Brantford Girls

On October 16^th, 1953, a meeting occurred at the Brantford Catholic high school for girls who were interested in joining a newly formed band, known as the B.C.H. Girls’ Trumpet Band. The first Director of the corps was Father Frank A. Dentinger, Principal of the Brantford Catholic High School, later Father H. J. Hayes took charge. The first instructors were Bob Shewchuck on drums, Fred Nicholas on bugles, George Mellor for drill and drums, and later Gord Easton on drill. The first drum major, known then as a “Drum Majorette” was Linda Glendinning.

Originally there were sixteen members, and their first uniforms were ankle-length grey skirts and white blouses. In the fall of 1954 new uniforms were issued in green and white; these were the corps colours until 1976. Membership increased each year and in 1956 majorettes became part of the group. The unit began competing in 1956 in the drum and trumpet “All-Girls” division, starting a long history of winning parades and competitions within Canada and the United States. They went on to 2^nd place finishes in 1957 & 1958, adding a ten-member colour party, and by 1959, had fifty-three members, placing 3^rd.

In 1960, the Brantford Catholic high school changed its name to St. John’s College and subsequently, the Brantford Girls then became known as the St. John’s College drum and bugle corps. Over the next 4 seasons, St. John’s placed 2^nd in the 1960 & 1961 Canadian Nationals “All-Girls” class and won the first of 6 consecutive National championships from 1962 to 1967 along with an incredible 16 time Provincial champions from 1962 to 1977. During this time, St. John’s College became an “All-Boys” school in 1964 and therefore the “All-Girls” drum corps was no longer a part of the school. The Knights of Columbus Council 1679 then took over sponsorship of the corps, now known as the Knights of Columbus St. John’s Girls , or the K. of C. St. John’s Girls.

The next two years saw the K. of C. unit fall out of the National “All-Girls” title ranks, placing 2^nd in 1968 and 4^th in the 1969 preliminary round. The following season, the Knights of Columbus discontinued their sponsorship and the new St. John’s Girls drum & bugle corps became a self-sponsored organization. The Board of Directors, led by the Executive corps director George Mellor and the Parents’ committee strongly supported the group, as did the City of Brantford and its citizens, industries and businesses. They placed 3^rd in the 1970 Canadian Nationals “All-Girls” class and won the National title over the next 4 years, from 1971 to 1974, adding the 1971 Canadian Open “All-Girls” championships, gaining true international stature in 1972 by winning the US Open “All-Girls” championships, making them the first Canadian “All-Girls” drum corps to achieve this plateau, adding the International “All-Girls” Open championships as well.

Winning these championship titles created popularity within the City of Brantford, and as a result, their membership increased to 110 in 1973. They were also known as the “youngest” corps, because the average age of their members was only 14 years old. That year, the returned to the US Open, ranking 5^th in the “All-Girls” finals and competed in the US “Open Class” division, placing 42^nd. They also participated in the American International Open (AIO) “All-Girls” prelims, finishing in 4^th position and defended their International “All-Girls” Open title. In 1974, the corps toured extensively with appearances in the DCI North “Open Class” regionals, where they finished 11^th, the Key to the Sea Open, placing 10^th in the “Class A” finals and earned a 3^rd place finish in the US Open “All-Girls” finals, competing the next day in the “Open Class” preliminaries, improving to a 24^th place finish. They also entered in their very first DCI championships, placing 48^th in the prelims.

Another special honor bestowed upon the corps was receiving the Holiday Inn Peace Flag in 1975. This marked the first time that the flag, designated by Holiday Inns to promote world peace through tourism, would “have a recipient other than a world government leader.” That season saw St. John’s return to the DCI championships, where they finished 6^th in the prelims of the new “All-Girls” class, 2^nd in both the US Open and Canadian National finals. In 1976, they proudly carried the United States Bi-Centennial Flag alongside the Canadian flag, having been the only Canadian drum corps to be honored by the US Open championship Commission. They went on to 5^th place finishes in both the US & Key to the Sea Open regionals, culminating their season by placing 6^th in the DCI “All-Girls” prelims and 4^th in the Canadian Nationals.

The next year, they returned to a 5^th place finish in the US Open preliminaries and were crowned one last time as the 1977 Canadian National “All-Girls” champions. The 1978 season included appearances in the prelims of the DCI “All-Girls” (5^th) and US Open (8^th) championships and a 3^rd place finish in the Canadian Nationals “All-Girls class. In 1979, the corps went inactive and returned to the field of competition the following year, competing in the 1980 DCI Canada regionals, where they placed 7^th in the “All-Girls” division and 12^th in the “Open Class” championships. The year 1981 marked another notable event in the corps’ history with a name change from St. John’s Girls back to their roots as the Brantford Girls. Although the first original version was based in the local high school, this new version was named after valued community support and involvement, the Board of Directors voted strongly in favour of paying homage to their community and identifying the corps with their hometown. 

The corps remained fiercely competitive in the throughout 1981 to 1983, placing 5^th in both the 1981 DCI “All-Girls” finals and 1982 prelims; 3^rd in the prelims of the 1981 US Open “All-Girls” class and 15^th in the 1983 “Class A” regionals; 1983 Key to the Sea “Class A” prelims, finishing 12^th; 2^nd place finishes in the Canadian National “All-Girls” division over that same period. In 1983 they were also crowned the AIO “All-Girls” champions, receiving a banner flag and a 4-foot-high trophy as well as the award as the “Most Improved Drum Corps” by the Canadian Judges Association. In August 1984 members of the corps became “movie stars” when they were invited to appear in the movie “Sesame Street Presents:  Follow That Bird”. They spent two days in the town of Georgetown filming a brief parade segment and had the honor of meeting the late Jim Henson and the famed cast and crew of Sesame Street.

The drum corps season saw the Brantford Girls compete in the “Class A” regionals including the US & Key to the Sea Open preliminaries, placing 14^th and 17^th respectively, ending with a 6^th place finish in the Canadian Nationals “Class A” prelims. In October 1984, the Corps enjoyed “15 minutes of fame” when they played for Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip at the Mohawk Chapel in Brantford. In August 1985, the Sesame Street movie was released and the corps performed an exhibition show outside the Capitol Theatre when at the Brantford premiere. During their summer season of competition, the Brantford Girls participated within the “Class A/60” with appearances in the prelims of the both the DCI Canada and US Open regionals, placing in 6^th & 8^th position and performed their entertained the audience with their final field show in the 1985 Canadian Nationals, with a 3^rd place finish in the “Class A/60” division.

In 1986, the corps went coed and became known as St. John’s.

A History of Drum & Bugle Corps, 2002; Dave Strickler; DCI, 4/04, p.10;
St. John's Drum & Bugle Corps Alumni website and Facebook page dedicated to the corps' history and alumni; Paul Legault (DCX) 

CORPS 12 items

Brantford Girls

St Johns 1967 Button img692 from the Bob Carell Collection

Brantford Girls

st johns button 690a from the Bob Carell Collection

Brantford Girls

St Johns Button img691 from the Bob Carell Collection

Brantford Girls

St Johns Girls Button from the Bob Carell Collection

Brantford Girls

St. Johns from the Bob Carell Collection

Brantford Girls

St.JohnsGirls,Brantford,ON,Patch1-1972-Champions(Site)AG_U_S from the Richard Elmquist Collection

Brantford Girls

St.JohnsGirls,Brantford,ON,Pin1-BlackEagleRedLetters(RE-2.25)AG_U_S from the Richard Elmquist Collection

Brantford Girls

St.JohnsGirls,Brantford,ON,Pin2-GreenEagleGreenLetters(RE-2.25)AG_U_S from the Richard Elmquist Collection

Brantford Girls

St.JohnsGirls,Brantford,ON,Pin3-20thAnn(RE-4.0)AG_U_S from the Richard Elmquist Collection

Brantford Girls

St.JohnsGirls,Brantford,ON,Pin4-5TimeCanChamps(DSM)AG_U_S from the Richard Elmquist Collection

Brantford Girls

St.JohnsGirls,Brantford,ON,Pin5-7TimeCanChamps(LPU)AG_U_S from the Richard Elmquist Collection

Brantford Girls

St.JohnsGirls,Brantford,ON,Pin6-EagleInMapleLeafGreen(RCR)AG_U_S from the Richard Elmquist Collection

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