Purple Knights
From DrumCorpsWiki
The Purple Knights Drum and Bugle Corp were a junior drum corps from Rockford, Illinois.
[edit] History
The Purple Knights Drum and Bugle Corp, from Rockford,IL, grew out of the St.Thomas High School Crusaders in the 1950's. The Corp enjoyed the height of it's success in the early 1960's. During the early 60's both Rockford Corp's, the Purple Knights and the Phantom Regiment, placed in the top 15 in the nation and enjoyed a spirited competition. In 1964 the corps disbanded for a short time. In 1965 the corp was reborn as a parade corps and progressed rapidly winning the A division championship at the South Milwaukee show in 1966. In 1966 the Knights competed throughout the year including the VFW Championships in Jersey City, New Jersey. Music that year included "Night Flight From Madrid", "Porgy & Bess", "Give Me Your Tired and Poor" and the finale "That's All".
During the period between 1966 and 1968 the corp featured an excellent guard and several group and individual winners, including it's brass quartet, snare drummer Dan Drolsum and Bass/Baritone Dave Lindberg. The drum line included among others Dan Drolsum, Mike Brady, Tim Brady, Bob Nolan and Rich Muno. The horn line included, among others, Mike Elliot, Warren Pearson, Stan Thompson, Steve Kennedy, Cathy Verstynen, Matt Bullard and Dave Lindberg. The Drum Major was Jon Adams and the Color Guard was lead by Kathy Birch. The corp directors were Bob Johnson and Harry Pozzi.
The Purple Knights uniform varied somewhat through the years but was essentially a white blouse with diagonal purple stripe, wide chrome belt buckle, purple pants and purple shako with a white "pickle plum". The corps headquarters, Knight Hall, was located on the corner of East State and Second Streets in downtown Rockford across from Rockford's City Hall.
In the early 1960's the organization included a feeder corps known as the "Squires" and also included a developmental group for very young members called the "Pages".
The Purple Knights finally disbanded for good in the early 1970's.
