...touring the American South and Midwest on the "chittlin circuit."
Bill Hill was immersed in music from early on. His mother, Billie Hill, was a popular bandleader and pianist; musicians moved freely through the Hill home. At seven, with encouragement from Thomas Chu Crump, Bill picked up the saxophone, the instrument that would become his trademark. After the death of his father, Bill and his family moved to Gary. Here, Bill's musical education continued, through his mother and the musicians she worked with, as well as the famous "Music Factory" of Gary Roosevelt High School. His initiation into the world of jazz performance began in the many clubs that filled downtown Gary during the '30s and '40s. Bill eventually hit the road, touring the American South and Midwest on the "chittlin circuit," with artists like the young B.B. King.
In the '60s, Bill returned to settle down in Gary. He worked as a shopkeeper, tavern owner, and eventually for the Gary school system, from which he retired as a head custodian in 1986. Since then Bill has returned to school at Indiana University-Northwest and is documenting the history of jazz in Gary. He currently works as a case manager for child abuse prevention at Gary Neighborhood Services.
Photo by Sam Cronk
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