US Open Championships

A major American drum and bugle corps competition, annually held in mid-August, and operated by the US Open Commission. The first U.S. Open was held on Saturday, August 17th, 1968, with 25 Open Class and Class A contestants in both Preliminary and Finals competitions in Marion, Ohio. After 1988, the Open Class preliminary competitions were dropped, and all preliminaries were dropped after 1994.

## Scores

### 1968 U.S. Open, August 17

Open Class Finals

1. 71.92 Blue Rock, Wilmington, Delaware
2. 70.90 Blue Stars, LaCrosse, Wisconsin
3. 70.88 St. Lucy's Cadets, Newark, New Jersey
4. 68.27 Argonne Rebels, Great Bend, Kansas
5. 66.07 Anaheim Kingsmen, Anaheim, California
6. 61.87 The Muchachos, Hawthorne, New Jersey
7. 61.20 Boston Crusaders, Boston, Massachusetts (Note 1)
8. 59.43 Madison Scouts, Madison, Wisconsin
9. 57.25 Spectacle City Mariners, Greendale, Wisconsin
10. 56.77 Queensmen, Kenosha, Wisconsin

Class A Finals

1. 65.95 Catholic Daughters of America All-Girl, Butler, Pennsylvania
2. 52.43 Eaglettes All-Girl, Sandusky, Ohio
3. 42.87 Buccaneers, Dayton, Kentucky
4. 40.45 Queen City Cadets, Cincinnati, Ohio
5. 40.07 Maumee Suns, Maumee, Ohio

Open Class Prelims

1. 76.18 St. Lucy's Cadets, Newark, New Jersey
2. 75.57 Blue Rock, Wilmington, Delaware
3. 73.58 Blue Stars, LaCrosse, Wisconsin
4. 72.77 Anaheim Kingsmen, Anaheim, California
5. 72.?? Argonne Rebels, Great Bend, Kansas (Note 2)
6. 71.83 Spectacle City Mariners, Greendale, Wisconsin
7. 70.87 Queensmen, Kenosha, Wisconsin
8. 70.58 The Muchachos, Hawthorne, New Jersey
9. 70.13 Madison Scouts, Madison, Wisconsin
10. 69.93 Millstadt Crusaders, Belleville, Illinois
11. 68.33 Black Knights, Belleville, Illinois
12. 66.67 Norwood Park Imperials, Norwood Park, Illinois
13. 65.95 Stardusters, Arabi, Louisiana
14. 65.43 White Roses, York, Pennsylvania
15. 63.85 Royaleers All-Girl, Haddonfield, New Jersey
16. 62.20 Angels, Bellefontaine, Ohio
17. 60.30 VIP's, Washington, D.C.
18. 59.97 Vacationland Sweethearts All-Girl, Port Clinton, Ohio
19. 59.28 Twin City Imperials, Oil City, Pennsylvania
20. 57.90 Cleveland Caballeros, Cleveland, Ohio

Notes:

1. The Boston Crusaders did not compete in the Open Class prelims, but were included in the finals competition, thus bumping out the Millstadt Crusaders, who came in 10th place in the prelims.
2. The prelim score for the Argonne Rebels is confused per "A History of Drum & Bugle Corps, Volume 1." In the book, the Rebels, in fifth-place, received a 72.83; however, the Anaheim Kingsmen, in fourth-place, received a 72.77. (Obviously a typo.) My guess is that the Rebels received a 72.33, but that's speculation and so the score is listed as "72.??"
3. Since this first U.S. Open, only three corps survive today: the Madison Scouts, the Boston Crusaders, and the Maumee Suns, who are now known as the Glassmen.

### 1969 U.S. Open, August 16

Open Class Finals

1. 84.20 Kilties, Racine, Wisconsin
2. 74.75 Argonne Rebels, Great Bend, Kansas
3. 74.35 Optimists, Toronto, Ontario
4. 73.20 Blue Rock, Wilmington, Delaware
5. 72.45 Madison Scouts, Madison, Wisconsin
6. 66.40 Nisei Ambassadors, Chicago, Illinois
7. 62.05  Black Knights, Belleville, Illinois
8. 59.75 Marion Cadets, Marion, Ohio
9. 59.10 Norwood Park Imperials, Norwood Park, Illinois
10. 55.40 Queensmen (Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Queensmen), Kenosha, Wisconsin

Class A Finals

1. 59.00 General Butler Vagabonds, Lyndora, Pennsylvania
2. 58.25 Marauders, Madison Heights, Michigan
3. 51.55 32nd Hussar, Madison, Wisconsin
4. 46.65 Buccaneers, Dayton, Kentucky
5. 37.25 Black Shields of Sparta, Mount Carmel, Ohio

All-Girl Finals

1. 63.45 Catholic Daughters of America All-Girl, Butler, Pennsylvania
2. 45.30 Eaglettes All-Girl, Sandusky, Ohio

### 1994 U.S. Open, August 13

Open Class Finals

1. 84.90 Glassmen, Toledo, Ohio
2. 83.40 Magic of Orlando, Orlando, Florida
3. 78.40 Velvet Knights, Anaheim, California
4. 77.30 Troopers, Casper, Wyoming

Class A Finals

1. 89.20 Pioneer, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
2. 88.60 Nite Express, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
3. 85.50 Cardinals, Scarborough, Ontario
4. 81.50 Academie Musicale, Sherbrooke, Quebec

Class A/60 Finals

1. 87.40 Mandarins, Sacramento, California
2. 85.10 Americanos, Appleton, Wisconsin
3. 79.30 Royal Columbians, Chicopee, Massachusetts
4. 77.20 CapitolAires All-Girl, Madison, Wisconsin

Class A Prelims

1. 91.00 Pioneer, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
2. 88.70 Nite Express, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
3. 87.70 Cardinals, Scarborough, Ontario
4. 84.40 Academie Musicale, Sherbrooke, Quebec
5. 83.30 Spartans, Nashua, New Hampshire
6. 82.50 Patriots, Rochester, New York
7. 79.90 Raiders, Bayonne, New Jersey
8. 77.20 Seattle Cascades, Seattle, Washington
9. 73.20 Phantom Regiment Cadets, Rockford, Illinois

Class A/60 Prelims (Note 1)

1. Mandarins, Sacramento, California
2. Americanos, Appleton, Wisconsin
3. Royal Columbians, Chicopee, Massachusetts
4. CapitolAires All-Girl, Madison, Wisconsin

Notes:

1. No scores are available for the Class A/60 prelims.
2. There were no Open Class prelims held in 1994.

### 1995 U.S. Open, July 27

Open Class Finals

1. 91.70 Phantom Regiment, Rockford, Illinois
2. 87.60 Bluecoats, Canton, Ohio
3. 84.10 Colts, Dubuque, Iowa
4. 79.10 Troopers, Casper, Wyoming
5. 73.40 Southwind, Montgomery, Alabama
6. 68.40 Spirit of Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia

Division II/III Finals

1. 88.90 Kiwanis Kavaliers, Kitchener, Ontario
2. 84.30 Spartans, Nashua, New Hampshire
3. 82.30 East Coast Jazz, Malden, Massachusetts
4. 80.60 Patriots, Rochester, New York
5. 77.00 Cardinals, Scarborough, Ontario
6. 73.30 Contemporary Youth Ensemble, Ottawa, Ontario
7. 69.70 St. Johns, Brantford, Ontario
8. 59.50 Marion Cadets, Marion, Ohio

Note:

* There were no Open Class or Division II/III prelims held in 1995, nor have there been since 1994.