TERRE HAUTE — It is difficult to imagine what tools he might have had access to, what kind of a workshop he may have had and how he learned to create one of the most intricate musical instruments in the world.
For almost 25 years, Frank Tichenor of Terre Haute created custom violins for area residents.
From 1931 to his retirement in 1955, Tichenor built and repaired violins, but it is not known how many he made, or where his work ended up.
In an obituary in the Tribune-Star, Tichenor was called a “wood craftsman.” In addition to violins, he made gun stocks.
Tichenor was born to Harry and Amanda Tichenor in Cromwell, Ky., on Nov. 29, 1881. He died April 20, 1985, at age 103.
Margaret Taylor, 75, of Terre Haute remembers Tichenor as a “very religious man” who played the violin beautifully.
An entry about Tichenor in “The Negro in Terre Haute: A Century of Progress 1863 – 1963” shows a photo of the man who made his first violin in 1931.
Tichenor was a member and violinist at the Bethlehem Temple Church of the Apostolic Faith, on 13th Street. He lived in the 600 block of South 14th Street.
“I remember him very plainly,” Taylor said. “I used to play the piano. I was about 15 years of age, and he was older then.”
Tichenor had a son named Howard who later moved to Vincennes, and his grandson, also named Howard, played the violin as a child, according to Harold Allen of Terre Haute.
Taylor said she didn’t know if any of Tichenor’s violins still were around the city. He is not known among many of the living musicians and violinists in Terre Haute today.
“I had a lot of respect for brother Tichenor,” she said.
Deb McKee can be reached at (812) 231-4254 or deb.mckee@tribstar.com.
Black History Month
February 14, 2007
Black History Month: Wood craftsman spent his life in Terre Haute making violins
Frank Tichenor was violinist for Bethlehem Temple Church
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