Chandler History Is Published

The cover design by John Lutz features an interior photograph of the Music Hall by Bob Eddy and a contemporary portrait of the remarkable Col. Albert B. Chandler.

A generous gift from one of America's high-tech pioneers 100 years ago is making a big difference in the community life of Randolph even today.

That's the story of Chandler Music Hall and Gallery, according to a new book which has just been published to celebrate the centennial of the hall, which was dedicated Aug. 20, 1907.

The principal author, Herald editor Dick Drysdale, drew on published and original sources and enlisted the help of other writers to create "Not a Bad Seat in the House: Albert B. Chandler and his Marvelous Music Hall."

Appropriately for a centennial publication, the new book has just over 100 pages and contains 100 photographs and historical documents. Many of the photographs are courtesy Bob Eddy, and John Lutz donated the book design and his printing expertise to get the book published.

Chandler will host a book signing party this Sunday, Nov. 11 at 4 p.m. at the gallery.

Authors Dick Drysdale, Marjorie Ryerson, and Marie Kittel and designer John Lutz will be on hand to sign hardbound and softbound copies of "Not a Bad Seat in the House" and will answer questions and offer reflections about Chandler and the Randolph citizens who have safeguarded his gift for 100 years.

"Not a Bad Seat in the House" offers the first full biographical account of Albert Brown Chandler, who parlayed his high school teletype lessons in a Randolph bookstore into a stunning career in communications, building one of lower Manhattan's first skyscrapers and helping to write the rules of competition for the American telegraph industry.

An essay by Marie Kittel is devoted to the early highlight of Chandler's life, when he served as a telegrapher in Abraham Lincoln's war room, in daily contact with the president.

The book documents Chandler's agreement with Robert Kimball, whereby the latter built the library which bears his name in 1903 and Chandler built the Music Hall in 1907. The building was not donated to the town but to Bethany Church- and it occasioned terrible soul-searching within the church, as one of two church buildings had to be demolished to make way for the Music Hall.

"Not a Bad Seat in the House" plucks fascinating details from the early days of programming, as when a train carrying 300 concert-goers was stranded on the track for an hour and a half. It describes the circumstances of the eventual sale of the hall to the town in 1947.

The reawakening of interest after a period of decline is vividly recalled in Gregg Sharrow's interviews with three of those who were early leaders in the renewal effort, as well as anecdotes by other participants in the process. Sharrow also persuaded today's Chandler leadership to sit for an interview to explain the facility's current success, and the plans for the future.

Writer and photographer Marjorie Ryerson contributes a beautifully-illustrated and lively history of the Chandler Gallery since it was created in 1979. The nearly 40-year tradition of community and youth musicals gets a chapter, and so does the phenomenon of the Mud Season Talent Shows. The critical role played by Martha Ostlund, "the woman who saved Chandler," is detailed.

Pre-publication notices have been enthusaistic. Former Vermont Life editor Tom Slayton called it a "very enjoyable history ... an inspiring tale, and a lesson for other Vermont towns in how to make a good community even better.

Veteran newsman Chris Graff writes, "Even if you have never been to Chandler Music Hall, you will enjoy 'Not a Bad Seat in the House.' It tells the story of a period that defined so many of our Vermont communities ... Chandler's personal recollections of Lincoln are fascinating and revealing."

Alex Aldrich, executive director of the Vermont Arts Coiuncil said the book is "not just a picture of the Randolph at a point in time, but a picture of Randolph as a community over time...an amazing accomplishment."

Randolph area readers will find a lot to recognize in "Not a Bad Seat in the House," the author promises. Some 250 names are mentioned in the text and dozens of current residents are recognizable in photographs. In addition, there are three appendices detailing Chandler programs since 1976, gallery exhibits since 1978, and community and youth musicals since 1968.

All writing and photography for "Not a Bad Seat in the House" was donated, and proceeds benefit the continuing renovation of the building. It may be purchased at Chandler or through the website, www.chandler-arts.org, or at Cover-to-Cover Books on Main Street.