Franklin Silver Cornet Band

The first known director was William Bell (@1870), a British immigrant who wrote home that he was directing the town band and "they arn't very good."He became a prominent businessman in Franklin.

Also working in the band in the early 1870's was Fred Boynton of Meadville, PA. He had a long career as a teacher and director of the Northwest Band in that town, and was known to help out with many area bands. The other director of the early 1870's was Perry Black, a signer of the original charter in 1873.

Our least illustrious director was Professor Hoffman (1876). The professor was arrested for vagrancy in Franklin, and claimed to be a musician. He turned out to be a good one, so the band hired him. Unfortunately, he also turned out to be a drunk who hocked band instruments to buy drinks. They fired him and he joined up with the Oil City band, but then he was caught in possession of band instruments trying to sneak out of town by raft. He was banished from the area and, as far as we know, never seen in these parts again.

In the early 1880's the band director was Billy Goss. He was succeeded by Charles Brassington, who led the band until his retirement in 1917.

Bert Smiley (1917-1919) led the band until is dissolution in 1919.

When the band reformed, it was led by Merrill Maitland until 1923. Maitland had served with the band of the 112th Infantry in France during the Great War.

He was followed by J. R. Koockogey, a local musician who had formal training on the flute and a musical family background. In 1927 William Eggbeer became director. His son was to become a regular feature at concerts, drumming and singing.

In 1935, Roy Smith had his first turn at directing, but almost immediately handed his baton over to Charles B. Ackley (1936 -1938). Ackley had been the band director at the Cedar Point Amusement Park in Sandusky, Ohio, and his "Cedar Point March" was popular with local audiences. In 1939, Eggbeer returned to the podium, followed in 1940 by Hiker Kinsley, whose father had been a well-respected school superintendent in Venango County for many years.

In 1943, Roy Wolfe took over. In 1946-7, Hiker again directed, and then in 1948-9, Roy Smith returned to the job, followed by Roy Wolfe in 1950-52. In 1953,Roy Smith took another one year turn before handing the band over to Ray Rossman. Rossman was famous for his wild circus tempos with the band, and stayed in front of the band for most of the 1950's.

In 1960, the band began a collaboration with the Oil City American Legion Band, and directing duties were shared by Roy Smith and Carl Brozeski. Carl is a local musical legend, with a lifetime of gigging that began in 1937 at the age of 14.

In 1964, Harold Pixley became "interim director" of the band. Pix had been the head of instrumental music at Franklin High School since the late 1940's, and began giving the band repertoir some depth and stability. He was also responsible for a new influx of high school players. In 1967 he recruited the new instrumental instructor in Franklin, Edwin W. Frye, as band member and assistant conductor. In 1970, Ed became the #1 baton wielder, and remained in that job until 2000.

Since that time, the band has been directed by Terri S. Wittreich. Terris is a graduate of Franklin High School and Mount Union College; she currently is an instrumetal music instructor in the Oil City school district. She rides her bicycle a long distance every summer, so we know that she is strong and fit enough to keep up the stick-waving for many years to come.