authentic of the lot.  It is this unswerving devotion to historical accuracy that marks our brethren from the Old Dominion and which might, one day, topple the State of Connecticut from its long uncontested position of dominance. Rarely, if ever, have such recent additions to the ranks of time honored institutions, been the cause for so many cases of reflection and soul-searching.

The purely authentic display, more or less neglected by the Ancients to date, may well hold the key to our future.  If so – blame, or thank, New England’s old Revolutionary War co-conspirator — Virginia.

1961 article by Ed Olsen

Over the years both organizations have provided advice and assistance to existing and new fife and drum corps around the country. Both units have hosted workshops for the fife and drum community. Records and CD’s cut by both units have added to the country’s historic music heritage. 

Significantly, both corps have performed for more people and appeared in more parades and ceremonies than any other fife and drum corps in the country, thereby exposing historic fife and drum music to millions of Americans. No other fife and drum corps in the country can match these achievements.

In 2010, the two corps hosted each other at musical events. On May 14-15, 2010, the Old Guard Corps participated in the Colonial Williamsburg Drummers Call weekend, an annual muster in Williamsburg of fife and drum corps from around the country. On June 19, 2010, the CW Corps performed in the Old Guard Corps’ 50^th anniversary Tattoo at Ft. Myer, Virginia. In addition, on July 16-17, 2010, the Colonial Williamsburg Alumni Corps and the Old Guard Corps performed together at the Deep River Ancient Muster in Deep River, Connecticut, which joint performance included a tribute to George P. Carroll. 

For the past 60 years the CW Corps and the Old Guard Corps have been two of America’s preeminent fife and drum corps.  Both units remain preeminent in American fifing and drumming. The two organizations share a common legacy and remain closely connected to this day.

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© William H. Casterline, Jr. 2018

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All references to “Colonial Williamsburg Archives” refer to materials in the Colonial Williamsburg Archives and contained in the General Correspondence folders, 1955-1974, “Colonial Military Unit.”