| Sources |
- [S104] Cocke County, Tennessee, and its People, Cocke County Heritage Book Committee, (Walsworth Publishing, 1992), 259.
- [S24] The Newport Plain Talk, (http://www.newportplaintalk.com), 7 Sep 2013.
1940 photos recall days of music recitals
As It Was Give To Me’
Duay O’Neil
I’ve been practicing the piano quite a bit lately, in part to loosen up arthritic ?ngers and in part because the deaths of Sally Burnett and Mary Ann Little this summer brought to mind my days as a piano student of Mary Ann’s mother, Eleanor Susong Little Hickey.
Both Sally and Mary Ann devoted their careers to teaching music to young charges and their in?uence will continue to be felt for decades to come.
I started piano lessons under Mrs. Hickey’s tutelage the year I entered ?rst grade. My mother had asked about starting me earlier, but Mrs. Hickey said she preferred a student be enrolled in school ?rst.
In those days, the two primary music teachers in Newport were Mrs. Hickey, whose home stood at the corner of Beech and College Streets and Mrs. Bauman, whose back yard abutted Newport Grammar School’s boundary on the east. Cocke County High School stood just down the street from Mrs. Hickey’s. By living in such close proximity to the schools, both teachers were within walking distance for students who were released from classes for their lessons. As I recall, students living farther away came for lessons, at least with Mrs. Hickey, before and after school and on Saturdays.
Mrs. Hickey began her day’s lessons at 7:00 a.m. By the time I started, she taught her lessons in what I called the “caboose room,” a small area created by enclosing the side porch. We entered from the front porch.
She had a small spinet for us, plus an older upright piano for use when duets were played. A Steinway grand piano held pride of place in the front parlor, and large room encompassing the portion of the home facing College Street. Sometimes, when she became overbooked or we were preparing for competition, she took us to the Steinway for further practice, and what a treat that was!
As a devoted member of the Federation of Music Clubs, Mrs. Hickey once served as state president of the organization and took me, Janice Buda, Gail McAndrew, and Frances Miller to Memphis for the state convention. That was my ?rst visit to the grand Peabody Hotel where I saw the ducks for the ?rst time, and it was also the ?rst time I saw ?aming baked Alaska.
One could sometimes charm Mrs. Hickey into an easier day at the piano by complimenting her dress, mentioning something about the Sunday service at First Baptist Church, or asking a leading question about my dad’s performance in the Central High orchestra back in the 1920s.
Two ladies, Kate Olden and Viola Brabson, worked devotedly for Mrs. Hickey. I don’t think she took an actual lunch break, for I remember Viola often bringing her a peanut butter sandwich and a glass of milk into the caboose room. The milk was often served in a Schlitz beer glass. As a child of teetotalers, I was mesmerized by that!
Mrs. Hickey’s daughter, Mary Ann, lived and taught in Michigan at the time and spent her summers in Newport with her mother. Occasionally we were sent to the Steinway with Mary Ann as our teacher and my boyish Southern charm found its nemesis. I remember her telling me once, “Just be quiet and get to work!”
We had music clubs for all ages, starting with the B Natural, growing to the Merry Makers, and graduating to the Melodic. We held monthly meetings in the front room, where someone had the privilege of playing the Steinway as part of the program. I spent a lot of time staring at a cabinet Mary Ann called “the Chinese monstrosity,” wondering what was inside. I daresay Mary Frances Cureton and I were the only two people Mrs. Hickey ever ordered out of a music club meeting—just because we got into a ?ght.
Her recitals were legendary, often lasting two hours of longer as scores of boys and girls and later teenagers trooped across the Newport Grammar School stage to “play their piece.” The pictures accompanying today’s article are dated 1940 on the back. Hopefully someone will recognize a face or two and help us identify the subjects. The pictures were found in the home after Mary Ann’s death earlier this summer.
Cocke County has been, and continues to be, blessed with devoted music teachers for well over a century. As a former classroom teacher, I can now truly appreciate the hard work of these men and women who showed us where middle C can be found and rapped our ?ngers when we missed a chord. While few of us “turned professional,” I daresay all of us developed a love and appreciation of music we otherwise would not have had.
- [S87] Death Certificate.
Name Date of Death / Age County of Death County / State of Residence Marital Status Gender Race File #
HICKEY ELEANOR S 10-30-1982 / 81 COCKE COCKE / TN WIDOW F WHITE 31804
- [S147] Find a Grave, (Memorial: 49964918).
- [S58] Marriage Certificate.
Name: George C Little
Titles and Terms:
Event Type: Marriage
Event Date: 23 Dec 1924
Event Place: Cocke, Tennessee, United States
Age:
Birth Year (Estimated):
Father's Name:
Father's Titles and Terms:
Mother's Name:
Mother's Titles and Terms:
Spouse's Name: Eleanor Ayres Susong
Spouse's Titles and Terms:
Spouse's Age:
Spouse's Birth Year (Estimated):
Spouse's Father's Name:
Spouse's Father's Titles and Terms:
Spouse's Mother's Name:
Spouse's Mother's Titles and Terms:
Reference ID: 73
GS Film number: 1928647
Digital Folder Number: 004485962
Image Number: 00070
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