Square Dance History Project
The rich story of North American square dance finally has a home in the digital age.

Browse Items (499 total)

  • Collection: MWSD
Still Image

Some Practical Considerations

This short essay was part of Square and Round Dance, Calls and Explanations, a bookled created by MacGregor Records and distributed along with some of the albums of square dance recordings. We've been… View item
Document

Song of the HIGH-LEVEL Dancer - poem

The push for "high level dancing" appeared in the 1950s as square dancing took off. Some dancers wanted ever-more-challenging programs and they were often reluctant to dance with less-skilled dancers.… View item
Document

Square Dance Workbooks 1, 2, and 3 - Don Armstrong

These are three books of square dance calls published by Don Armstrong, starting in 1956. As such, they give a good sense of the repertoire at that time. View item
Still Image

10,000 Square Dancers Can't Be Wrong

1954 newspaper article and photographs about popularity of modern square dancing in St. Louis View item
Moving Image

10th National Square Dance Convention - Detroit, 1961

Two television stories about the 10th Annual National Square Dance Convention, Cobo Hall, Detroit, recorded June 30, 1961. The reporter in both programs is Shelby Newhouse.The first is a half-hour… View item
Moving Image

12th Street Rag - Jim Mayo - MWSD 2c

This is a series of videos documenting Jim Mayo's workshop on Modern Western Square Dance, recorded November 19, 2011. This was part of the Dare To Be Square Weekend held at the John C. Campbell… View item
Document

1954 National Square Dance Convention - callers

This listing comes from the program book of the 3rd National Square Dance Convention (Dallas, TX, April 8-10, 1954). View item
Document

1954 National Square Dance program - Dallas

This is the program for the 3rd National Square Dance Convention, held April 8–10, 1954. View item
Still Image

1976 NESRDC - pageant

This set of photos documents the dance pageant presented at the 17th annual New England Square & Round Dance Convention. The accompanying item shows a general selection of photos associated with… View item
Still Image

1976 NESRDC - photos

View item
Moving Image

1976 NSDC - highlights

The National Square Dance Convention in 1976, the US Bicentennial year, was the largest in the history of that event. The convention took place in Anaheim, California, and included a historical… View item
Moving Image

1976 NSDC - history pageant

The National Square Dance Convention in 1976, the US Bicentennial year, was the largest in the history of that event. Part of that event was a historical pageant coordinated by Dorothy Stott Shaw, the… View item