Military Bands

Several generations of the Chesnut family served in the U.S. military and played music for bands as part of their service and later as veterans. David Chesnut II was a World War I veteran who marched in parades, directed local military exercises, and served as a local lamplighter and air raid warden. Band Arrangements of Army Chapel Hymns, published by the U.S. Army in 1944, included arrangements for hymns that could be used for holidays, funerals, and Catholic, Jewish, and Protestant services. This copy could have been given to him by his son Robert, who served in the U.S. Army during World War II.