A Time Honored Tradition
WHITEMAN AIR FORCE BASE, Mo. – Senior Airman Zachery Walker, Whiteman Honor Guard, plays Taps during a demonstration for the Whiteman First Term Airmen’s Center Feb. 4. Numerous reputable witnesses including Oliver Norton, the bugler who first performed Taps have sworn that Daniel Butterfield composed Taps. While scholars continue to debate whether or not the tune was original or based on an earlier melody, few researchers doubt that Butterfield is responsible for the current tune. (U.S. Air Force photo/Senior Airman Stephen Linch)