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

Browse Items (1926 total)

Document

Southern Missouri Jig Dancing

This 28 page booklet was Volume One of a projected series on Traditional Dance in Missouri. It is based on extensive fieldwork by the authors in two southern Missouri counties, Wayne and Douglas. The… View item
Document

Mica Flats, Idaho - traditional dance

This article describes traditional dances in Mica Flats, Idaho, eight miles south of Coeur d'Alene. It was written by Penn Fix as a chapter in his book, Contra Dancing in the Northwest. View item
Moving Image

Pearl Beer square dance commercial

This mid-1950s advertisement for Pearl Beer features San Antonio television personality Thomas Reynolds. The square dancers are dancing in the style popularized in the 1930s by caller Bob Sumrall.… View item
Document

Oak Grove Barn

This newspaper article takes a detailed look back at a well-loved venue, the Old Grove Barn in San Antonio. The hall hosted dances from the mid-1930s into the 1960s. Events included a high school… View item
Website

Midwestern Fiddle Masters:
Michigan's Les Raber and Indiana's Francis Geels

Biographies of two fiddlers, each of whom played extensively for square dances in Michigan and Indiana. View item
Moving Image

Irving Andert - dance videos

This is a selection of clips showing some of the different dances called by Irving Andert. Recorded by Paul Trowbridge at the Brooklyn (CT) Grange, July 9, 1983. The program is a typical evening of… View item
Sound

That's Where My Money Goes

PersonnelTed Glabach, PrompterRobinson's Orchestra Paul Robinson, Violin John Robinson, Banjo Bob Emerson, PianoNotes from Steve Green (1978): The following pieces were recorded from a homemade 78 rpm… View item
Sound

If You Knew Susie (clip) - Paul Phillips

Paul Phillips was a popular Oklahoma square dance caller. This clip presents the introduction and the first time through the figure. Phillips calls the figure twice for head gents, twice for side… View item
Document

Henry Ford’s Dance Revival and Fiddle Contests:
Myth and Reality

Square dance enthusiasts generally know something of the important role played by Henry Ford in encouraging an American square dance revival. This lengthy article by Paul M. Gifford examines this… View item
Sound

Silver Bell (clip) - Paul Hunt

music by the Rock Candy Mountaineers View item
Document

Modern Square Dancing Is Different

This is an article published in the Autumn 1966 issue of Mike and Monitor, the newsletter of the National Capital Area Square Dance Leaders Association. Starting with a description of the origins of… View item
Website

Pat Napier interview

This is a short interview (2013) with Patrick Napier, author of Kentucky Mountain Square Dancing. In it, he talks about his experiences as a member of the Berea Country Dancers, working with Frank… View item