HISTORY

There has been a Pipe Band in Coldstream for many years. The original was formed as a Boys Brigade Band in 1931. Practice nights were held in the Scouts Hall (the old Lennel Knitwear factory). A fellow called Ken Chisholm who was a gardener at Carham Hall gave piping instruction. Pipers were William Beggs, Tom Pearson, George Walker and Willie Kinghorn who later played with the Scots Guards. Drummers were Ronald Orr, Mick Watson and Tich Bryson, Ian Hunter joined later as drum major along with piper Eddie Cunningham, who did so much to take the band forward.

The band used to turn out once a month for church parades and events such as Duns Show until the outbreak of World War II. After the war, the band was reformed, and uniforms were purchased in 1950, the drums were purchased in 1951. The men responsible for this were captain Bob Ormiston who had a drapers shop in the town and Eddie Cunningham a well-known local Barber.

The tartan chosen was Cameron of Erracht because Bob had been a serving member of the Cameron Highlanders. Presenting Coldstream presented the original mace in 1952. This mace still survives today, and was carried on Flodden Day 2002 to commemorate the 50th Cavalcade to Flodden Field.

Members of the Boys Brigade Band held a meeting in 1979 where it was decided to form a town band, which would be named the Coldstream Pipe Band. Money was raised to buy new uniforms and it was at a coffee morning in the old Town Hall that the people of Coldstream were asked to pick a new tartan for the band. The one chosen is the now familiar Nova Scotia, which includes the town colours of blue and white.

The band wears the Cunningham hat badge in memory of its early mentor and good friend, Eddie Cunningham.

The Boys Brigade band was continued by the late Captain Alistair Brown-Scott, who sadly died in early 2005. This BB band toured the UK and saw many young pipers and drummers pass through its ranks. Several former members still play in the town band and in other bands, most notably Malcolm Brown-Scott who pipes with the Vale of Atholl and Peter Meikle and Graeme Tait in the 1st Bn Kings Own Scottish Borderers; within the current band, Neil Moffat, the Cockburn brothers and John Lauder are all graduates of the 1st Company Coldstream BB band from the 1980's and Rob Bell, James Bell, Gordon Thompson and Bob Lillie from its earlier version.

In 1985 the boys brigade band and the town band joined together to form the town band as it exists today.

[Read an article by Alistair Brown-Scott about the Town Band in 1951 which appeared in the 2002 Civic Week programme]

TARTAN

In 1979 the new Town Band was in need of a uniform. During a series of fund raising events the townsfolk were able to vote on a selection of tartans they'd like to see the band wearing. They selected Nova Scotia and we've been wearing it ever since. More information at http://www.gov.ns.ca/playground/Tartan.asp

Sometimes referred to as 'electric-blue' and a source of hilarity to the Chookie Embra (who was nearly chinned for it) we are very proud to wear the Nova Scotia tartan. The blue and white in the tartan stand for the sea, the green represent the forests, red is for the royal lion on the Nova Scotia shield of arms, and gold for Nova Scotia's historic Royal Charter. All the colours of Nova Scotia reflect the colours of our own borderland, which makes this tartan such a fitting design for our band.