10 pipe and drum bands were in Nelson this weekend to celebrate the Kootenay Kiltie Pipe Band’s 100th anniversary and Spring Fling.
It’s the third time Nelson has been host and Pipe Major David Hogg said events included a drum off, and horn pipe and jig contest.
Performances also filled Baker Street on Saturday.
“Each band marched down the length of Baker Street from Falls to Hall, then we had a mass band go from Josephine to Hall – all the bands together”
Mayor John Dooley also presented the Kootenay Kiltie Pipe Band with the Freedom of the City, which Pipe Major Hogg accepted:
“It was a great honour to have not just the current band but the hundreds of people who have come before us. That’s what it means to me. It’s just a great honour to accept it on behalf of a hundred years of people who walked – who marched up and down Baker Street.”
According to the Pipe Major, a few of the Band’s alumni were in attendance for the presentation:
“There was someone in the band whose name was Norm Hansen and he was in the pipe band – I’ve got a picture of him from 1949. He was in the band in 1949 on Victoria Street in front of the legion.”
Selected by Council, the Freedom of the City is bestowed upon individuals or groups to honour their contributions.
