The Troopers Drum & Bugle Corps
Before the Troopers
There has been a musical organization of some kind in Casper, Wyoming, since the early 1900s. The Casper Concert Band was performing as early as 1906. Drum and bugle corps began appearing around the country during the United States involvement in World War I (1917-1918) to foster patriotism. The American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) and other fraternal organizations sponsored many groups.
Formed in 1917, the Moose Drum Corps was the first such group in Casper. Drum and bugle corps are different from high school and college marching bands. They are independent nonprofit groups of brass and percussion musicians and flag and rifle spinners.
In the 1920s and 1930s, many drum corps members were men who had served in World War I, and they were designated senior corps. During this same time, junior corps were started for children and teens. In the 1930s, one of these groups in Casper was the Sons of the American Legion Drum Corps. A young man named Jim Jones was a drummer in this group. In the 1950s, the men who had played as children in the Sons of the American Legion Drum Corps formed the Commanders, and again Jim Jones was a drummer.
In 1957, Jones formed the Casper Junior Drum & Bugle Corps which soon became known as the Troopers. The name and uniforms were inspired by the 11th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry who were stationed on the Oregon Trail during the Civil War. The town is named for Lt. Caspar Collins of the 11th Ohio, who was killed here in July 1865.
The early Troopers
“I started the corps,” Jim Jones told a reporter in 1983, “because I was in a junior corps myself here in Casper and we all enjoyed it a great deal. I felt the youth of today would enjoy it just as much as I did.” He formed the corps during the winter of 1957-58. That first year, there were 54 corps members and nine color guard members. Jones’ main purpose was to aid, encourage and promote the welfare of Casper youth. He let any kid join who had an interest, regardless of musical experience.
The American Legion and the VFW were early sponsors. In the 1950s and 1960s, when sponsored by these veterans’ groups, programs were done with military precision and bearing. The color guards were an extension of this and carried the United States and Wyoming flags along with dummy rifles like military color guards.
The Troopers’ first public appearance was June 27, 1958 in Riverton, Wyoming, when they marched in the American Legion State Convention parade. During the first couple of years, the Troopers stayed close to home and performed in parades and concerts year-round. They practiced in basements, parks and gymnasiums. In 1959, they performed for Vice President Richard Nixon at a campaign stop in Casper. In 1961, they traveled to Dallas, Texas for their first national competition. The following year, they performed at the Seattle World’s Fair, marched in the Portland, Oregon Rose Festival Parade and participated in the Washington State VFW Junior Drum Corps Competition, where they placed first. This was the first of the Troopers’ many championships.
The Troopers were so popular with young people that Jim Jones started the Cadets in 1961 because there was a surplus of hopefuls trying out. The Cadets became a feeder group. The Cadets were open to any boy or girl who wanted to learn to play a bugle or drum or to twirl a flag or rifle. A beginner would stay in the Cadets for a couple of years until a spot opened up with the Troopers. The Cadets were a traditional parade group that performed throughout Wyoming, Colorado and Nebraska. They won the Nebraska State Drum and Bugle Championship in 1970. They were disbanded in 1994 because by then so few of the Troopers came from Casper or Wyoming.
Casper’s Corps
The 1960s would see the Troopers pioneer long distance travel for drum and bugle corps. Most corps were on the East and West Coasts and in the Midwest, so Wyoming was a long way from most competitions. They had their own buses and trucks to move them and their equipment. It was—and is—daunting.
The Troopers were a powerhouse in the 1960s and early 1970s. Between 1963 and 1970 they won the World Open National Championship, the VFW Junior Drum Corps Championship, the North American Championship, the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) Championship, the VFW Color Guard National Championship, the American Legion National Color Guard Championship and the Midwest Color Guard Championship multiple times. They appeared at the New York World’s Fair in 1964 and, in 1967, the Wyoming State Legislature designated them “Wyoming’s Musical Ambassadors.” In addition, in 1968 and 1969 they performed at halftime during Denver Broncos football games.
During the 1960s, the Troopers performed from coast to coast and acquired a following outside of Wyoming. With their distinctive uniforms, western musical selections and winning ways they began attracting musicians from outside of Wyoming. The first non-Wyoming member joined in 1966.
Wyoming’s Corps
Highlights of the 1970s were winning the VFW National, the CYO National and both the North American and the World Open Championships in 1970. The Troopers again performed a Broncos halftime show in 1971 and, in 1972, played at a Kansas City Chiefs football game. The color guard won the Continental Divide Color Guard Championship in 1973, 1974, 1975 and 1977. In 1975 the corps again performed in a Broncos halftime show.
Big changes came in the early 1970s to the way drum and bugle corps were organized in the United States and Canada. Through the 1950s and 1960s, several organizations hosted national competitions—American Legion, VFW and CYO among them—and each had different rules and criteria for judging. Drum Corps International (DCI) was formed in 1972 as a governing body to provide a single set of rules and criteria for all drum corps and a single championship. The Troopers are a founding member of DCI; others include the Cavaliers, the Madison Scouts, the Santa Clara Vanguard and the Boston Crusaders. During the first few years of DCI, the Troopers finished regularly in the top six, with a second-place finish in 1973.
America’s Corps
The Troopers, from Casper, were first known as “Casper’s Corps.” After they were named “Wyoming’s Musical Ambassadors” they became “Wyoming’s Corps.” Over the years they have become “America’s Corps” due in part to the U.S. Cavalry-inspired uniforms, their frequent use of patriotic-themed or western music and their popularity.
Some 1980s highlights include performing at a 1981 Denver Broncos game and at the inaugural championship game of the short-lived United States Football League (USFL) in Denver on July 17, 1983. The Troopers also marched in the 1985 Pasadena Rose Bowl Parade. The highest finish for the Troopers at the DCI championships in the 1980s was 11thplace in 1986. After leading the Troopers for 30 years, in 1987 Jim Jones retired.
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s drum corps in general become larger, had more staff and members, were less militaristic and the shows were flasher. With these changes the corps focused more on DCI sponsored competitions and less on community shows. National and even international, recruitment has become the standard as all corps compete for the best individuals.
Today, auditions are held in the winter with spring camps and online practices before an intense month of practice in June and competitions in July and August ending with the national champion being crowned in August.
Fundraising is as much an issue today as it was in 1958. Today there is staff whose job it is to find sponsors and raise money. Members pay tuition and the Troopers have a scholarship program to help. Additionally, there are souvenirs for anyone to purchase and in 1994 the Troopers established Troopers Bingo, in Casper, as an ongoing source of revenue.
In 1993, the Troopers marched in President Clinton’s inaugural parade, and returned to Washington in 2001 for President George W. Bush’s inaugural parade.
The mid-2000s found the Troopers in trouble: DCI suspended them in 2006 for non-compliance with membership rules. They spent the year reorganizing and returned to the field in 2007. In 2008 the corps celebrated its 50th anniversary, and returned to the DCI top 12 with a 12th place finish at the 2009 championships.
2019 saw the Troopers turn their attention to a new frontier: The program that year, Beyond Boundaries, included musical selections from the 2009 movie Star Trek and the sci-fi comedy/drama TV show The Orville.
The 2020s started poorly for the Troopers (and the rest of the world) as the COVID-19 pandemic forced cancellation of the 2020 season. In another first, they became, in 2021, the first world-class drum corps to perform at Graceland, the home of the late Elvis Presley, in Memphis, Tennessee.
The Troopers made the DCI top 12 in 2022 for the first time since 2009, finishing in 12th place. That year, they also used a 24-foot metal oil derrick as a prop and featured an electric cello in their program, with the cellist seated on the upper platform on the oil derrick. They continued rising at the finals with a 10th place finish in 2023, when they were the first to use a harmonica in a show.
Troopers impact
The Troopers are innovators, bringing new ideas to drum corps. From the beginning in 1958, they were the first corps to have both boys and girls play instruments. In 1960 they established marching in curved lines with the development of the “Sunburst” maneuver. Of necessity, in the mid-1960s they pioneered long-distance bus travel. They were the first drum and bugle corps to be invited to march in the Rose Bowl Parade. In 2016, they performed the first Grammy-winning song in DCI history, Symphony No. 1 by the American composer of contemporary classical music, John Corigliano.
Trooper supporters
The Troopers have played for millions of people, marching in Casper parades, inaugural parades, and the Rose Bowl Parade. They have performed in high school stadiums and gyms, college stadiums and professional football stadiums. They have entertained actors, singers and presidents.
Through the years many organizations have sponsored the Troopers, mostly from Casper, including the George W. Vroman Post No. 2 American Legion and their Auxiliary Unit No. 2; the VFW in both Casper and Cheyenne; the Forty and Eight; the Elks Lodge No. 1353; the Lions Club; the Eagles Lodge No. 306; the Kiwanis; the Rotary Club; Casper Service League; the American Hellenic Educational Progressive Association and the City of Casper.
To support the Troopers, Casper citizens, businesses and Troopers alumni have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars and donated thousands of volunteer hours. Fundraising started very early when Casper businessman Harry Yesness donated space in his men’s store for a Christmas gift wrapping station in 1959, a tradition that continued for many years. Over time there have been bake sales, food stalls, house tours, car washes, garage sales, the souvenir stall that started in a sheep wagon and, of course, bingo.
The Troopers Today
The 150-member group rehearses and tours full-time from June to August and draws its largely college-age members from around the United States and 15 countries in Europe, Asia and South America.
When the Troopers play, the public sees an 11-minute performance that is polished, precise and fun to watch. The members of the corps spend hundreds of hours practicing, traveling and eating together to make the show possible. While they march with the Troopers, they learn many skills that apply for the rest of their lives: determination, friendliness, discipline, esprit de corps, pride, tenacity, patriotism, self-discipline, confidence, respect, honor, dedication, hard work, teamwork, passion, appreciation for music, resolve, loyalty, gratitude, perseverance, strength and tradition.
Troopers’ trademarks are honor, loyalty and dedication, learned and lived by everyone who has ever worn the uniform.
[Editors’ note: Special thanks to the Wyoming Cultural Trust Fund, support from which in part made publication of this article possible.]
Resources
Primary Sources
- Thorson, Cindy. “The Casper Troopers: The Pride of Wyoming Celebrates Their 25th Year.” Wyoming Magazine 1, no. 1 (Summer 1983): 35-38.
Secondary Sources
- DaSilva, Ron, Cozy Baker, Rick Beckham, Shirley Stratton Dorritie, and Steve Vickers. A History of Drum & Bugle Corps: Volume 2. Madison, Wisconsin: Drum Corps Sights and Sounds, 2003.
- Gough, Michael D. “America's Corps: Legends Never Die.” DVD. Boise, Idaho: Michael D. Gough Productions, 2008.
- _______________________. “Hell Bent for Victory.” DVD. Boise, Idaho: Michael D. Gough Productions, 2010.
- Troopers Drum & Bugle Corps. Troopers Drum & Bugle Corps: Celebrating 50 Years of Honor, Loyalty & Dedication. Troopers Drum & Bugle Corps, Casper, Wyoming, 2008.
Illustrations
- The photos of the Troopers at rehearsal, gift wrappers at the Harry Yesness store, the bus, the photo with Cheney and the Simpsons and the photo of the Starburst formation are all from the Troopers Archives. Used with permission and thanks.
- The photo of the Troopers welcoming President Lyndon Johnson at the Natrona County Airport outside Casper is from the Casper College Western History Center. Used with permission and thanks.