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

Browse Items (349 total)

  • Collection: Northern squares
Document

"Swing Your Partner!"

This account of square dancing in Michigan dates from 1951, and informs the reader early on, "Today, Michigan is a square dancer's paradise." Because of that time, it offers a glimpse of an era when… View item
Sound

Abe Kanegson - live recordings, 1953 and 1955

These are four audio files from live recordings made in Dover, New Hampshire, in the 1950s. They feature caller Abe Kanegson. Notes (by Jim Mayo) on the choreography of the audio files: #1: In the… View item
Moving Image

Plain Jane (Quadrille) - Adam Boyce

Traditional quadrille, recorded at an open house sponsored by the Ed Larkin Dancers, Tunbridge, Vermont, March 12, 2010. The prompter is Adam Boyce, and the musicians are Harold Luce on fiddle and his… View item
Moving Image

Reuben, Reuben (Quadrille) - Adam Boyce

Traditional quadrille, recorded at an open house sponsored by the Ed Larkin Dancers, Tunbridge, Vermont, March 12, 2010. The prompter is Adam Boyce, and the musicians are Harold Luce on fiddle and his… View item
Moving Image

Climbing Up The Golden Stairs - Adam Boyce

The caller warned the dancers that after going through the figures three times, he was going to speed up the tempo the last time through. Traditional singing square dance, recorded in West Newbury,… View item
Moving Image

Sioux City Sue - Adam Boyce

Traditional singing square dance, recorded in West Newbury, VT, on July 24, 2010. The caller and fiddler is Adam Boyce. This dance is held on the 4th Saturday of each month; Adam drives 55 miles each… View item
Moving Image

My Little Girl - Adam Boyce

Traditional singing square dance, recorded in West Newbury, VT, on July 24, 2010. The caller and fiddler is Adam Boyce, accompanied by piano player Donna Weston. View item
Document

Harold Luce biography

This short biography profiles Harold Luce (1918-2014), a well-known Yankee fiddler and dance caller closely associated with the Ed Larkin Dancers of north central Vermont. Luce started playing with… View item
Document

Al Brundage recollections

Al Brundage wrote these recollections of his experiences growing up in Connecticut and the growth of square dancing. His story includes discovering square dance as a boy, followed by the whole… View item
Moving Image

Cut Off Six - Alex Boustead

Alex Boustead was one of the founders of the Canadian Olde Tyme Square Dance Callers' Association, a group formed in 1954 to preserve and promote Canadian square dancing. Recorded November 17, 2001,… View item
Document

Alex Boustead – biographical info

Alex Boustead was also one of the founding members of the Canadian Olde Tyme Square Dance Callers Association. He was introduced to squares in the winter of 1931-32, and in a short time he started… View item
Still Image

The Singing Caller

This book went through three editions from 1944 to 1951, testimony to the popularity of singing square dance calls in that period. The Table of Contents shows many familiar dances; others are set to… View item