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

Browse Items (1924 total)

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Santa Monica 1950 - official program

This is the official program for the 1950 Diamond Jubilee square dance in Santa Monica. Our website has many other items related to this important event in square dance history. View item
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Huntington's Pavilion, E. Thetford, VT

We often think of the boom years of square dancing taking place starting in the late 1940s and early 1950s, but there is a long history of halls for square dancing before then. This is a series of… View item
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Radio spots music

This is a record with music of the right length for producing radio spots. See the related item for three examples. View item
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Square Dance Radio Spots

These are three radio ads that promote "modern American square dance." Each features a different well-known caller at the time: Don Armstrong Arnie Kronenberger Al Brundage They were created… View item
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Bennie "Cuje" Bertram

from the website of the Sgt. Alvin C. York State Historical Park "I was born August 24, 1894, in Fentress County on the Three Forks of the Wolf. Alvin York was our next door neighbor. His daddy was a… View item
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George Van Kleeck - Catskills caller

Three photos of Catskills square dance caller George Van Kleeck. The third one was taken at the Catskills Folk Festival, c. 1941. For more information about Camp Woodland, see this site. The… View item
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Al Brundage and Pete Seeger

Today, it's easy to think of Al Brundage and Pete Seeger as inhabiting two different world, Brundage the popular caller of modern square dances and Seeger the singer and banjo player associated with… View item
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Henry Ford Old Time Dances in Vermont

When thinking about Henry Ford's project to revive old-time dancing, it's easy to focus on his influence in the Midwest, reaching out from Benjamin Lovett's presence in Dearborn. These five newspaper… View item
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El Paso squares, 1940s

This selection of photos shows the Sun City Promenaders, a square dance club in El Paso, and several Square Dance Festivals in 1947. The photos are from the Jimmy Clossin Papers at the University of… View item
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Jimmy Clossin - photos

This selection of photographs comes from the Jimmy Clossin Papers, held in the Archives of the University of Denver. View item
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Mountain Grove, VA, Square Dance

Bob Dalsemer collected live recordings of this dance. The featured talent was Rodney Chestnut, caller, with The Rebels Band.Dalsemer described the series in this way: "Mountain Grove, Virginia is just… View item
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Don Durlacher - Jones Beach photo

Photograph of dancing at Jones Beach during the Don Durlacher era. A related interview with Glenn Durlacher (son of Don, grandson of Ed) looks at the Durlachers' involvement with the Jones Beach… View item