This page is dedicated to the Accomplishments of
Hiram E. Walker
Biography
Served his Country as a Corporal in WW1
Commander of the Osmond Post Cadets Drum and Bugle Corps 1931 to 1955 (23 Years)
He led us to the VFW Pennsylvania State Championship in 1934, 35, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, and the VFW National Championship in
1948 and 1949
Founder of the National Association of Drum And Bugle Corps (Which included Atlantic City Seahorses, Bracken Cavaliers, Coleflesh-Murray-Page Silver Sabres, East Germantown Indians, Fort Washington Cadets, Horn- Ross-Weiss Cadets, McCall Bluebirds, Nuss-Ohara-Todd Invaders, Osmond Hurricanes, Rising Sun Cadets, Soby Post, Temple Cadets, Tri-Community Cadets, Upper Darby Post 214, West Reading Police Cadets, Yearsley Blackhawks.)
General Chairman of the VFW Pennsylvania Competing Drum and Bugle Corps and Bands Committee.
Member of the VFW National Competing Drum and Bugle Corps and Bands Committee.
Steward of the Raymond T Osmond VFW Post 1692.
Commander of the Raymond T Osmond VFW Post 1692.
Member of the World Drum Corps Hall of Fame
A Friend and Father Figure to us All
Hymie and The Corps 1949
Peggy McGinnis and Hymie Eaton Rapids Michigan 1950
Hymie and his kids
???? Sis Hymie
Bus driver Kitty Cwalino Bob Cwalino Peggy Mcginnis Hymie
Miami, Florida 1949
Hymie Kay Marbach
Hymie & Our National Championship Trophys
A Hymie Walker Story
Submitted by Don Rogerson
A Hymie Walker story. In 52 we went down to this bar at 6th &
Luzerne called Lou & Bills, you might of heard of the place. I was in Bob Dunns
car, and he did not lock the car, as a matter of fact, he left all the windows
open. Well as fate would have it, my horn was in the back seat, and of course it was
stolen. Well, we sat for quite a while thinking of a story to tell Walker. We finally came up with the excuse that I had left it up in the infamous
equipment room on the second floor. Someone had an old brass horn and let me borrow it. At the next practice we all lined up and I stood there with this
brass horn which stuck out like a sore thumb. All of a sudden I heard this loud yell of "wait a minute, wait a minute"
Walker came running down the line and of course stopped directly in front of me and screamed in my face "where's your
horn." When I told him somebody stole it, he let out a "WHAT" that you could have heard in South Philly. Upon seeing
that I was upset, he took me aside and made me explain the situation. He told me to wait in the room (the infamous
coatroom) till he got back. All kinds of strange things were going through my mind of what he was going to do to me. He
came back in with another horn in the case, and explained to me what he was going to do. First he told me the horn was
worth $98.00 and that I would pay every nickle of it back to him. He said first of all give me a $1.00 down-payment and I
said I didn't have a $1.00, could he lend it to me. He stared at me for awhile and said "I don't believe this", and agreed to
lend me the $1.00 and pay him $.50 a week until it was paid off. From that day until I left the Corp years later, the Man
never asked me for a dime. Anyway, he never asked me for any money. Good thing he
didn't, I would have had to borrow that from him also. We were so poor, the poor
wouldn't associate with us. Anyway what a guy, huh ! This man had to get a special spot,
wherever he might be. This summer we went to DCI in Buffalo, wonderful experience.There was a part from
the opening ceremonies where they gathered different horns from all the corps, and played America the beautiful. Well it
was awsome,and all those memories started coming back especially of Hymie and the many good things that he had
done for us. I was a very lucky kid to say the least, also of all the guys that have passed over this
past 50yrs. I looked over at Phyl, and both of us were crying, because without all those folks, none of what we were watching would have
been possible.
D. Rogerson
Some Hymie Walker Storys
Submitted by Pat Roach
I remember that Hymie was always so busy taking care of Corps stuff that he never stopped to eat or think about himself. So when my Mother and Dad were working in the Post Kitchen on Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings, they started looking after him by preparing him dinner every night and making sure he ate.
Another story of Hymie thinking about the Corps all the time is that when he and John Weckerly worked for Blackman's Syrup Co, Hymie would use it as a means of making arrangements for places to stay, places to eat and contest to be in while making his rounds. Unfortunately, I think he spent so much time thinking about his kids, that it eventually led to his marital breakup.
The Great Hurricane - we all loaded up on Watermelons and beer and filled our bathtubs with cold water, ice and beer. Somebody hollered that Hymie was coming - so we hid the beer in the toilet - inside the flush and in the hopper part. He came right in and picked me up off the toilet and took the beer out of the toilet bowl. That was the first time I got thrown out of the Corps. Actually, the many times he threw us out, we never got thrown out - that was just Hymie.
Pat Roach
A Hymie Walker Story
Submitted by Bill Beckmann
In 1952, I was in deep trouble with my mom, I had lost my job and she told me she was making me quit the corps. Hymie took the time to talk to her, and got me a job with The Blackman Syrup Co. where Hymie worked as a salesman. It was a hot tough job, working on the bottle washer, No air conditioning here, unloading and loading trucks throwing around 50 lb sacks of sugar, and loading cartons with four five gallon bottles of fountain syrup. The point is I got to stay in the Corps due to Hymies efforts. This was another one of those things that Hymie did for his kids, that no one ever knew of.
Bill Beckmann
A Hymie Walker Story
Submitted by Stephanie (Smith) Southrey
A Hymie Story submitted by Stephanie. When I was in the Corps, one night I came home with extreme pains. When the doctor arrived, he diagnosed it as severe appendicitis. My Father didn't drive, so Hymie came over and drove me to St. Mary's Hospital downtown at 2:30 in the morning. He stayed there with my Dad until the operation was over and everything was alright. Then he drove my Dad home. What a guy!
Stephanie (Smith) Southrey
A Funny Hymie Walker Story
This is a Hymie Story written to Pat Roach By Lee Wolf
Dear Pat:
In going over some items in my Osmond File I came across your letter requesting
information on the song “There’s a long, long trail, Etc.
The original title of the adapted song was “There’s a long, long trail awinding.” As a corps,
we always were creating lyrics to fit our needs with known songs. Here is the story of the
birth of that song.
Prior to the gray and white color scheme the corp wore Blue and Gold with a white cross
belt. There about twenty brass buttons on the coat, which I think, did not have tails.
These were in bad shape being over twenty years old.
When Hymie Walker bought the uniforms from Penn Treaty, the Gray and White, there
were so many items that something had to be done. Besides the Drums and bugles there
were the tunics, hats and pants. The original tunics required cross belts and buckle to
complete the top half. The pants were another matter.
There were white flannels and gray woolens. Each color came with a contrasting stripe
down the leg. There were two white 5/8th inch stripes on half the gray pants and one
1 1/2inch stripe on the other half. The same system applied for the white flannels except
the stripe color was gray. This was done to make dry cleaning more systematic. White
was summer and gray was winter uniforms.
The tunics were in bad shape but were used. The boys wore gray shackos with an Eagle
on the front. The color guard wore white mountie style felt hats.
So much for background.
As the corps became more of a contender, Hiram ordered new uniforms, drums and hats,
complete with cases for each. I dont remember if we had the GM Flexible busses at that
time but I would surmise so. There was limited space underneath designed for luggage so
it became necessary to have additional means available to haul the drum and hat cases.
So Hymie had a trailer hitch installed on his maroon Oldsmobile and an open stake body
trailer to attach it to.
On this occasion we were in the bus going or returning from a parade. Hymie always
followed the bus dragging that soon to be famous trailer along. Once near the destination,
he would speed up to arrive before the bus to unload the trailer.
As we crossed the Spring Garden Street bridge, he passed the bus and a bump in the road
flipped the hitch which was not properly latched and freed it to make its own route. Luckily
it didn’t go over the side. Hymie unknowingly slowed down to match the bus speed which
was stopping in response to our cries from the back.
That is when the trailer passed Hymie’s car and the look on his face was unforgetable.
That is when the song began to take root.
I have checked around and no one I have talked to remembers any more that I relate here.
There’s an Osmond trailer rolling,
down Spring Garden Street
with all our hats upon it
and the drums for us to beat.
To see the look on Hymies face
as he turned in his seat
to see the trailer passing by
on old Spring Garden street.
The last verse I composed from some partial memories of that event. It went something like that.
And it applies