History
Coleford Town Band
"The picture was taken in the courtyard of the Angel Hotel in Coleford in 1946. This is now part of the main bar area as you enter the hotel as it was altered and extended several years ago.As you look at picture the band used to hold their rehearsals in one of the rooms up a set of stone stairs to the left of the band. The rehearsals were held there until about 1960 at which time the band were able to purchase the premises in Cinderhill Coleford"
Mervyn
Back row L-R: L. Hoare, C. Hill, Gordon Pritchard, S. Ward, K. Teague, Geoff Roberts.
Middle row L-R: B. Benfield, J. Cole, J. Baglin, G. Morgan, R. Preest, K. Jenkins, Tony Baker, Alf Bradley, B. Williams, B. Harris, Gilbert Gwynne
Front row L-R: W. Tomlins, C. Anderson, Maurice Savory, Sid Cooper, Evan Jones, John Baker, H. Poulton, Harry. Brown, E. Poulton
Reproduced by kind permission of SunGreen.co.uk
Yorkley Onward Band
Back Row: Committee (Left to Right), Baldwin, George James, Will Robins, Thomas James, William Thomas.
Back Row: Players (Left to Right): Richard Akers, William Ellway, George Morse, Tom Watkins, Jack Robins, George Searle, William Watts, Harry Marshall.
Standing, second row of players (Left to Right): John Jones, George Marshall, George Morse, Wallace Watkins, Charles Reese Jones, Albert Marshall, Albert Thomas, Campbell Anderson, Fred Nelmes, William Willetts.
Seated players (Left to Right): Oliver Thomas, Riley Brown, Horace Jones (founder conductor), Jerry Holdsworth, Charles Nelmes, Albert Williams.
On the ground (Left to Right):Fred Morse, Lionel Robins, Thomas Morse.
According to the three Forest newspapers of Friday October 13th 1967, this is the first photo of Yorkley Onward Band in 1905. It was taken at the time of the band's first contest in front of the Crown Inn (Crown Lane, Yorkley). The first band room was a hut in the field behind the inn.
Jerry Holdsworth was the first professional coach engaged by the band, he came from the Liverpool area and continued to coach the band for a few years.
​
​
​
In her book "Early Days at Stone Cottage" Freda Phipps mentions the formation of the band: "My Dad (George Morse) was a member of Pillowell Brass Band until they disbanded in 1903 when some members including Dad and five or six of his nephews formed Yorkley Onward Band ... Until the (Onward) hall was built with donations and loans from some of the band members, the band always practiced in a hut in Crown Lane.".
Reproduced by kind permission of SunGreen.co.uk
Forest Of Dean Brass
Yorkley Onward band and Coleford Town Band were active until 1994 when they amalgamated to form Forest of Dean Brass.
Forest of Dean Brass at Gloucester Cathedral in F W Harvey themed concert, 27th June 2014