Hartley Edwards Played “Taps†on this Bugle After World War I to Honor the Fallen
But the bugler remembered the story a bit wrong. A century later, a curator sets the record straight
By Frank Blazich
November 9, 2018
Within the military collections of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History is a much-loved, well-traveled bugle that allegedly by order of General John J. Pershing sounded taps at 11:00 a.m. on November 11, 1918, signaling the end of World War I.
The bugle bears the marks of age and much use. Countless soldered repairs are visible along the assorted joints of the instrument, the plating on both the mouthpiece and horn are worn clear away. Fingerprints of the bugler are still visible on the surface of the bell, along with dents that the former owner, a soldier named Hartley Benson Edwards, apologized for, since the bugle “always hit the ground first.â€
Read more:
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/hartley-edwards-played-taps-bugle-after-world-war-i-honor-fallen-180970752/#FrVisVDpViUAFbC4.99
