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

Browse Items (1938 total)

Sound

Cal Golden - interview and four dances

Note: There are five separate audio clips in this item, and it may take a little longer than usual to load. We start with an interview with a young Cal Golden conducted by Mildred Buhler as part… View item
Sound

Too Old To Cut the Mustard (clip) - Cal Golden

This is an excerpt; a complete recording can be found here. View item
Sound

Arch of Three - Cal Golden, Santa Monica, 1950

This is an audio recording from the 1950 Santa Monica dance, the world's largest square dance event at that time. Caller Cal Golden is being introduced by Lloyd Shaw, master of ceremonies for the… View item
Document

American Square Dancing - 1976 NSDC historical pageant

This is the program, prepared by Cal Campbell, that accompanied the square dance historical pageant at the 1976 National Square Dance Convention in Anaheim, CA. See the next item in the SDHP… View item
Website

Dancing for Busy People by Cal Campbell

Cal Campbell published "Dancing for Busy People" in 1995 to provide enjoyable dance materials that are accessible to dancers who have not taken Modern Western Square Dance classes. View item

Colorado Square Dance History

This is Part-1 of seven parts of a ninety-minute performance that was presented at the annual convention of the International Association of Square Dance Callers in 2007. That convention was held in… View item
Document

Aggie Haylofters - Colorado

Author Cal Campbell shares his memories of dancing with the Aggie Haylofters, a square dance group at Colorado State University. (CSU was Colorado A&M until it changed its name in the 1950s;… View item
Document

1976 Square Dance Historical Pageant

Cal Campbell provides this account of the production of the historical pageant at the 1976 National Square Dance Convention. View item
Moving Image

Black Hawk Waltz

Black Hawk Waltz is a classic round (or couple) dance. The tune was composed by Mary Walsh in 1877. Here is a link to an illustration of the sheet music cover; you may also view instructions on the… View item
Moving Image

Evolution of Square Dance, 1940–1960

At the 2008 National Square Dance Convention, Colorado dancer, caller and historian Calvin Campbell presented a program on twenty important years in the change from traditional to modern square dance.… View item
Document

A Look at Square Dancing in Colorado

"Square dancing evolved a western version probably sometime in the late 1800s when the pioneers moved to settle the states west of the Mississippi. It was a square dance form that was much… View item
Moving Image

Popcorn Quadrille

Variations on Grand Square figure, danced to early electronic music, a record named "Popcorn." Chicago caller Andy Anderson created the dance to go with it. From a demonstration of historical dances,… View item