They were in a class by themselves.

Their loud, thundering sound echoed across the mountains and drew attention far and wide.The nationally acclaimed Tamaqua Senior High School Girls Drum & Bugle Corps was not only the heartbeat of the town, but the pride of the state.With close to 200 buglers, coach horns, drummers, bell lyres and American flags, this precision marching unit was simply unmatched and word spread fast. Seemingly overnight, the girls put the town of Tamaqua on the map and gave people a reason to cheer during the Great Depression.The military-inspired corps was summoned to lead the governor's inauguration parade of 1935.But that's only for starters.The Tamaqua girls led the Pennsylvania delegation in Washington, D.C., at President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's election to a second term.They paraded up Fifth Avenue in New York City, the toast of the American Legion National Convention.To top it off, the corps was reviewed by a U.S. Army major and withstood inspection by the U.S. Marine Corps at the nation's Capitol.They performed at the World's Fair and made regular appearances at Miss America parades in Atlantic City.This musical organization was widely celebrated. In fact, the Tamaqua girls rode in a special train of the Central Railroad of New Jersey an entire train sent specifically for them and their equipment.Many said the spectacular group was simply the most inspiring sight they'd ever seen. Men would stand staunch and salute. Some even cried. Women and children clamored to get a look.Everyone was amazed by the stellar, all-female corps that had suddenly emerged from a small, coal-region town up in the mountains.Early trainingThe musical organization debuted in the 1931 Tamaqua Memorial Day Parade. But members already were veterans.Many of the girls had marched with a snappy predecessor, the Tamaqua Laurel Troop Girl Scouts Bugle Corps, begun 1926, disbanded 1930.High school history and German language teacher Miss Salama Steigerwalt, a strict disciplinarian, took those girls and others and molded them into an organization large and awesome.The blue-and-white-clad group was in its prime in the 1930s-40s and performed before dignitaries, heads of state and at nationally publicized events of the day.Sometimes the corps traveled with the Tamaqua High School Boys Band, a fine group. But the Girls Drum and Bugle Corps was renowned. Tamaqua's marching women were in demand and grabbed top awards everywhere they went.Their pillbox-style caps, similar to a bellhop's, had to be worn slightly to the side, tilted just so. Their skirt bottoms measured 12 inches from the ground, no more, no less.The girls stood at attention military style and, when lined up, appeared to be uniform in height. Some of the tallest were selected to be drum majors or to march up front where they carried and played impressive, ceremonial coach horns.Steigerwalt was assisted by drillmaster Harry "Punch" Knorr, who put the girls through marching paces with military aplomb. Harry J. Lauer and Norwood Graff were bugle instructors while John C. Brooks tutored the drummers.When the girls excelled on the bugle they rose in rank from corporal to sergeant.Typically, the corps featured two drum majors, two guidons, two banner bearers, two color guards, 17 flag bearers and 32 buglers. There were another 47 in the oversized percussion section: 20 snare drummers, four tenor drummers, two Scotch drummers, four bass drummers, two on cymbals and 15 on bell lyres. Fifes also were part of the group and the corps had its own majorettes in later years.Special styleGirls Bugle Corps performances during Tamaqua's nighttime football games drew packed houses to see sophisticated, innovative techniques that aren't duplicated today.Take, for example, the war years. The young women rendered special shows to honor American men and women in the armed forces.The majestic corps took to the field and, at just the right moment, all stadium lights were extinguished, leaving total darkness. Turns out, corps members had been outfitted in colored lights secretly attached to their uniforms. They dazzled spectators with a patriotic show of light, music and marching. Onlookers were surprised to see the corps forming the image of an American flag in lights of red, white and blue.There were somber moments, too. One day, the corps marched in procession to honor a fallen member, sadly playing a funeral dirge. The corps also sponsored subgroups that played taps at military funerals. The Tamaqua Girls Drum & Bugle Corps became a way of life.On rare occasion, an outstanding musician continued to appear with the corps even during the school year following graduation, something unheard of today."Some of the reserves weren't quite ready to take over so I marched right through September, October and November of the following school year," said Viola Richards, Tamaqua, in a 1999 interview.The finaleThe group lasted 40 years, fading toward the end, especially after girls joined the THS Boys Band in the 1950s.By 1969, down to just a dozen or so members, the original Pride of Tamaqua disbanded.Drums, flags, uniforms and rifles were donated to the Tamaqua Area High School Raider Marching Band. Horns were sold to the girls as keepsakes for about $15.The end came without fanfare. On a calm graduation evening of June 8, 1973, three young women Lila Miller, Alice Rudloff and Dorothy Light accepted their diplomas. No mention was made that night, but those three grads were the final bugle corps members of Tamaqua High.Miller and Rudloff had been buglers. Light had played the bell lyre.The three filed in line and joined the procession toward the stadium gates to the tune of "Pomp and Circumstance."With their exit, the legendary Girls Drum and Bugle Corps symbolically marched out of the stadium one final time.The show was over.The lights were turned out ... and one of Tamaqua's richest traditions was gone.