- .

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ST. MAUR'S PIPE BAND Golden Jubilee
RUSH, CO. DUBLIN 1932 - 19B2
 ST. MAUR'S PIPE BAND
RUSH, CO. DUBLIN
TARTAN: MaciNNESS WITH BLACK
BANDROOM : MILL BANK, ~USH

The 1982 Officers and Committee.

President: Seamus Madden

Vice President: Bobby and Andy Carrick.
Chairman: E. Harford
Vice Chairman: ,N. Harford•
Secretary: T. Ca 1ek
Treasurer: Paddy Murphy
Ass't. Treasurer: Paul Leonard
Manager: Bert Butterly

Committee:
Frank Lowndes, David Carrick, John Carrick

·First Comll1.ttee Members 1932.

Jack McGuinness, Bobbie Carrick, ,Toe
-Keane, Jim Sweetman, Tom Kane, Pad~y
Ferguson, Rev. P. Perkins C.C.
Trustees.
Bert Butterly, John Leonard,· Stephen
Carrick, Tom Andrews.
Caption for Front Cover Photograph
Front Row (L .to R) J. Carrick, P. Murphy
D. Corry, A. Carrick, P. Leonard, D.
Carrick,
Back Row (L to R) P. Price, S. Carrick,
J. Leonard, F. Lowndes, E. Harford,
B. Weldon, N. Harford.
 FOREWARD

T. CARRICK

HO~ORARY SECRErARY 1982

It is my happy privilage to present this Souvenir

Booklet on the occasion of the Fiftieth Anniversary of
st. Maur's Pipe Band. This year we pay tribute to the
pioneers and patriarchs of the Pipe Band in our town,
who fifty years ago had the foresight to set in motion
an institution, which over the years has provided end-
less entertainment and enjoyment.

I present this Booklet as a chronicle of those

years, and sincerely hope you get as much pleasure from
reading it as the members of the Band got in playing
and parading over five decades.

I wish st. Maur's Pipe Band well on their fiftieth

Birthday and trust that the next fifty years will be as ,
successful as the last were eventful.
 In the year of the Eucharistic Congress 1932, a
small group of young men conceived the idea of starting
a Pipe Band in the town of Rush. As a few years had
elapsed since the sound of the previous Band 'Fife and
Drum' was heard, they thought it was time to start one
going again.
These men were already learning the art of drumming
in a storage shed, at the end of the Channel Road. Piper
Jack 'Kaiser' Wade, drummers Jack McGuinness and Bobby
Carrick, and their instructors were Pat Jones and David
Langan. A meeting was called . and the venue of that First
Meeting was a shed and office owned by Mr. Larry McGuinn-
ess Sr. It was a very successful meeting and all agreed
to the formation of a Pipe Band. One of the distinguished
guests at this meeting was Rev. P. Perkins C.C., who gave
endlessly of his time and talent in the forming of the
Band. A Committee was formed and included among other s -
Joe Kane N.T., Pat Langan, Jim Sweetman, Tomr;y Dunne ,
P. Ferguson.
Firstly, Practice Chanters and. Drumsticks were need-
ed. In order to buy these, a house to house collection
was organised. The proceeds of which were used to buy the
equipment from McCullough Pigott Ltd. We were very grate-
ful for the response to this collection. Our first Pipers
were - Joe Harford, Jack Wade, Kit Collins, Kit Langan,
Tor; Sackly, Andy Carrick, P. Ferguson, Jim Sweetr;an, Matt
and Joe Murtagh and Mickey Kerrigan • . Dick McArdle, form-
ally of the Lusk Pipe Band, was the instructor on the
Chanters. Pat Jones and D. Langan took over the task of
forming a Drum Corps which included - Bobby Carrick, John
Farrell, Jim Carty, and Jimmy Jones on side drums - Jack
McGuinness, Joe Martin, Gerard McGuinness and Dick Butter-
lyon Bass and Tenors with Tommy Dunne at staff. We had
the nucleus of our Band.
The Bandroom was a hive of activity with practice
every night including Sunday. Our Pipers made good pro-
gress and sets of pipes were bought for the enormous sum
Of seven pounds and ten shillings each. The drummers did
well on the old drums. The sound now coming from the
Bandroom was music to our ears. Towards the end of the
first year some newcomers cam among us - Yours Truly on
the Chanters and Drums, Kit and Arthur Murphy, Ger ·Monks
and Kit Harford. At this time Jack McGuinness and Bobby
Carrick had the good fortune to meet Seamus Madden in
McCulloughs. Seamus had the experience of playing with
one of the greatest Bands in Dublin and the country 'Fintan
Lalors'. Needless to say we were delighted when he came
to tutor our little band. To this day he is still coming
to Rush. Our thanks to Seamus for all his good work.
The Band first ventured out on st. Patrick's Day 1933,
to the del ight of the people of Rush. Our uniforms con-
sisted ot white shirts and green berets with a pheasant
feather, but as the weather wasn't too good we had to wear
our ordinary clothes.
The time had come for a full uniform and a new set of
Drums, but money was a p~oblem~ We decided to organise an
Aeriocht. This Aeriocht was made possible thanks to the
ladies of the town. They did great work in finding the
talent and making the teas, and we would like to extend to
them our sincere thanks. Another house to house collection
was made and some local raffles were run. All of these
were profitable and the Drums were bought. These were a
set of Premier 'Rod' Drums, the first of their kind in the
Dublin area, so st. Maurs set a precedent for all Bands.
These Drums were loaned to the Fintan Lalor Band to compete
in the Cowal Games in Scotland. They won their first prize
at these Games.
In 1936 the St. Maur's Band entered their first com-
petition which was held in Navan. We travelled by train
to Navan via Drogheda and wore our white shirts and green
berets. T~r: Andrews joined our ranks during this period
and proved his worth~over the years.
The biggest decision the Band made during this time
was the 'New Uniform'. It certainly caused a great deal
of excitement. The colour and design were most important.
We had to give it a lot ot careful thought, as big money
was involved and of course the image of the · Band. After
many discussions our uniform was decided - A green Kilt
and Shawl, Navy-blue tunics, Green stockings with spats,
Sporrans and Cross. We made many enquiries and event-
ually got ~~. McBain to make the Kilts etc., John Ireland
to make the 'I'un i.c s a n d the remainder from other sources.
The Sporrans were brought home from Scotland by Seamus
Madden. Every member got the thrill of a lifetime when
all the bits and pieces arrived in the Bandroom. When
the Band was for med a uniform seemed a lifetime away and
now it was a reality.
We made another trip to Navan to compete in the
Contest. This time we travelled by truck on a nice summ-
er's day. Shortly be f or e the Contest Larry McGuinness
was married and the refreshments on our trip to Navan was
supplied by the Newly-weds. These were enjoyed by all.
This time, the competition included solo piping and what
a pleasant surprise it was when Yours Truly was called
out for Second Prize. This was the first Trophy for the
Band, and Andy Carrick shared Third prize. The Band trav-
elled to Gor ey and won the Wexford Feis, and this was a
great achievement. Dur L n g these years the Band appeared
at the All Ireland Fin als. We were doing very well now
and were c on t e a pLa t i.n g travelling to Scotland, when War
broke out in 1939. At this time we took part in a local
pilgrimage to Drogheda an d to Faughert.
The War Drought a halt to some of our activities.
It also brou ght tragedy to the Band. Two of our Pipers
(Tom Sackley and Jimmy Flynn, the latter had his first
parade with t he J an d a short time before) lost their lives
in a drowning tragedy on Nov, 12th 1940. This was a sad
blow for the Ba nd , 1ndeed it was heartbreaking when the
Band paraded at the Funerals playing the Dead March. It
took a while before we g o t our c on f i d e n c e back, but as
time is a good healer, we eventually started practice
going again.
The Newly formed Cumann Na mBuidhean Piobairs haa
started to run QU Artette Contests in the Mansion House.
These were held for a nu mber of years and during these
contests the name of St. Maur's ripe Band was in the prize
list several times. Pictures of two of our Qu~rtettes
 FI RST ALL I RELA;m 1946. IVEAGH GROUNDS .

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Drum Major J . McGuinneos .
Fr on t Row (L t o R) K. Langan , B. Dunne,
F. Devine , S. Carrick.
Sec ond Row (L t o R) A. Carrick, D. McGee ,
L. J one s , C. Collins.
Third Row (L t o R) H. Kerrigan, T. An drews
Fourth Row (L t o R) C. Murphy , M. Monks
Fifth Row (L t o R) R. Carrick , G. Monks
J . Farrell •
appeared in the Papers on different occasions. The Band
built up quite a reputation for itself during this period
and it was highly respected by all other Bands of this era.
At this time Jack and Billy Dunne, Des McGee, Larry Jones,
Maur Monks, Eddie Weldon and Bernie Jones joined our ranks,
also David 'Tuss' Lan£an, who was Hon. Sec. for a while. If
new names were appearing in the ranks, some of our establis-
hed members were leaving us. I r~fer to Kit Harford, a
good Tenor Drummer. Kit on the tenor and Kit Murphy on the
bass drum were noted for their team work. Small wonder these
men were so good, because they were taught by the best Bass
Drummer in the Country at that time. This was Paddy Wilson
of the Fintan Lalor Band. He used to stay with Bobby
Carrick .a t his mother's home. Mrs. Carrick (my mother)
played no small part throughout the years in promoting the
Band.
At this stage, I would like to mention that the first
Pipe Major of the Band was Paddy Ferguson, but due to
health reasons he handed over to Kit Langan. Kit's ability
as P.M. was reputed to be one of the best. Alas, he emi-
grated, out not before we entered for 'The First All
Ireland' ever held. The venue was The Iveagh Gardens in
1946. This was a Contest with a difference, it was open-
ed to Bands from the Four Provinces. This was the beginn-
ing c~ a new Pipe Band world and history was in the making.
ST. Maur's Band took part on that memorable Day, an honour
that is almost obliterated with the passing of time, save
for the men who were actually playing in the Band. On that
day the Band fielded ten Pipers and a full Drum Corps. There
was a set piece for the Contest with a special Set of Drum
beatings, but our Drummers did not get these in time for
the Contest, however the Pipers were six points ahead of
any other Band in our grade. From then on the Band was
known as the 'Co. Dublin Band' by the Northern Ireland Bands
with the emphasis on the tone and quality of the piping.
This was proved afterwards when some members of a Northbrn
Ireland Band travelled to Rush to copy our sound. This help-
ed boost our morale.
In the 1948-1949 period ~he Bandroom became unavail able
and now we were homeless. After a while we were off ered tne
local Tennis Club Pavillion, owned by. the C.Y.M.S., this
suited us for a while. The Band went through a time of
change and we had many new members such as - John Archbold,
John Smith, Bert Butterly, Christy Farren, Michael Jones,
Gay Jones, Andy Monks, Peter Thorne, Larry McGuinness, Tom
Fitzgerald and Paud Flynn. Most of these lads stayed with
the Band and played in competition. Bert Butterly, who is
still in the Band, helped to keep the Band going. A Comm-
ittee man for a number of years and may I add one whom we
could not have done without. John Archbold, who also ser-
ved for a long time in the ranks, was Treasurer until he
left Rush.
The Band had reached a low ebb with some dissension
among us, and an old tradition was broken, we could not
turn out for the Corpus Christi procession and was sadly
missed. Father Crinnon C.C. asked me one Sunday, if I
could re-organise the Band and help bring it back to its
original strength. I was only too happy to accept and my
first priority was a new home, close to our old home if
possible. I had a Nissan Hut close to the old Band, this
served us well until we had a permanent home. Practice
started again and all our old enthusiasm was resurrected.
After some hard work we were ready for competition again.
We travelled to Tullamore for a Contest and shared the
points with our neighbours 'Black Raven', but the ~ophy
was awarded to 'Black Raven', a decision in our favour
would have meant a lot to us then. Our spirits were bruis-
ed but not broken and so it was back to the Bandroom for
more practice. We had some new members around this time -
Tommy Dunne as a tenor Drummer and also on Bass, Maurice
and Joe McCann on side and tenor Drums r&spectfully, Willie
Green., Nick But terly and Billy Ryan.
At this time the Band got the opportunity of a new
premises, a house owned j y Bobby Carrick. We were delight-
ed with this chance and took up residence immediately.
Now we had a proper Bandroom and after a short while, Bobby
gave us the option of buying the property., which we did
for a reasonable sum, our thanks to Bobby. We started on
a progra:nme of renovation, as this house was a three-
roomed thatched cottage and caused a problem with insurance.
WINNERS AT MANSION HOUSE 1941.

Carrick, K. Langan,
T. Andrews.

PRESENTING SHAMROCK AT · ST. PATRICK'S

DAY PARADE. 1954.

Drum Major. Jack McGuinness (Deceased)

To save on costs, the members put aside their practice
chanters and drumsticks and picked up forks and shovels.
Tom Fitzgerald and Tommy Dunne provided a tipping iorry
and tractor with a front loader to remove the debris.
John Archbold set up a light, which benefited the work
immensely. Maurice McCann and John Archbold did the re-
building. The interior decorating was easier as we were
in out of the cold. We were all very proud of our achieve-
ment under adverse conditions.
Our funds were, naturally, running very low and we
also needed new uniforms. This is where the wives and
girlfriends of our members stepped in and formed a Ladies
Committee. These ladies set about the task of fund-rais-
ing in earnest. Cake and vegetable. sales, bring and bUy
sales, stand up suppers etc. were organised. These were
highly successful. The weekly whist drives then developed
and are still going strong to-day. They proved to be very
popular and were enjoyed by all woo attended, especially
the suppers at half-time. These ladies were invaluable
to both the Band and the community, for without them we
would now be in a bad financial position. I would like
to take this opportunity to thank the ladies, also Mrs.
Price and Percy Dunne for their wonderful support and help
throughout the years.
During this period Tom Corr, Michael McGee, Michae~
Clare, Murdo MacLeod, Martin Carrick, Joan Mathews, David
Carrick, John Leonard, Noel Harford, Eddie Harford, J.
Gilsenan, P. Weldon, Brian Weldon, Paul Gilsenan, Deirdre
Corry, Paul Leonard, David Harford, Joe Leonard, John
Carrick, James Sweetman, Pam Armstrong, Michele Kerrigan,
Martin Kerrigan, G. Shields .. PahickHurphy', Paul Price
~nd many mors: joined our ranks.

To get back to Contests and outings during these

years, the Band won their first two aup Trophies at the
Black Raven Contest. This certainly caused excitement
and put a great incentive into the Band. Our next Trophy
was at the ~icklow Contest held in Wicklow town, where we
won a cup. The Band entered the Drum Majors 'Contest for
the first time and was a great success. Jack McGuinness
won First Prize and if ever a Drum Major deserved to win it
was Jack. After all was over the Band paraded through the
town of Wicklow and was proudly led by Jack. The Band pick-
ed up quite a few prizes at different venues, and in general
we were pleased. We had instructors coming from Dublin,
namely Joe Duffy, Mick Carrol and Larry Ward who imparted
their knowledge to us.
I would like to mention the Bands first trip to the
Cowol Games in Scotland, as it was a big adventure for us.
The preparation before hand, the boat trip over , the march
up to the field, the Contest, and the march past was all
something with a difference. Although it rained during the
Contest, it was history for our Band and a day long to be
remembered by all who travelled over. This was the first
of many trips to Scotland. If the Band did not take part
every year in the Contest,' it was still well represented,
for every year some Band members travelled over to the games.
It was during this period that the famous 'Heavy Gang' be-
came a tradition travelling with the Band, at home and away,
for they were as well known in Dunoon as they were at home.
Band people from Nottingham to Endinburgh and Northern Ire-
land knew these men, and always had a chat and a drink with
them. But as the years bring changes some of them are no
longer travelling to Dunoon. Every year someone asks "are
the boys over this year", and they are sad when the answer
is "No". These men were highly respected by all who knew
them.
Towards the end of 1968 the Band suffered a big loss,
when one of our long serving members, Kit Collins, was call-
to his eternal reward R.I.P.. Kit did more than his share
of work for the Band and they played at his funeral. The
P.M. played 'Flowers of the Forest' which was very moving.
The next year the Band reached a new high, when at the
East of Ireland Championships in Howth we won the major
prize and became for the first time East of Ireland Champ-
ions for 1969. This Cup along with two others made the
day a memorable one.
 As the year of 1969 came to a close, the Band suffer-
ed another loss. This time it was the death of our Drum
Major , Jack McGuinness, who was known to all as the
'Father' of the Band. He was a founder member ,and was
always ready to help the Band in every way. He gave finan-
cial aid , when it was badly needed, and all kinds of
other activities such as collecting pipes, reeds, drums etc.
The Band played at his funeral and as ~he lament was being
played by the Pipe Major at th e lowering of the remains,
there was scarcely a dry eye in the Cemetery.
These were two great memhers gone in twelve months,
as clubmen these were tops, and deeply r~spected by the
members of the Band and the community in general, because of
their constant work to keep the name of st. Haur's Pipe
Band alive. So with the great names of ·Ki t Collins a nd
Jack McGuinness passes an era that was respected by all.
At the Corpus Christi procession in 1970, a new Drum
Major, Billy Ryan, led the Band. Billy being an excellent
clubman, everyone in the Band was glad to see him stepping
in to lead it.
During the early seventies the Band competed in quite
a number of Contests and brought home numerous Trophies.
1978 saw the Band st art a Mini Band Contest of their own.
This was the first t Lme a Contest was run in Rush, ,s o a '
lot of work had to be done before we could launch this pro-
ject. First we had to find somewhere to hold the Contest.
The Committee decided to ask Mr. Liam Butterly of The Good
Olde Days for the use of the Ballroom. When he was appro-
ached, he made no hesitation in giving the Band full use
of the club bnd car-park. He would not hear of payment for
same, as the Band held their Annual Dinner Dance in the
club every year. His ' ge ne r os1 ty and goodwill is much
appreciated.
Now we had to see about Trophies and money , for prizes
in order to make it worth while and to attract t he Bands.
Well luck was with us on this issue, for when word got
round of our ve ~ture, we got a tremendous response. Cups
came in from Kit Harford, Coleman Harford, Des McGee, Bobby
Carrick, Andy Carrick, Travel World, Irish Rubies, the
Ladies Committee, Joe Walsh, John Leonard and a lovely
Trophy from E.B.F. and Marie Carrick and family, with money
coming in frn~ almost everyone attached to the Band. It
was really a treat to see the support we got on the day of
the Contest, for the place was really packed. We had Bands
from Wexford up to Belfast co~peting, this added to the day
and to the venture. The Contest has become an annual event
and let us hope it will remain so for many years to come.
The seventies saw another change in the personnel of
the Band, with Francie Lowndes taking over as Drum Major
from Billy Ryan, who resigned owing of other commitments.
Lessons were given .by a Drum Major from the North in the
Howth Bandroom. These lessons were attended by our own
Drum Major Francie Lowndes, who went on to win a number of
Trophies.
The seventies were to see another new venture in the
Band, this time in the form of a Juv.enile Band. This Band
competed in the Juvenile Contest in Durrow, and did very
well. During winter months these young people practiced
with the Band, and some joined. Alas, many more gave up
and left us, which was a pity as they had had the best of
tuition in piping and drumming and had the ability to be
very good artists. The Juvenile Band was a worthwhile
venture that paid off, as it left more in the ranks to
carry us on and make further progress.
In the Mid-seventies Jack Byrne came down to teach the
drummers, and may I add, he certainl~ made a good Drum Corps
out of them. For through his good tuition, they went on to
win quite a number of Trophies. Many thanks to John for a
job well done, and hoping it will be kept up. At this
point, I would like to mention the ex P.M. of the Band. He
is Kit Langan who was home on his first holiday from Canada.
On this occasion the Band gave a little reception for him
in the Good Olde Days, which was attended by a large crowd,
and a good time was had by all. Later Kitty donated his
own set of Pipes to the Band as a souvenir. He also sent
home another set of Pipes. Our thanks to Kitty for remem-
bering St. Maur's Pipe Band and these gifts are deeply
appreciated.
 From the Mid-seventies onwards, the Band ~ook part in
the Cowal Games again, each time moving up, but still with-
out getting mentioned in the prize list. As you know it
is very hard to get up to the top six in any Grade over there,
but to be in the middle gives a great feeling of satisfaction.
As we move into the eighties we started to modernise
our equipment. First the Band bought four side Drums in
Scotland from Alex Duthard of Shortts for the sum of £362.56.
We also bought ten War Mac Chanters from J. McAllister at
£40 each. These items were necessary and hopef.lly the Band
will reap the benefit in due course.
The mGxch of time claimed two more of our members, they
were Mickey Kerrigan and Des McGee. These men had a good
innings with the Band, and gave their best to it R.I.P.
The year of 1980 saw one of our stalwart members retire
from the ~laying ranks of the Band. This was none other than
Tom Andrews. He put in years of service with the Band, com-
ing into the ranks in the Mid-thirties and continuing right
up to 1980. He had a very keen ear for tuning the Pipes and
as Pipe Sargent, he could pull his weight with the best of
them. Certainly a great loss to the piping end of the Band.
Young people should try and copy the pattern set up by
players like this. Another man who served over t~irty years
in the Band was Larry Jones, his first contest was the first
All Ireland held in Dublin in 1946.
In the year 1980 the Band won a few more trophies, also
members were placed in the honour's list in solo piping and
drumming. These Trophies small or big add to the morale of
the Band and keep young ~embers active, and gives them a
push forward which indeed everyone likes to get now and
then. The Band, in general, looks back on 1980 as a 'ver y
good year. We cannot, of course, dwell too long on the past
seasons but must look to the future for even greater success.
In the Pipe Santi world you have to look to the coming Contest
season and plan out a proeramme in advance to suit your Band.
As every year urinc:s a change 1 :1 the personnel, the strength
of a ~an<i lies with the weakest player, Drummer or Piper,
and it is wi t h tnese pl.anka you build your platform.
 Father Crinion, Drum Major J. McGuinness
Front Row L to R S. Carrick, D. McGee,
C. Collins, T. Andrews,
Second Row (L to R) L. Jones, J. Archbold
E. Weldon, B. Jones.
Third Row (L to R) P. Thorne, P. Flynn •.
Fourth Row (L to R) A. Monks, B. Butterly
M. Jones, G. Jones.

-------- .....-.---
ANNUAL DINNER DANCE

L to R P. J. Berrill, M. Donohue
(Members of Leinster Branch I.P.B.A.)
S. Madden (Piping Instructor),
J. McGuinness, C. Farren (Hon. Sec.)
 1981 saw for the firot time a Drummer taking over a
new role in the Band. Paul Leonard, tenor drummer, turned
out as piper. Congratulations to Paul. During tnis year
we took home three Trophies for the season. It may not
have been our best year, but it saw us rebuilding for 1982
our centenary year.
1982 started with our own NjLni Band Contest, which was
fairly well supported. We had a Band from Belfast and from
Newry along with most of our local Bands from the Leinster
Branch competing. In all we had a good Contest, to make it
worth while to run it again in 1983. In our own Grade we
had A and B Bands competing, A Band winning first~ This
Band included N. and E. Harford, Bri~ Weldon, John Carrick,
'Pipers', John Leonard, David Carrick and Pat Murphy on
drums. Truly this was a very good group, and deserved to
win.
The All Ireland was' held on the first Saturday in July
in Blackrock College. Our Band was drawn to play at 3.37p.m.
approx. We started to practice just as the Black Ravens
were moving up to the final stages of preparation for their
Contest. Everything was going for us, as we moved to the
last tuning ground. We played an Irish selection and this
brought a large gallery around us. Th~re was a Northern Band
'Grade l' practicing nearby at the time. When they stopped,
they joined the gallery. They complimented us on our display.
This was a honour as the Band turned out to be McNeillston,
who were to be All Ireland Champs on that day. The Chairman
of the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association, also compliment-
ed which added to the Band's morale. We had two delays, 25
minutes in all, this was off putting as we had our Band up
to peak at the alledged starting time, and shattered our
hopes of taking a prize which at 3.30 was well within our
grasp. It is disappointing when things like this goes wrong.
Our next Contest was more rewarding. It was the Annual
Contest in Durrow, this is a mini All Ireland and collects
Bands from the foru provinces. It is very well run, making
it a good day's outing. Our Band picked up a prize and we
were delighted.
 The last but ont least Contest of the year was the
Cowal Highlan~Games held in Dunoon in Scotland. As pre-
viously mentioned, the Band travels over to this yearly,
if not competing, to be there at what is termed as the
biggest Contest in the world. This year, being our Gold-
en Anniversary, the committee decided to enter the Band
in ,t he aontest. Our thanks to Marie Carrick, who organ-
ised our itineraey, buses to and from the Airport, flights
and hotels. We had forty in the group including the Band.
We arrived safe and well in Dunoon, midday on Thursday.
As the Band had stayed in the same hotel for a number of
years we soon felt at home. Everything had gone accord-
ing to plan, thanks to Marie.
On Friday morning, the Band was invited to play in
the Argyle Gardens on the night before the games. This
came as a big surprize, as we ha~e a small Band, but being
our Golden Anniversary, the Pipe Major (Yours Truly)
accepted the invitation on the Band's behalf. oands from
England and Northern Ireland were to play also. At the
set time, the Bands assembled at the starting point and we
played down Argyle Street. When the other Bands finished
in turn, the commentator announced "st. Maurs from the
RepUblic of Ireland will now entertain you,". This was
followed by a loud cheer, as there were a number of Irish
present. The Band marched to the music of 3/8 tunes
which were well received by an audience of thousands and
went on to play its contest selection. The commentator
then wished us well on Our Golden Anniversary and said
"If this Band is small in numbers it is not lacking in
quality." This was met by tumultuous applause and the we
played an Irish Selection. The Drum Corps played a Drum
salute and the Band marched off with Sco~land the Brave,
to end an engagement with a difference.
Outside we were surrounded by people congratulating
us and wishing us well. We played our Irish selection
again and as the Band played up the Prom. to the Hotel
a very big crowd followed us. During our performance in
the Gardens there were tears i n the eyes of our following,
they were so moved. One man who is President of the
Leinster Branch said, he felt proud to be Irish. On re-
turning to the Hotel, we were greeted by members of other
Dublin Bands who also congratulated us, and there were
celebrations which lasted till Midnight. We broke up then
as we had an early start next day.
AT the Castle Gardens you get a T. piece with the name
of your "Band on it, and the carrier walks in front of the
Drum Major. In our case it was the grandson of the Pipe
Major, which meant, there was three generations in the Band
on that day, Yours Truly, his son and his grandson. The
other members of the Band were brothers Noel and Eddie
Harford, John Leonard and son Paul, David Carrick and his
nephew Adrian, Brian Weldon, James Sweetman Pat Murphy,
Paul Price, and one female member Deirdre Corry, Drum Major
Frank Lowndes with guest Tom Buckley.
When the Band is called in under the Arcade to start
on its way up to the field, " you get a feeling only known
to those who actually take part in it, and facing up Argyle
Street is a thrill. It is also a tonic for young players
with nerves, for it helps to cure them before the Contest.
The Band played very well in the Contest and we were well
placed. There were thirty eight Bands in our Grade, so
we were very pleased. As we marched past the Chief tan of
the day, our name and Golden Jubilee were announced, we
were certainly a proud Band on that day. When all was
finished on the Contest Field, the march back down to the
town started. This has to be seen to be believed, with
about one hundred and thirty Bands and each Drum Major
sending his mace up in t~e air, to the loud cheering of
thousands of people. Any hardships you went through
during the day was completely forgotten. Our own Band
certainly hit its top form during this parade, with our
Drum Major really at his best. We were congratulated by
a member of the Contest committee on our performances both
on Friday night and in the Contest and invited back again.
This made the trip worthwhile.
I have been going to the Games since 1960 and my long
awaited wish come true, that was to play in the Argyle qar-
dens on Friday night. As th~ saying goes Itif you wait on
a fine ·day, you will get onev,
that I have written is as near as I can remember about
the history.of the Band. If · I have left out names or dates
it is not with intent, for going back so far i6 not the
easiest thing to do. Most of the people I did write about
were long serving members, so I hope you will understand.
May I wish St. Maur~s Band many more successful years
and say how proud I am to have been part of it. God bless
you all.

Is Mise,

T. Carrick.

DINNER DANCE. HOLMPATRICK 1968.

Back Row (L to R) L. Jones, T. Corr,

M. McCann, D. McGee, M. McGee.
Centre Row (L to g) M. Doyle, M. Jones,
J. Smith, T. Dunne, W. Ryan, J. Archbold
Front Row (L ~o R) S. Carrick, T. And-
rews, Father Shine, Father Donohue, Fath-
er Perkins, C. Collins C. Farren.