Time Well Spent in the Scarlet Rebels Drum and Bugle Corps

James Wood High School was established in 1950 on Amherst Street as the high school for Frederick County, Virginia.  It combined the students of five other high schools in the county: Gainesboro, Gore, Stonewall, Stephens City, and Middletown.  After Stephens City High School closed in 1950, with students transferred to James Wood, teenagers had few sponsored organizations to help celebrate their identities as Stephens City residents.

Harold Preston Teets, a 1935 graduate of Handley High School, Army Veteran, and entrepreneur, who built a home in Stephens City on Virginia State Route 277 in 1940, and who worked for a furniture manufacturer in Winchester.  Mr. Teets built the Gulf Service Station in Stephens City on Main Street in 1952 which was later sold to John D Glover in Winchester.

Harold Preston Teets, Scarlet Rebels Drum and Bugle Corps, Director, circa 1955.  Courtesy Bill Ewing.

Teets established and was Scout Master of Troop 6 from 1944-49.  In 1944, Rock Enon Springs Hotel was demolished and the property sold to the Boy Scouts of America in 1945.  Teets borrowed a truck and hauled salvaged brick and stone from the old resort hotel to Stephens City.  A group of scout leaders and men from Trinity Lutheran Church then used the material to build the original scout cabin behind the Stephens City fire house sometime in the late 1940s.  According to Stephens City resident and former Town Councilman Bill Ewing, after the first scout cabin was demolished, the current scout cabin was built near the town ball field in 1954-55, using the donated materials from the resort and donations of stone from the M J Grove Lime Company.

In 1953, Teets’ greatest joy was the founding and direction of the Stephens City Scarlet Rebels Drum and Bugle Corps. Both boys and girls were invited to join the Scarlet Rebels.  Teets believed establishing the Scarlet Rebels could help young people gain self-confidence and self-esteem.  He just needed to channel their energy, enthusiasm, and creativity to truly have something important to offer society.  Teets was ahead of his Time, and he knew that by involving young people in a community organization, he could carefully develop their potential to become thoughtful, capable leaders in society.  The Stephens City residents enthusiastically accepted Harold Teets’ vision for the town youth.

Stephens City Scarlet Rebels Drum and Bugle Corps stand in front of the Town Fire House on Mulberry Street after the Apple Blossom Festival in 1955.  Note the one bay door fire house which was built in 1941.  Drum Major Herbert Painter on far left and Band Director Harold Teets on far right.  Around 1963, a second door was added to the original building to allow for two fire trucks, and later saw its size triple by 1976 when two additional bays were built on the north side.  Courtesy Stone House Foundation, Stephens City, VA.

According to an article in the Winchester Star, “Harold Teets: Stephens City’s Leader of the Band,” by Crystal Detamore, dated March 4, 1997, Teets and his wife Marjorie were a tight team when it came to establishing the Drum and Bugle Corps.  There was little money available at the time, so after deciding on the corps colors of crimson and white, Marjorie and other ladies of the community sewed red braid on the white trousers donated by the Stephens City Fire Company.  Harold and Marjorie bought red woolen material to make short, “Eisenhower Style” band jackets, which were trimmed with gold buttons by the parents of the band members.  Drum majorette uniforms were sewn out of red corduroy.  The Rouss Drum and Bugle Corps in Winchester donated a dozen used bugles and a bass drum.  Five used snare drums were purchased from G&M Music Center in Winchester.

Teets was instrumental in getting the Scarlet Rebels to perform in competitions beyond the Shenandoah Valley.  He enlisted L&M Bus Lines owned, and operated by Pete Lafollette to transport the Corps (35-40 students) to events throughout Central Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia, Washington DC, and Pennsylvania.  Later, Teets purchased a used school bus from an Army surplus store in Pennsylvania.  The old bus was painted white with Scarlet Rebels painted red on each side.  The Scarlet Rebels first marched in a Stephens City fireman’s parade in April, 1953.  The Rebels marched in their first Apple Blossom Parade in spring of 1954.

Winchester resident, Charles Pitcock was born in 1938 and raised in Stephens City.  Some of his fondest memories are of his mentor Harold Teets who tutored Charles in community service, leadership, and preparation for useful citizenship.

Charles Pitcock received a first-place trophy for best appearing drum major at the 1957 Shenandoah Apple Blossom Grand Feature Parade.  Courtesy Charles Pitcock.

Pitcock graduated from James Woods High School in 1956, attended Richmond Professional Institute (now Virginia Commonwealth University) in 1957, enlisted in the US Air Force, Strategic Air Command four years, served as a Winchester Police Officer for 27 years (1963 to 1990), later at Winchester Medical Center Security and lastly employed as a caretaker on several farms in Clarke County, retiring in 2006.   Looking back on his long life, he will always remember the time well spent in the Stephens City Scarlet Rebels Drum and Bugle Corps.

Teets played both the trumpet and saxophone and wanted to share his love of music with the Stephens City youth.  He was well-liked and respected by both middle and high school students.  “Teets was an Army Veteran with a penchant for discipline and he made the Scarlet Rebels practice two hours each week, usually on Wednesday or Thursday.  The first hour was strictly learning to march correctly and the second hour he allowed the drum and bugle corps to play their instruments,” said Pitcock.  Pitcock began playing the snare drum in 1955, transitioned to base drum in 1956, and became an award-winning drum major in 1957.

The Scarlet Rebels Drum and Bugle Corps, color guard and majorettes, marching Loudoun Street in the Apple Blossom Grand Feature Parade in 1958.  Courtesy Stone House Foundation, Stephens City, VA

The Scarlet Rebels were sponsored by the Stephens City Fire Company, practiced on the fire department grounds, and stored their equipment in the fire house.  Marketed by Teets, the fire company sponsored numerous fund raisers for the Rebels and solicited most of the monies from the Stephens City community who took great pride in the Rebels activity and success.  Pitcock said the band members mothers made the first uniform jackets and the signature drum and bugle corps banner.  The National Guard donated the helmets and drill team replica rifles, and the Rebels painted them white.  Pitcock said he made the Scarlet Rebel flag.  Later, Harold and Majorie could afford to purchase new drum major and majorette uniforms.

Two individuals played an important role in the early success of the Scarlet Rebels Drum and Bugle Corps.  Teets recruited Shirley Altizer to train and lead the majorettes.  Altizer had extensive experience and training performing as a majorette with a marching organization in Winchester.   Teets also convinced Herbert Painter to become the first Drum Major.  Painter just had natural leadership abilities. The synergy of Altizer and Painter assisted Teets immensely with elevating the Rebels to the upper echelon of the marching ensembles for student musicians and performers.

There were bake sales, rummage sales, fire house dinners, and auctions.  Other monies were raised with membership dues, and plenty of prize money from a heavy participation schedule each spring and summer.  There was always just enough money to pay the bills.

South Washington Street, 1958 Apple Blossom Grand Feature Parade, Charles Gossard drum major.  Courtesy Charles Pitcock.

“The Scarlet Rebels would take first place 50% of the time and place 1^st, 2^nd, or 3^rd at least 70% of the time during my three years of participation.  We received a great deal of recognition at county fairs, parades, and other competitions throughout the Shenandoah Valley because of our disciplined marching and strong brass and percussion performance.  Our Color Guard presenting flags, and six to eight majorettes spinning batons, always provided a great visual effect,” said Pitcock.  Harold and Marjorie Teets’s two daughters, Diana, and Melanie both participated as majorettes.

On one Labor Day weekend, the Drum and Bugle corps marched in two parades (morning and afternoon) in Greenbelt Md. winning first prize and Bethesda, Md. winning second prize.  These Rebels were well taught, disciplined, and focused on winning prizes.  In 1954, the band won $325 in prize money.

In the years the Scarlet Rebels Drum and Bugle Corps marched in the Apple Blossom parades, the group distinguished themselves several times and won two first place prizes for their overall performances.  The year Charles Pitcock was a drum major for the Scarlet Rebels, he received a first-place trophy for best appearing drum major at the 1957 Shenandoah Apple Blossom Grand Feature Parade.  “I won because of my good military demeanor and high strutting” Pitcock said.

Marty Fravel, younger brother of Stephens City historian, Linden Fravel, recently provided some additional insight.  “About 1970, as a member of Boy Scout Troop 6, the older guys, Oliver “Butch” Orndorff and Henry Snyder, among others, were cleaning out the storage area below the bench seats in the [Stephens City] scout cabin.  Among the loot were a few of the heavy overcoats from the Scarlet Rebels.  They were evidently recycled VPI or VMI cadet overcoats. Regarding the heavy overcoats, I am not sure why they needed them.  Possibly they [Scarlet Rebels] did participate in winter events too.  I am just guessing that they became available and Harold Teets or whoever, took advantage of adding them to the cause.  They were the long wool overcoats with the reversible cape that was red when reversed. They were “flashy” in appearance. Double breasted if I recall.”   The overcoats have been lost to time.

Night life at the Stephens City Recreation Center circa 1958.  L/R Doug Driver, Gary Strickler and Charles Gossard. Doug Driver would remain in the Stephens City area, Gary Strickler would relocate to Boston, and Charles Gossard would relocate to Ruxton, a north Baltimore community. Courtesy Charles Pitcock.

Former Stephens City Mayor Ray Ewing (1994-2010) remembers a town restaurant in the basement of the old bank on Main Street (now Black Shutter Antiques).  “Known as the Valley Inn, it was a small restaurant (sandwich type) owned and operated by the Adams family who lived in apartments on the top floor,” said Ewing.  After the Valley Inn closed, in the middle 1950s, Teets built a teen recreation center there.  Teets was a skilled carpenter and encouraged Pitcock and other teens to assist him with the build-out, constructing booths, tables, and counters to make the canteen very comfortable and an unmistakable success into the 1960s.

The Teets family relocated to Annandale Va. in 1960 because Harold accepted a job with the postal service.  Ewing remembers the times then. “I was president to the Fire Company and we could not find someone to replace him [Teets].  A concerted effort was made to run it [Scarlet Rebels] with volunteers, but that just would not work, so the unit had to be dissolved in the early 1960s,” Ewing said.  Mr. Harold Preston Teets died August 1, 1981.  When his wife, Marjorie Huffman Teets died in April, 2009, her obituary cited, “She was most proud of her association with the Stephens City Scarlet Rebels Drum and Bugle Corps, which her husband directed in the 1950’s.”  Harold Teets is remembered by many older residents as a champion for Stephens City youth and spent many hours and personal expense providing insightful leadership and productive activities for the students in town.

Charles Pitcock began painting in 1956.  He drew illustrations and charts while in the Air Force.  As a Winchester City Police Officer, he did composite drawings for the department.  Pitcock has displayed his art work at local craft shows (Apple Blossom, Apple Harvest, and Hobert Park) where he exhibits and sells his wildlife and nature paintings.  Pitcock has a banner of an Eagle hanging at the Loudoun Street Pedestrian Mall in Old Winchester which received first place at the recent Navy Federal Credit Union Veteran Art Show.

The Scarlet Rebels skyrocketed to the top of the local parade and festival scene, but only lasted a short ten-years, leaving us with another fascinating Shenandoah Valley memory.