PART FOUR: THROUGH THE TWENTIES
by Frederick W. Hawthorne
With the establishment of licensing requirements and the creation of the Battlefield Guide's Association, the uneasy and at times stormy, relationship between guides and the park management had begun. In order to help create and administer the testing and licensing process, a former educator, William C. Storrick, was brought in early on. On May 1, 1917 he was formally designated Superintendent of Guides. Storrick was born in Straban Township, Adams County, Pa. in 1856 and at age seven had heard Lincoln speak. Following a thirty- four year career as a public school teacher, he had been employed by the National Park Commission, May 10, 1909, as caretaker of South Cavalry Field. Following a stint as manager of government-owned farms, he was appointed to the guide post, a position he would hold until October 1, 1930. Described in a later National Park Service report as an "...estimable and scholarly gentleman...' he was troubled by deafness which, some believed, was taken advantage of by applicants during the testing process.
The first major dispute between the GBGA and the park came in December, 1916 with the announcement of yet another guide examination to be held the following January 22. As part of this new exam, Storrrick . had prepared a revised list of questions, including many on the action at East Cavalry Field - felt to be an area of knowledge most guides were weak in. Guides with prior test scores below 70% were expected to participate in the new exam in order to upgrade their rating. With this announcement came a rumor that quite a number of students at Gettysburg College were planning to take this new exam in order to make money -in their spare time. The Association immediately responded with a letter to Col. Nicholson requesting a limit be placed on the number of guides receiving licenses. It was the wish of the membership that the number be limited to approximately one hundred due to the fact that many relied upon guiding for a living.
The fears of large numbers of collegians swelling the guide rolls was unfounded as none applied to take the test. When the deadline for applications arrived twenty-three new applicants and sixteen upgrades had been received. In addition to the cavalry field questions, this second major exam would consist of two parts--the first, written, the second oral. This oral exam would again utilize the large relief map and would consist of the applicant being asked to conduct an imaginary tour over a portion of the field. In that they would relate their story and tell what types of things they would say at each spot. Ultimately twenty-four of the applicants showed up to take the test, with twelve receiving a passing score, seven new ones and five retests. Out of the sixteen guides who were required to upgrade only five attended the testing session and received first class licenses. The subsequent list of eligibles was used to fill in some of the vacancies that resulted from guides who failed to upgrade their license or had simply quit guiding.
An excellent description of this early testing session, held in early 1917, was contained in the January 29 issue of the Gettysburg Times :
"For several hours this morning, the big map room in the Federal Building was given the atmosphere of a village school when a number of the applicants for licensure as battlefield guides appeared for their tests. W. C Storrick, a school teacher before becoming connected with the N. P. Commission, was in charge of the pupils and with exam paper in one hand and pencil in the other looked every bit as much devoted to his original calling as at any time in his life. Tables in the room were converted into temporary desks and about these the applicants, young and old, were seated. Pencils moved noiselessly over the paper for several hours as question after question was be propounded Some of them were quite lengthy, some short, some required but a few words to answer, while others took a long paragraph. As the town clock announced the hour of noon the 'teacher' announced: 'Question number 25' and followed a request for a long list of names of prominent commanders on both sides of the Gettysburg battle. Some of the applicants were still studying over # 20 when this was called ,for and gave a look of hopelessness as the test went wearily on."
At the conclusion of the January exam the Chairman of the Battlefield Commission, Col. Nicholson, announced that the passing average for any first class licenses would be raised to 75%. Any individual holding a license below this was required to take another exam in March in order to maintain the license. This test would be held on March 15, 1917. Any guide who failed this examination or refused to report was sent notice in April of revocation of the license and were required to return their badge to the Commission.
As a result of the exams held from September of 1915 through March of 1917, ninety-six individuals had gone through a fairly rigorous series of exam and training sessions and were judged highly qualified to serve as guides around the park. In addition another forty-seven, several of whom failed in the quest to receive a license, became licensed drivers which enabled them to transport excursion passengers around the field, but not to guide them. As evidence that some of the latter intended to guide, with or without a license, one driver, William Yingling, and was fined $10.50 in the summer of 1917 for acting as a guide in his capacity as a licensed driver.
It was during the summer of 1917 that a set of guide rules and regulations was published including, for the first time, a schedule of rates. The fee for one car or bus was set at $1.50 for the first hour plus "$I.00 for each additional hour or major fraction thereof.' Frequently parties would arrive in two or more cars in which case the guide would be expected to conduct both vehicles around the field. This would be accomplished while standing on the running board and talking through a megaphone. Fees for this service were set at $2.00 for the first hour and $1.50 per additional hour. As the speed limit was set at a speed of fifteen mph one regulation established the standard tour length of two hours in order to cover the twenty-two miles. It was further stated that the time desired on the tour was totally at the discretion of the tourist--not the guide Regulations also stipulated that at no time was the LBG allowed to operate the visitor's car.
That these rules were strictly enforced is borne out by the evidence. 0ne guide was suspended for making seven trips over the field in one day and making $20 Another had his license revoked for being ...a persistent violator of the rate of speed over the battlefield". The park commissioner showed they were serious about both regulations and the conduct of guides as well as the quality of tours. Unfortunately, spot enforcement of regulations and continue poor conduct on the part of certain guide would serve to contribute to a poor reputation for all LBG'S.
The first major alteration to these rules was initiated by a group of guides in response to several individuals deliberately cheating customers. This would take place when a guide would cut trips short in order to get back early to solicit customers. In February of 1921 twenty- seven guide petitioned Col. Nicholson to adopt regulation restricting the number of trips a LBG could take in a single day. This, it was felt "...would be a great benefit to the service..." As approved in May, the regulation prohibited any guide from making more than three trips on weekdays or Sundays and four trips on holidays.
Meanwhile, the examination process continued to be refined in an effort to insure the quality of guides. The original passing score of 70% had been raised to 75% in 1920- and 80% by 1921. In addition to new candidates, those whose license had been revoked for violating park rules and those with ratings below 80% on prior exams were to be re-examined. The 1922 test was to include forty five licensed guides--half who had licenses revoked for a time the previous year and the balance with scores below 80%. This exam would be the first to utilize a new set of questions.
Guiding in the Twenties had changed since the early days. Although competition had been weeded out somewhat, nearly a hundred guides still attempted to make a living from the tourist trade. The demise of the old Battlefield Trolley came with the onset of the First World War. The excursions to the field by rail, although continuing, were nowhere near the frequency of the early days. Thus, soliciting tours was no longer as easy as simply waiting at the station for the trains to pull in. The fact that some excursions still arrived was evidenced by the continuation of licensed drivers at least through 1928, but the bulk of visitors now arrived in town in private automobiles. The LBG's needed to be more aggressive in solicitation of tours. Perhaps the "hottest" spot for solicitation was the Lincoln Square although the main hotels in town still provided fertile ground for lining up "trips". Due to borough ordinance forbidding guides to solicit out in the street, many took to attracting visitors with yells of 'Guide" and "Don't you want a Guide?" One tactic used to get the visitor to stop to hear the pitch was to stand along the curb and motion for the driver to pull over. With the military style uniform and guide badge on the left breast--to all intents and purposes the guide appeared to the unsuspecting visitor to be a police officer. Once stopped, the visitor could usually be convinced of the necessity of hiring the services of the guide. Although competition among guides was still present, licensing and the testing process had instilled more of a sense of cooperative comraderie among the guides. Various systems of what they termed "striking" were developed giving each guide a fair chance at incoming visitors.
Throughout the 1920's, other areas besides the square proved equally attractive as guides began to station themselves along some of the major thoroughfares leading into town. In late 1926, W.C. Storrick was already recommending to the park that certain problems he encountered with local guides might be solved by establishing 'headquarters" at different points around the field and required visitors wishing guide services to go to these centralized locations. Concern over the increasingly forceful method of solicitation led Storrick to report to the Quartermaster General that "...the guide question is the most perplexing one with which I have to deal and any suggestion ... for its improvement will be most thankfully received"
One such improvement was instituted in October of 1926 as LBG's were required to submit quarterly reports on their operations on government provided blanks. For the first time the park would have some idea on the number of trips taken by guides and their duration. The park was also receptive to Association requested changes in the rules. One problem that had emerged early on arose over the schedule of rates which charged a rate of $1.50 for the first hour and $1.00 for each additional hour "or major fraction thereof". Visitors would use this wording to their advantage by asking for nearly an hour and a half which required them to simply pay $1.50. The park agreed that the wording did allow the guide to be taken advantage of, so a flat rate of $3.00 for a two hour trip was instituted. So that early visitors were aware of these rates, guides were required to give a card with their name, and the park rules and regulations printed on it.
At some point in 1926 another incident took place that would once again call into question the idea of enforcement of the guide regulations. Charles E. Weikert, who had held a license as a driver since 1920, was caught giving out business cards advertising his services as a 'Licensed Battlefield Guide.' He was duly brought before the U. S. Commissioner, convicted, and fined in June of 1926. Weikert appealed the conviction on the grounds that the enabling legislation of 1895 called for violators of War Department regulations to be brought before a Justice of the Peace. As all prior violators of these regulations had been brought before a United States Commissioner, the contention was that this procedure had no basis in law. Weikert's appeal of his conviction succeeded and it was overturned in December of 1927. The ruling stated that the War Department rules and regulations were not enforceable as currently written. Even before this ruling was handed down, various legal opinions had already been given to the new Superintendent, Col. E.E. Davis, that cast doubt on the enforceability and validity of a U.S. Commissioner's jurisdiction over the park. The situation threatened to undermine the existing guide force as several of the more troublesome LBG's began to announce that they would cease to obey park rules. Davis, in his report to the Quartermaster General, stated that in light of these assertions by guides, any negative decision (by the Court of Appeal) '...would practically put an end to all regulation of guide service at this park."
In response to the problem brought about by the Weikert case, Davis issued the first of many 'circulars' to the guides clearly specifying and interpreting the regulations in regard to guides and drivers. A guide, he stated, was not permitted to operate cars or busses and could not do so even if the owner of the vehicle requested the service. Licensed drivers were to confine their activities to operating their own personal vehicles without performing any of the functions of a guide.
A few weeks later the United States Commissioner who had initially ruled on the Weikert case, Robert E. Wible, submitted to Davis a draft of bill which he believe would contain the appropriate characteristics to rectify the problem of jurisdiction. It was this draft that essentially was entered into the House of Representatives as H.R. 12,104, giving the Secretary of War authority to regulate the guide service at National Military Parks. The only real difference from the earlier act was the inclusion of a provision calling for violators to be brought before the nearest U.S. Commissioner. Local support for the bill was fairly strong, due to intense lobbying by the Guide's Association. This was reflected in the Borough Council's endorsement of the act. Aside from a few malcontents mentioned by Davis, it is certain that most of the guides approved of the legislation.
While pursuing the route of additional legislation, the Assistant United States Attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, A. A. Vosburg, wrote to Col. Davis with another suggestion for enforcement. He admitted that due to the ruling of the court, penalties could not be enforced in the manner specified in the original legislation. He suggested that the government control of the park entitled it to use the power of injunction to " ... restrain repeated trespasses by unauthorized persons, or by persons who act in an illegal manner while upon the reservation." Vosburg suggested notifying every person, licensed or not, who acted as a guide, that such a course of action would henceforth be taken. Having done so, he believed that enforcement of the existing guide regulation could then successfully be undertaken.
Later that summer, Davis would pursue exactly that course in a successful attempt to stop what threatened to undermine the entire regulation policy. Powers Pittenturf had been one of the original guides tested in 1915, receiving a third class license. He had not appeared for the required training sessions in early 1916 and for the re-examination that followed. Subsequently, his license to guide was revoked. He was caught violating the borough solicitation ordinance in the summer of 1928, and fined $10.00. This brought him to the attention of Superintendent Davis. He promptly filed for an injunction to be served on Pittenturf on September 18 - the first ease of its use to enforce park rules.
Shortly after E.E. Davis reported as Superintendent in 1927, he began to take steps to alter certain guide practices that had created problems on occasions prior to this. In Storrick's report on guiding to the Quartermaster General in October of 1926, he had mentioned the friction that obviously existed between guides and drivers. This memo gives the first clear idea of the concept of a Licensed Driver. These individuals were licensed specifically to operate their own vehicle over the field carrying tourists who did not desire the services of a guide. They were specifically forbidden to give a description of the strategical and tactical movements of the armies. Guides complained that drivers were not using their own cars, but simply entered a visitor's. LBG's concluded that when they did this, they became a guide. It is apparent that the Weikert case was a result of Davis's belief in the validity of the guide's claim.
Storrick also reported that many guides also owned their own cars and some were taking tourists about in these creating a problem of acting in a dual capacity. ' Guiding,' he stated, "...has reached such large proportion in the last few years owing to the increased amount. of traffic from all sections and has changed the conditions from what they were formerly." Davis attempted to define the differences between the two but eventually phased out the classification of driver.
This would perhaps be Storrick's last act as Supervisor of Guides as about this time he retired on account of age. At this retirement the War Department discontinued the position with the Superintendent taking direct charge of Guide matters.
Uniforms were also a concern of Davis. One of his first moves upon arrival was to eliminate the use of the old star badges. Repeated abuse of the badge by guides had resulted in numerous problems. Davis justified his decision by stating," ... many people confused them with police badges and several accidents were traceable to and caused by the badge". In conjunction with this, a new guide uniform was instituted in 1928. The older military style uniform was replaced by an olive drab single breasted coat with a matching cap. In place of the old badge, an arm patch embroidered in red, was to be worn along with a nickle cap insignia. This insignia consisted of a wreath surrounding the ID number.
An added feature of the new uniform was the recognition of years of service through the use of service stripes worn on the coat sleeve. A 3/8" wide by 3' long gray stripe would be worn on the sleeve to represent a year of service. Each subsequent year an additional stripe would be added until the fifth year of service when all gray stripes would be replaced by a single blue one representing five years. Gray one-year stripes would be sewn on above the blue one to represent years six to nine. At the onset of ten years service, the blue and gray stripes were to be replaced with a single star. Thereafter, stripes would be added for additional years of service until a second star was earned representing twenty years of service. The complete guide uniform was required wearing for all guides as of January 1, 1929.
In July of 1930, guides were authorized a summer uniform for the first time and hot July afternoons in full uniform were to be a thing of the past. In lieu of the coat guides were permitted to wear a seven button gray flannel shirt with collar, (later replaced with OD) two pockets with flaps and a black or dark blue "four in hand' or bow tie. Regulation trousers with belt and the guide cap were also required wearing. A new patch with the word GUIDE embroidered in red was to be worn on the left shoulder.
As the Twenties came to a close, business for the guides was still growing. During the summer of 1929, a special category of license was created permitting an individual to guide after 3 P.M. (move back to I P.M. in September of 1930). Done in order to pick up the slack caused by LBG's guiding early in the day, leaving a shortage in late afternoon, these individuals were not required to be in uniform but were to wear an arm band. At least fifteen men were given this type of license. Many of the individuals granted this special license were part of the group of applicants tested on January 19, 1929, the eleventh time an exam had been administered. Few of these individuals would have much time to hone their guiding skills as the onset of the Great Depression would bring about drastically reduced visitation. The "Afternoon LBG" would quickly become a casualty of this period of national economic uncertainty. Such a classification would not be renewed until 1987.
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