DCA 1.0: 1954 - 1973

Overview

The Syracuse Brigadiers Drum and Bugle Corps is a precision musical/marching organization that is historically significant to the City of Syracuse and the Central New York region.

The corps began life in 1938 as a junior corps organized by the Polish Legion of American Veterans (PLAV) Post 14 in Syracuse. After World War II the original corps was reorganized as a senior drum and bugle corps. In field competition, this new senior corps captured the title of PLAV National Champions every year that the contest was held.

In 1954, The Boys from Syracuse, The Cortland Moose, and The Sons of American Legion Post 41 drum corps all merged under the name The Syracuse Brigadiers. This was the first step in their climb to international fame.

The Syracuse Brigadiers won the coveted title of New York State American Legion Champions from 1955 through 1960 and then again in 1964 and 1967. Under the sponsorship of PLAV Post 14 and American Legion Post 1677, the Syracuse Brigadiers were finalists in the American Legion National Championships every time they entered, were runners-up three times, and were international champions in 1957 and 1958.

During the 1968 season, although the Brigs membership was devastated by the tragic deaths of two of their members in an automobile accident after a rehearsal, the corps still came within a few tenths of a point from being crowned DCA World Champions.

The quality of the Brigadiers’ performances diminished during the following years. The corps was inactive in 1972, but made a sterling comeback attempt in 1973. Although other corps had the luxury of eleven months of preparation for the DCA World Championships, the Brigadiers had to endure an intense five-week rehearsal schedule before entering field competition only a few weeks before the 1973 DCA World Championships. A judging penalty for undersized flags at the preliminary competition caused the Brigs to miss DCA Finals by five hundredths of a point, a blow from which the corps was unable to recover. The Syracuse Brigadiers folded, for 17 years.

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