Graniteers from Rochester, NH

[Triforce78]

It is quite interesting to find out that there used to be a competing Drum and Bugle Corps in my hometown. What do you know about them?

[ajlisko]

From corpsreps.com:

The Granite State Graniteers, formed in the mid-1950s, was a junior marching and maneuvering corps based in Rochester, New Hampshire. They were an independent corps and competed in the Mayflower State, All American, Yankee, and Northern New England circuits.

The corps’ colors were royal blue, yellow, and gold.

Awards included several individual championships, as well as the New Hampshire State D.A.V. Championship. They also participated at the 1964 New York World‘s Fair and the Kennedy Inaugural Parade in 1961.

The Graniteers sponsored two contests annually, a standstill in March and the New Hampshire Drum Field Contest in August.

They were an active, competitive junior corps through the 1968 season. A high number of age-outs required them to go inactive in 1969. They reorganized in the fall of '69 as an all-age or "senior" corps, and they performed as a parade corps in 1970. In the summer of 1971, they competed again, in the Yankee Circuit, which allowed junior and senior corps to compete with each other. They disbanded for good the following winter, in early 1972.

[Northern Thunder]

According to my files the Graniteers played such music as:

1959--Legion Drummer, Minnesota March, You Are My Sunshine, The Mack's March, There's A Long Long Trail, America

1960--String Of Trumpets, You're A Grand Old Flag, Someday, You Are My Sunshine, When The Saints Go Marching In

1961--Graniteer Theme, This Is My Country, Hi Neighbor, Daybreak, You're A Grand Old Flag, Someday, Barefoot Contessa, America, Great Day,

When The Saints Go Marching In, Me And My Shadow

1962--Pagliacci, Stars And Stripes Forever, Small Hotel, Me And My Shadow, America The Beautiful, You The Night And The Music

1963--I May Be Wrong, Dancing In The Dark, I Believe, Besame Mucho, No Other Love, Sound Of Music, Anywhere I Wander, What A Difference A Day Makes

1964--El Cid, El Capitan, I Believe, Brazil, Sound Of Music, Something Wonderful

1965--Dancing In The Dark, Sofly As I Leave You, El Capitan, Gonna Live Till I Die, Hot Toddy, Satin Doll, Something Wonderful,

Fiddler On The Roof

1966--Johnny One Note, Fiddler On The Roof, Downtown, One Of Those Songs, Softly As I Leave You

1967--One Of Those Songs, What Now My Love, Satin Doll, Fiddler On The Roof, Love Letters

1968--Alabama Jubilee, Sweet Georgia Brown, What Now My Love, Follow Me

1969--Love Letters, One Of Those Songs, What Now My Love

1970--Overture From Tommy, Peace Brother Peace, America, Dudley Do Right, Malaguena, Yesterday, Don't Cha Go Away, Broadway

[reallyoldfrt]

The Graniteers had a very decent little corps in the mid-to-late 1960s. Probably their best season was 1968, when they finished second in the circuit championships. There was quite a lot of dissatisfaction among the ranks over their inability to defeat the all-girl Norwood Debonnaires that year. This may have contributed to the loss of members mentioned above by Ajlisko.

The Debs were quite a good corps, and finishing behind them should really not have been regarded as a failure by any means.

I do remember running into one of the Graniteer's drummers at the VFW Nationals in Philadelphia in 1969 who, during our conversation, mentioned losing to the Debs as a source of frustration for the Graniteers. He was one of the members who'd left after the 1968 season, and traveled many a mile to march with the Casper Troopers in 1969. It was a source of great amusement for him when the Troopers buses pulled into the assembly area for the start of the big parade, and found themselves much admired by the members of the nearby Norwood Debonnaires. The looks on their faces when they recognized him in the Troopers drumline was something he found very gratifying.

Edited March 13, 2014 by reallyoldfrt