The Brattleboro reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1907-1912, 1911-12-22
OBITUARY.
ALoNZO H. HINES.
Veteran Musician Died at His Green
Street Home Monday Morning

Alon2o Hiram Hines, 70, for over
half century a musician at dances IN
Windham county and the adjoining
counties of New Hampshire and Mas.
sachusetts, died early Monday morning
at his home on Green street of valvular
heart trouble complicated with pneu-
Imonia, He suffered an attack OF heart
trouble Aug. 81, while at work upon
his lawn. and though he recovered SUI
| ticientlv to be about his home and to
come down town during the summer
and fall his health failed perceptihiN
II until he was stricken with pneumonia
I last week. after which his condition pc
came critical and his decline was RAPID
He had not played at n dance since
early in July, though he had made a
number of engagements when ne was
stricken in August.
Mr.. Hines was born in Brattleboro,
Jan. II, 1899, the son of Isaac and
Hannah (Joy) Hines. Isaac Hines liNed
in the house on Green street now known
as the Samuel S. Hunt house and later
built the house in which his son had
lived the greater part of his me- ne
was the carpenter who built most OF
the houses at the west end Of Green
street and in the nearby, nelghborhoo99!9
"A
schools of Brattleboro and went to lie,
land & Gray seminary in Townshend
from which institution he was gradu-
ated. Upon finishing his studies he en-,
tered the employ of his father and
learned the trade of a carpenter Whlch
he followed for number of years until
he decided to devote his entire time to
orchestral work. His early instruction
on the piano was received from rrol'
&c. r. Schuster, his lessons with tins ia,
nous musician extending over several
years. Mr. Hines was married Dec. .
1860. to Abigail Chamberlain of Town
shend who died suddenly in Sent. 1899,
while on a visit in Somerville, Mass.
Mr.. Hines s career as piano and
organ player at dances extended over
a period of 80 years. For many years
he was associated with Samuel Higgins
of Newfane and Martin Burnett and
Henry Norcross of West Dummerston;
For about 80 years Mr.. Hines had used
a quaint specimen of the foldlng OF
gan of 80 years ago which he had ear
ried thousands of miles on his trips
through the country. The instrument
stands on four slender legs on which are
pointed nails to keep it from slipping
about A reminder of this old instru::
ment is to be found on the platform OF
the hall at Jacksonville where the
floor is punctured in perhaps hundred
places This is not to be wondered AT
when one is told that Mr.. Hines played
at the Thanksgiving eve ball in jack
sonville for 80 consecutive years, his
last engagement as organist and promp-
ter at the Thanksgiving ball in that
village being in 1910.
The older generation of dancers re-
member the predecessor to the Philhar-
monte orchestra of this town. 1t was
called the Burnett and Higgins band
and was organized in 1870 with Mr..
Burnett violnist, Mr.. Higgins cornetist,
Mr.. Norcross clarinetist, and Mr.. Hines
organst and prompter Mr.. Norcross is
the only one left now of the band that
for 25 years furnished all the music for
dances in the towns of Vernon. Whit
ingham, Dover, Wilmington, ,Readsboro2,
Wardsboro, Jamaica, Londonderry, Wal
pole, Westmoreland, Chesterfield Hins-
dale and Winchester. Countless stories
are told of perilous trips made by
those hardy musicians, among which
is one Mr.. Hines used to relate of a drive
to South Londonderry in 1869 to play
for dance The West river had gone
on rampage and every bridge between
Brattleboro and the destination of the
musicians had been swept away. The
route followed by Mr.. Hines and his
companions was ~ niles Dut tHe Ut
chestra arrived on time. In the days
before the advent of the telephone there
was no way to cancel dance date few
hours before the scheduled time and
dance managers never attempted to do
so on account of weather. If an or
chestra had been hired to play on a
certain evening the musicians were ex-
pected to be there regardless of the
weather or any other conditions. Mr.. |
Hines was never known to break an
though his friends tell of
incidents in which harness |
and vehicle suffered damage before he I
arrived at the hall. On one occasion |
Mr.. Hines and his associates left Brat q