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

Browse Items (189 total)

  • Collection: Southern Appalachian
Document

Square Dance in Haywood County, NC

Detailed look at western North Carolina, a region rich in square dance traditions including that of Sam Queen and the Soco Gap Square Dancers. Jamison starts his article with a look at the turn of the… View item
Sound

Square Dance Fight on Ball Top Mountain

Phil Jamison: These are square dance skits on two sides of a 78 (Vocalion 5419) with a few random calls by John Dilleshaw (aka Seven Foot Dilly) of Paulding County, GA. It was recorded in Atlanta in… View item
Moving Image

Square dance at the Tractor Tavern - Seattle

The Tallboys host a bi-monthly square dance at the Tractor Tavern in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood that is wildly popular with the under-30 crowd. Also featured is caller Charmaine Slaven. This… View item
Moving Image

Square Dance - Dolores Heagy, 1986

Portion of a square dance called at Tod Whittemore's contra dance series at the VFW in Cambridge, MA. Tod introduced Dolores Heagy by saying how much he values having contra dancers become… View item
Moving Image

Square dance - Ary, KY - 1963 (big set)

The caller is Corbett Grigsby, with music provided by fiddler Marion Sumner and guitarists Martin Young and Roscoe Holcomb. Grigsby introduces the figure as "around behind, lady in the lead."This… View item
Moving Image

Square Dance - Ary, KY - 1963 (4 cpl square)

see previous item A search for "Grapevine Twist" in this project's digital collection will return references, audio clips, and video clips showing that figure, including Elizabeth Burchenal's silent… View item
Moving Image

Southern Highlanders – square dance, 1947

This dance sequence is an excerpt from the film "Southern Highlanders," 1947, created as part of Form Motor Company's "America at Home" series. The film was directed by Lawrence Madison. The full… View item
Moving Image

Southern Appalachian squares Thread the Needle

Phil Jamison led a workshop session on square dances from the southern Appalachians, focusing on dances from different communities in that region. This was recorded at Dare To Be Square on November… View item
Moving Image

Southern Appalachian Squares 0 - Sampler - Phil Jamison

Phil Jamison led a workshop session on square dances from the southern Appalachians, focusing on dances from different communities in that region. This samples provides excerpts of the dances… View item
Document

Soco Gap Dancers at the White House

This is the program for the evening entertainment provided for the visiting King and Queen of England at the White House, Thursday, June 8, 1939. Among the performers (see page 5) were the Soco Gap… View item
Document

Smoky Mountain Square Dance Collection

In his later years, Tennessee caller David Hendrix was working on an expanded version of his Smoky Mountain Square Dances, complete with diagrams and professional photographs. After his death, his… View item
Moving Image

Shoot the Owl - Phil Jamison

Phil Jamison calls one version of the traditional Shoot the Owl square dance figure at the Dare To Be Square weekend held November 18-20, 2011, at the John C. Campbell Folk School, Brasstown, NC.… View item