Gold for Brass

This badge may have been earned with brass but it is coated with nine carat gold. Drum Major Neil Shepherd was awarded the badge in 1923 after leading the Fourth Wellington Regiment brass band to victory in the B Grade division of the North Island Brass Band Championships, held at Pukekura Park on March 3.

According to a Taranaki Herald report the champs were a big draw-card, with a crowd of 12,000 witnessing the victory. Along with this handsome badge, inscribed with the winner’s details, the band also picked up £35 for their troubles. It was donated to Puke Ariki in 2010 after publicity around the 150th Anniversary celebrations of the New Plymouth Brass Band jogged the memories of the Shepherd family from Nelson.