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

Browse Items (1930 total)

Sound

Auctioneer (remake - clip) - Marshall Flippo

This is a remake in the 1970s by Marshall Flippo of his big hit. For this version, he changed the choreography to reflect changes in MWSD, and the music also has a very different sound. This is Blue… View item
Document

Auctioneer (description and history)

The Auctioneerby David MillstoneJuly, 2012The Auctioneer is Ralph Sweet's signature number, and the dance has a storied history before him. The Auctioneer song was a 1956 hit, selling 2.5 million… View item
Sound

Auctioneer (1958 original - clip) - Marshall Flippo

This is an audio clip of the first of three recordings Marshall Flippo made of this tune; this is the recording that launched his career as a square dance caller. Transcription provided by Jeff… View item
Moving Image

Auctioneer - Tony Parkes

Tony Parkes, caller.This song was originally recorded by Leroy Van Dyke in 1956, and the dance was made famous by Marshall Flippo, who recorded it twice. The calls Tony uses here are from Flippo's… View item
Moving Image

Auctioneer - Ralph Sweet

This is the opening of Ralph Sweet calling his version of Marshall Flippo's classic singing square, Auctioneer. Ralph is calling a basic goal post pattern; compare other versions of the dance and read… View item
Moving Image

Auctioneer - Ralph Sweet

Recorded at the Greenfield, MA, Grange Hall on June 27, 2010. The event was sponsored by Country Dance and Song Society to celebrate the publication of "On the Beat with Ralph Sweet." This dance is… View item
Document

At the Keith Ranch (1893)

SeeAdditional Filesfor the full story.This short story, published in 1893, focuses on events at a square dance at a Colorado ranch. Although the plot itself is melodramatic, the author includes… View item
Still Image

Astro-Nauts and Convair Hoedowners

This set of pictures is from two clubs in San Diego, CA whose members were involved with two plants run by General Dynamics Corporation. The timeline is late 1950’s through late 1960’s. This was… View item
Moving Image

Asilomar 1973 - Frank Lane

Three films from Bob Osgood's collection showing dancers at the 1973 gathering at Asilomar, California.The first film shows dancers practicing allemande thar, followed by a round dance sequence (Left… View item
Document

Asilomar 1953 - Sets in Order Summer Institute

Note: Several of these files are large and will take longer to load.The first three files are part of the binder presented to participants at the 6th annual Sets in Order Institute held at the… View item
Sound

Around the Outside - Ed Durlacher

Honor Your Partner was a series of rhythmic activities and dance albums, more than 20 in all, released by Ed Durlacher starting in 1949 and extending into the 1950s. This dance is from Album 1, the… View item
Still Image

Arnie Kronenberger - record album

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