The Fiddle That John Salyer Took to the 1933 Chicago World's Fair.
The following was written by my Aunt Emma Ree and her husband, Grover Salyer many years ago for the Pioneer newspaper.
"John Salyer and his two sons, Grover and Glen, were invited by the Sandy Valley Grocery Company to be entertainers on an excursion to the 1933 World's Fair at Chicago, Illinois. The train started picking up passengers in Pikeville, KY and continued to Cincinnati, Ohio. The father and son trio boarded the train early in the morning at Paintsville. Immediately they began making music from car to car. John played the fiddle, Grover the guitar, and Glen the mandolin. The playing continued until they arrived in Cincinnati. There they were joined by the Gibson Girl singers. From there to Chicago, they alternated singing and playing. The trip was uninterrupted until they stopped in Kankakee, Illinois to switch engines. The next stop was Chicago about 10:30 at night.
In Chicago they were greeted by a bag-pipe band. Most of the passengers had never heard bag-pipes before. They stayed at the Stevenson Hotel. The second night the SALYERS were invited to play for a dance in the million dollar ballroom of the Knickerbocker Hotel. The dance floor was make of glass blocks with many colored lights in it. There were 6500 people there; some wanted waltz music, some wanted square dance, and fox trot, others wanted Virginia reel or jig music. John said to them, "We'll play our kind of music and you dance any kind of dance you can!"
The Salyer men saw many new inventions from all over the world. One of special interest, and most mysterious, was to break a beam of light to turn on a drinking fountain, or open and close a door in the Hall of Science and Industry. After three days of seeing the wonders of the world, the excursion returned to eastern Kentucky.
The SALYER trio was back in Magoffin County with blistered fingers and tired hands from playing so many hours. It was a great experience that they relived and retold the story on many occasions. Grover was privileged to attend another World's Fair, in Montreal, Canada and was able to see the sights of the Fair in Seattle, Washington. Both had many wonders but neither could surpass the memories of the 1933 World's Fair in Chicago."
Anya Burgess did a beautiful job on the restoration of this fiddle that is believed to have belonged to J.M. Salyer.
This is John Salyer's version, recorded in 1941 by Grover.
"John Salyer and his two sons, Grover and Glen, were invited by the Sandy Valley Grocery Company to be entertainers on an excursion to the 1933 World's Fair at Chicago, Illinois. The train started picking up passengers in Pikeville, KY and continued to Cincinnati, Ohio. The father and son trio boarded the train early in the morning at Paintsville. Immediately they began making music from car to car. John played the fiddle, Grover the guitar, and Glen the mandolin. The playing continued until they arrived in Cincinnati. There they were joined by the Gibson Girl singers. From there to Chicago, they alternated singing and playing. The trip was uninterrupted until they stopped in Kankakee, Illinois to switch engines. The next stop was Chicago about 10:30 at night.
In Chicago they were greeted by a bag-pipe band. Most of the passengers had never heard bag-pipes before. They stayed at the Stevenson Hotel. The second night the SALYERS were invited to play for a dance in the million dollar ballroom of the Knickerbocker Hotel. The dance floor was make of glass blocks with many colored lights in it. There were 6500 people there; some wanted waltz music, some wanted square dance, and fox trot, others wanted Virginia reel or jig music. John said to them, "We'll play our kind of music and you dance any kind of dance you can!"
The Salyer men saw many new inventions from all over the world. One of special interest, and most mysterious, was to break a beam of light to turn on a drinking fountain, or open and close a door in the Hall of Science and Industry. After three days of seeing the wonders of the world, the excursion returned to eastern Kentucky.
The SALYER trio was back in Magoffin County with blistered fingers and tired hands from playing so many hours. It was a great experience that they relived and retold the story on many occasions. Grover was privileged to attend another World's Fair, in Montreal, Canada and was able to see the sights of the Fair in Seattle, Washington. Both had many wonders but neither could surpass the memories of the 1933 World's Fair in Chicago."
Anya Burgess did a beautiful job on the restoration of this fiddle that is believed to have belonged to J.M. Salyer.
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| Before restoration |
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| A bit of wear and tear, most to be left! |
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| There was a small crack on the top that had to be repaired. |
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| It's all back together and sounds wonderful. |
This is John Salyer's version, recorded in 1941 by Grover.
Great story Sharon! Confirms all the family lore.
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