MacDougall Girls’ Pipe Band of Dominion/Glace Bay.

Michael MacDougall, a resident of the Town of Dominion, founded the MacDougall Girls’ Pipe Band of Dominion in 1952. He was descended from emigrants from South Uist who settled in Cape Breton in the early 1800s. He was a piper with the 25th (NS Rifles) CEF Battalion during World War I before moving to Dominion. For a time, MacDougall lived in Boston, where he played in and directed the Highland Dress Association Pipe Band for three years. Upon returning to Cape Breton, he joined the Cape Breton Highlanders and served with them for ten years.

In September of 1952, MacDougall started chanter classes in Dominion and Glace Bay and soon thereafter he founded the girls’ pipe band that took his name and tartan, the MacDougall Girls’ Pipe Band of Dominion. The band made its first public appearance in November at a concert held at the MacDonald High School in Dominion, with the girls appearing in white blouses and tartan skirts and playing the scale on their practice chanters. Progress was rapid, however, and the girls played in their first parade on Remembrance Day in Reserve in 1953.

In 1954, the Town of Dominion presented the band with its mace. Drum Major Hildegard Murphy proudly accepted it on behalf of the band. Other early members of the band were: Donna Marie MacNeil, Mary Lou MacNeil, Drucilla MacPherson, Frances Timmons, Sharon Currie, Lorraine Dauphine, Grail O’Neil, Lois Routledge, Byrle Munro, Viola White, Mamie MacLellan, Shirley Young, Mamie Graham, Theresa Young, Ann MacKenzie, Betty MacKenzie, Catherine Campbell, Corraine MacNeil, Betty Corbett and Catherine MacNeil. Mike taught the band until he retired in 1955, sometime after the MacDougall Girls had taken part in the Opening of the Canso Causeway on August 13th.

Sally MacPherson, aged 16, taught the pipers for the winter months but went to work in Halifax in 1956. Danny MacIntyre took over the band for a very brief period, with the help of his brother, Peter. Unfortunately, Danny’s other commitments, including his recent marriage as well as his appointment as pipe major of the Cape Breton Highlanders, made it impossible for him to continue for long as instructor to the MacDougall Girls’. Clarence Hunt, who was the musical director and drumming instructor of the MacDougall Girls’ Pipe Band, approached Jack MacIsaac, a boy piper with the Cape Breton Highlanders Pipe Band, who was also teaching chanter classes for the Stornaway Pipe Band, to see if he would agree to teach the MacDougall Girls’ pipers. Jack was just sixteen, and several of the senior girls were older than he was, so it was a daunting task, but after an initial stern lecture about behavior to the girls from Mr. Hunt, in which he warned the "guys" that any foolishness on their parts at practices would result in his disciplinary actions; Jack had no problems and helped bring the band to new heights over the next five years.

In 1956, the MacDougall Girls placed 3rd in the Girls’ Pipe Band Competition at the Antigonish Highland Games, but in 1957, 1958, and 1959, it placed first in that event. In 1957, the band also won competitions in Cape Breton, in New Brunswick and at Charlottetown, PEI and was named the Junior Girls’ Pipe Band Champions of Eastern Canada.

According to piping instructor Jack MacIsaac, Marilyn Goldie was the pipe major for most of the years in which he taught the band. Certainly, the record shows that in 1958, Marilyn was the pipe major. That year, the band again won the Junior Girls’ Pipe Band Championship for Eastern Canada. They were also awarded the Cape Breton Championship, the Nova Scotia Championship at Antigonish, the New Brunswick Championship at Rothesay, NB, and the Prince Edward Island Championship at Eldon, PEI. That fall, they travelled to Brookline Massachusetts to perform and compete at the 70th Annual Labor Day Scottish Picnic and Highland Games. At the end of the day, they were named the New England Class "B" Pipe Band Champions, and that evening, the band performed in concert at the Ross Croix Ballroom.

In June 1959, the band travelled to New York City where they placed first out of 92 bands in the Lions International Parade Championship competition. While in the "Big Apple", they competed against bands from Canada, the United States and South America, nudging aside second place finishers, the US Marine College Band, before a very large audience at Madison Square Gardens. They also performed at other venues around the city.

MacDougall Girls’ Pipe Band in 1959

Upon their return to Glace Bay, the band was honoured to receive an invitation from the New York promoters, Savoy Entertainment, to tour North America with the Daganham Ladies Pipe Band from England. It would have been a wonderful experience, taking the girls to a large number of performances right across the continent from New York to California, but it was not possible to let the young Cape Breton musicians miss school for that length of time and the offer was regrettably turned down. That August, however, the band attended the North American Championships in Maxville, Ontario, placing fifth in the Open Slow March and 6/8 competition.

As with all junior bands, the membership changed in the MacDougall Girls Pipe Band over the years. By the late 1950s and early 1960s, many new pipers and drummers had taken their place in the band. One list published in the band’s 25th anniversary booklet lists the following members: pipers Carol Wilkinson, Margie Wilson, Valerie Cooke, Charlotte Morrison, Evelyn Kennedy, Sharon Whiting, Cecilia MacDonald, Anne MacMullin, and drummers Jo Campbell, Elaine Beaton, Hildegard Murphy, Tana Traboulsee, Betty Wilson, and Wendy Turnbull. This was the competing unit that captured first place in competition at Eldon, PEI.

In 1960, the band travelled by train to Chicago where they again took part in the Lions’ International Parade Competition. On the way, they had a six-hour stopover in Toronto so Clarence Hunt contacted Pipe Major Archie Dewar of the 48th Highlanders Pipe Band who arranged to have the girls transported to the armouries where each band took a turn entertaining the other and sharing a meal together. Years later, Jack MacIsaac ran into Sandy Dewar, Archie’s son and a piper in the band at that time. Sandy remembered well the MacDougall Girls’ visit and remembered the names of three of the tunes they had played that day - “Pipe Major Sam Scott”, “Angus MacKinnon” and “Kirkhill”. Other up-and-coming young pipers there that day included Billy Gilmour and Reay MacKay, both of whom went on to become big names in piping in Ontario.

After that pleasant interlude, the band was taken back to the train station where they were sent on their way to Chicago. Jack MacIsaac remembered the thrill the girls felt upon placing first in the parade competition against other more senior contingents such as the Chicago Stockyard Kiltie Pipe Band under Pipe Major Robert Sym, and the St. Thomas Police Pipe Band under Pipe Major Gordie Tuck. Jack clarified the situation by stressing that the competition was a parade event and the dress and deportment of the band contributed heavily towards their final placings. The MacDougall Girls were very smartly turned out and their drill was absolutely precise. Their playing was of a sufficiently high calibre as well, that the judges had no problem awarding the young group the top honours of the day.

That evening, James Petrie, an old country piper who had immigrated to America and who had seen the band in the parade, traced them to their hotel and came for a visit. An excellent piper himself, he delighted the girls with many tunes on Jack MacIsaac’s pipes, playing jigs and reels such as the girls had never heard before. It was truly a memorable trip for everyone, but it was all too short, and before long the band was back in Cape Breton.

The MacDougall Girls also attended the Antigonish Games in 1960, placing first in the junior band event, fifteen points over the second place band. They also took first place prizes at Coxheath, at Eldon, PEI, and at the games held in celebration of Sydney’s 175th Anniversary. They placed second to the MacDonald Hundred band at the Gaelic Mod and went on to compete in Brookline, Massachusetts at the end of the summer.

Jack MacIsaac moved to Stellarton, Pictou County in the fall. Peter Morrison took over as the principal piping instructor of the band and Angus MacIntyre, an elderly Glace Bay piper, formerly of the MacIntyre Pipe Band of Glace Bay, was a private tutor for a number of the pipers.

In 1961, the MacDougall Girls’ Pipe Band travelled to the United States again, this time to Atlantic City for their third Lions’ International Parade Competition. This time, there were more than 100 bands participating. They had to accept second place, however, as their keenest rivals from the New York event edged them out of the top spot.

In 1961, and again in 1962, the band won the Girls’ Band event at the Antigonish games. In 1963, a headline in The Casket announced that the MacDougall Girls’ Pipe Band of Dominion continued their undisputed reign as Girls Pipe Band Champions, receiving a near-perfect mark from the judges.

MacDougall Girls’ Pipe Band's bus in 1959

To this point in their history, the MacDougall Girls’ Pipe Band had played in more than one hundred and sixty parades, appeared on television, and had trained more than eighty young girls in the art of playing pipes or drums. The pipe major in 1962 and 1963 was Carol Wilkinson, with Margie Wilson taking over when Carol left to study nursing that fall. The drum major was Wendy Turnbull, with Clarence Hunt and Peter Morrison instructing the band.

A photo of the band performing in Iona about 1963 showed the following membership: Valerie Cooke, Anita Lamey, Cecelia MacDonald, Sharon Whiting, Maria Donovan, Pipe Major Carol Wilkinson, Ann MacMullin, Georgette Gardiner, Ealine Beaton (bass drummer), Valerie Khattar, Evelyn Kennedy, Pipe Sergeant Margie Wilson, D/M Wendy Turnbull, Kathleen Hiscock, Tana Traboulsee, Betty Wilson, Beverly Turnbull, Margarite Zillman and Jo Campbell.

The band won the Junior Pipe Band event at the Antigonish games again in 1964, beating out the Saint John Kiwanis Pipe Band from New Brunswick. They also won first place at the Glace Bay Highland Gathering, and participated in the parade to open the Second Annual Miners’ Week in Glace Bay. At that time, the competing band consisted of pipers Evelyn Kennedy, Valerie Cooke, Maria Donovan, Cecilia MacDonald, Anita Lamey, Sharon Collins, Judy Guthro, and drummers Margarite Zillman, Elaine Beaton, Beverly Turnbull, Tana Traboulsee, Brenda Donovan and Betty Wilson. Instructors were Clarence Hunt for drumming and Peter Morrison for piping.

In 1965, competing once again in the Girls’ Pipe Band event at the Antigonish Highland Games, the MacDougall Girls’ Pipe Band came first yet again. In 1966, they placed first at the Glace Bay Highland Games and were awarded the Annie Patterson Trophy.

Danny MacIntyre was back with the band by 1967 when he and Clarence Hunt took them to Montreal to perform at Expo ‘67. That summer, they had won every competition they entered in the Maritimes, including the Nova Scotia Junior Pipe Band Championship at the Centennial Highland Games held in Halifax. A quartet consisting of Evelyn Kennedy, Anita Lamey, Valerie Cooke and Maria Donovan placed first at the Gaelic Mod at St. Ann’s.

As often happens with young bands such as the MacDougall Girls’, a fairly large number of members left the band at the end of the 1967 season as they continued their education or sought employment opportunities outside their hometowns, and the band embarked on a period of rebuilding in 1968. The members at that time included Judy Guthro, Sharon Ridout, Nancy George, Carol Boutilier, Audrey Timmons, Debbie MacDonald, Myrna Gallant, Debbie Collins, Patricia Politte, Brenda Donovan, Isabel George, Cindy Turnbull, Elaine Barkhouse, Joyce Gallant, and Sharon Collins.

In 1969, the MacDougall Girls’ entered competition against the senior bands at the Antigonish Highland Games, placing third. They returned to the junior band ranks for the 1970 season, placing third after Antigonish Legion and Balmoral Girls in the Maritime Junior Pipe Band Championship held for the first time at the Antigonish Highland Games. They placed second behind the Gaelic College in the mini band event.

In 1971, the band attended the first Antigonish Indoor Piping and Drumming Meet held in May, tying for third place in the Open Quartet competition. The band travelled to Brantford, Ontario and participated in the Brantford Highland Games as guests of the city. At the Antigonish Highland Games, the band placed second in the Maritime Junior Pipe Band Championship.

When the graded system for competitions was introduced to Nova Scotia in 1972, something vehemently opposed by their manager, Mr. Rod MacMullin, the MacDougall Girls’ Pipe Band found themselves sharing the highest grade, Grade 1, with the Antigonish Legion Pipe Band at all competitions in Nova Scotia. Despite MacMullin’s misgivings, they won the Hawker Siddley Trophy at the Maritime Pipe Band Championship held at New Glasgow. Angus MacIntyre was pictured with the girls and listed as one of their instructors at that time. Debbie MacDonald was listed as pipe major. That August, they travelled to Ontario where they competed at the Grade 2 level at the Scottish World Festival’s Intercontinental Pipe Band Championships at the CNE grounds in Toronto but did not place in the prize list.

In 1973, the band was dropped back to Grade 2 in Nova Scotia, and placed first at the competitions in Pugwash and Antigonish. In August, the band took part in the Gaelic Mod, placing second in the quartet event. At that time, the piping instructor was Anne Boozan, the pipe major was Myrna Gallant, and the lead drummer was Tana Wilkinson. The thirteen-member band travelled to Toronto to participate in the Scottish World Festival. The band played in the mammoth street parade and entered competitions on the weekend but did not place in the prizes.

In 1974, the band travelled to Ottawa in June where it competed in the Grade 3 Canadian Inter-Provincial Championships, but did not manage to place in the prize list. The band was once again invited to Brantford, Ontario to play at the Bell Centennial Celebrations where they attracted a very large audience of ex-Cape Bretoners who came to see the girls from back home perform. Following one of their performances there, the girls presented Mayor Charles Bowen with a pit lamp from the Town of Glace Bay. Sergeant Carol Boutilier and Corporal Annadeane MacMullin made the presentation on behalf of the band.

The band continued to compete in Maritime competitions in 1975. Its members that year included Mary Claire Chipman, Lynn Fowler, Carol Gillis, Cindy MacDougall, Cindy Turnbull, Elaine Boutilier, Joan MacIntyre, Annadeane MacMullin, Colleen Turnbull, Carol Boutilier, Colleen Boutilier, Aileen MacPhee, Jolene McNeil, and Susie Ellsworth. Two of the pipers, Carol Mary Boutilier and Coleen Turnbull were among twenty Nova Scotians who took part in an All-Canada Massed Pipe Band that performed in the Rose Bowl Parade in Pasedena, California on January 1st, 1976.

In 1976, there were more new faces, including Wanda Timmons, Patricia Morrison, Mary G. MacDonald, Patricia Ellsworth, instructor Evelyn Russell, Sandy MacMaster, Brenda Nash, Cindy MacDougall, Leslye MacMaster, Heather Timmons, Karen MacLean, Heather Shaw, Colleen Boutilier, Cindy Turnbull, Carol Gillis and Jolene McNeil. Drumming instructor and musical director was still Clarence Hunt.

MacDougall Girls’ Pipe Band in 1977

The band celebrated its 25th Anniversary in July of 1977 with instructors Clarence Hunt, Evelyn Russell and chanter instructor Joan MacIntyre. The band had a large chanter and drumming class that year, with at least nineteen young girls taking part. At the Festival of the Tartans in New Glasgow, the band placed second in the Grade 4 event.

In 1979, the band took part in the first Nova Scotia International Tattoo, and had the honour of performing before Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, at that event. The band was named the Grade 4 Champions Supreme and was promoted back up to Grade 3 after a very successful summer of competitions across the Maritimes. The band placed first in the Grade 3 event at Pugwash on July 1st, 1980.

By the fall, however, the numbers declined again and this time there were very few new girls ready to take the places of those who left. Consequently, the MacDougall Girls’ Pipe Band folded in the summer of 1981. Attempts were made to revive it, and a Society of MacDougall Pipe Band was formed briefly, but this group of senior girls could not attract enough drummers to keep the band viable. Thus, after a roller coaster ride that lasted thirty years, the MacDougall Girls’ Pipe Band faded into memory.