Handbook N-P - Fulton County Public Library

Ol
manuscript, to the music that this band played when they passed President Lincoln at the
reviewing stand.
“Secondly: Another uncle, Lewis M. Spotts, who was a First Sergeant and later
Lieutenant, returned to Rochester after the war and played baritone in the band.
“Thirdly: My father, Levi S. Emrick, was the manager of the band for many years. He
played clarinet and baritone.
“Fourthly: As the youngest member of the original Citizen’s Band, I have maitained life
contacts with them for many years. I wish I might talk about each member and tell of their
unselfish service to their community, but space and time does no permit.
“For the past ten years, Val, I have been collecting old instruments which we intend to
place in a case, with proper identification not only to perpetuate the names of the pioneers in band
music in this section of the country, but also for future generations to see the types and models of
instruments used in the past.
“Back in the 70’s several members of the Citizen’s Band puchased instruments from the
Qimby Bros. of Boston, which were considered the best make of that period.
“A number of the relatives and friends of these members have presented us with these
instruments, so we have about all of them at present. Of course we have a number from other
localities but can acknowledge the following from Rochester:
“A silver valve trombone, played by Ed Zook and presented by Vena (Zook) Shanks, his
daughter.
“A silver baritone, played by Levi S. Emrick and presented by Viv Essick.
“A silver solo alto with rotary valves, played by Oscar Decker and presented by his son,
Fred Decker.
“Two silver upright altoes, played by Frank Crim and Jack Crim and presented by
Roscoe Pontius.
“A silver trombone model alto, played by William Rannells and resented by Mr. and Mrs.
Percy Hawkins.
“The thought struck me you might like the idea of placing “Old Helicon” in this
Rochester collection along with its old friends with whom it has had a life of association.
“With kind regards to you, I am
“Prof. Paul S. Emrick,
“Director of Smphonic, Military and Navy Bands
“ Purdue University.”
[The News-Sentinel, Tuesday, May 2, 1944]
OLD HELICON
Mack Ashton purchased a Helicon tuba for $115 in Cincinnati in 1868. They called the
tuba “Old Helicon”. In 1877 “Old Helicon” was sent to the factory for repairs, repiping and silver
plating at a cost of $72.10, making a very beautiful horn out of an old one for George Van
Skike/Van Scoik to play. After Van Skike’s death, Sept. 28, 1897, the band purchased “Old
Helicon” for $50 from his sister who was moving away from Rochester. Rannells played it from
then on, stating that it was the best instrument he had ever seen or played. It was repaired again in
1901 with a donation from Albert Bitters, editor of the Rochester Republican. This time it cost
$327 to repair. After the Rochester Citizens Band died out in the 1930’s, “Old Helicon”
disappeared. But a few years later, Viv Essick (1920’s director of Rochester Citizens Band) was
passing one of Lake Manitou’s taverns from “whence some wicked bass from a pseudo Dutch
band came wafting through an open window. Viv investigated and found that he had been right -
those deep vibrant tones were emitting from the golden throat of ‘Old Helicon’. With a minimun
of quibbling, the pet of the Rochester bands was again taken into custody” by Viv Essick and Val
Zimmerman. After Viv died in 1942, an article appeared in the Rochester Sentinel asking for a
home for “Old Helicon”, “one of the finest, rootin’, tootin’, silverplated, gold-lined tuba horns of
the 60’s vintage that ever headed a political parade or dished up the bass for a funeral dirge.”