Something remarkable occurred during the recent annual Winslow Christmas Parade on Route 66 in Winslow, Ariz. — the Santa Fe All-Indian Marching Band reunited after a hiatus of 49 years.
The Arizona Daily Sun reports that the band started in 1923 — several years before U.S. Highway 66 was commissioned — and disbanded in 1963 after not enough highly qualified musicians could be found.
“It was started by three men who were at a picnic in Clear Creek,” explained Rosemary Natseway, 73, who is from the Laguna Pueblo in New Mexico but has lived in Winslow her whole life. “The conductor, I think his name was Charlie, just had a stick and the other two men were shop workers for the Santa Fe Railroad.”
Membership included mostly Santa Fe employees and representatives from as many as 12 Native American tribes. […]
At the peak of the band’s popularity, the group had traveled more than 10,000 miles for performances and even played during President Dwight Eisenhower’s inaugural parade.
The reunion of 24 former members of the marching band, who came from all over the country, was organized by Kenn Evans, a ranger at Homolovi State Park and chairman of the city of Winslow’s Historic Preservation Commission.
An original Santa Fe All-Indian Band banner, with its patches that included the logo of the Santa Fe railroad, was unfurled during the Winslow parade.
Here’s an image of the band marching in downtown Gallup, N.M., in the 1950s. Here’s another image of the band from that time period.
According to the Navajo-Hopi Observer, band members received a tour of La Posada hotel in Winslow and a reception there in the grand ballroom before the parade.
Would be good if this continues and the band doe s amke a comeback and grow
A shame that not enough young people have learned an instrument and wants to get in volved
It’s more than just young people, Doc. The band disbanded nearly 50 years ago. Prospective members even in the band’s last year would be Social Security age by now.
Guess I should have phrased it differently. I meant too bad that young people back then did not see the desire to learn and keep it going
I can only speculate that there either was not a enough interest in the young ones or not enough young ones to learn back then
Maybe it will mean something to some of the young Native Americans to get involved so it does not disband again