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

Browse Items (1926 total)

Website

"Play Me Something Quick and Devilish"

Bob Holt (1930–2004) was a respected Missouri dance fiddler, a 1999 recipient of the National Heritage Fellowship. He is featured on several videotapes of Ozark style dancing in this website's… View item
Website

Old-Time Ozark Square Dancing

This is a detailed journal article from 1974, now available on the web. It includes a general discussion of Ozark dancing, interviews, photographs, diagrams, and descriptions of two dozen figures and… View item
Document

Square Dancing Atop Lookout Mountain

Article by Karen terHorst describes dancing in New Salem, Georgia, an historically-isolated community above Chattanooga, TN. The article is based on her visit to the dance in the 1970s. The dance… View item
Website

Karl Byarski - Michigan fiddle and dance recordings

Paul Gifford is a researcher and musician with a particular focus on tradition Michigan fiddling. He writes:---I put up a large collection of home recordings of fiddling made by Karl Byarski, of… View item
Document

Cotillon / Cotillion / Contredanse Française

referring to a dance in our collection:The dance is a contredanse from de la Cuisse, published in 1762. It was not called a cotillion in France. Once de la Cuisse had published his collection, the… View item
Website

Kitty Keller - Social Dance History

This is a series of six edited videos, selections from a 90-minute interview with social dance historian Kate Van Winkle Keller. She is a specialist in dances of the 18th century, and here she trace… View item
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Roscommon Lancers - Irish set

Chris J. Brady writes: How about the Roscommon Lancers - with an embellished 'rant' step termed 'battering' in Ireland. Wonderful stuff.There are nine figures (aka square dances) in the Roscommon… View item
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Kathy Anderson - Youth Square Dance Scene

Caller Kathy Anderson discusses the burst of enthusiasm among young people for simple square dances set to hot old-time tunes. Starting in Portland, Oregon, with the efforts of caller Bill Martin, the… View item
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Kathy Anderson - four styles of squares

Caller Kathy Anderson gives an overview of the characteristics of four different regional styles of traditional square dances-- old-time Southern, New England, traditional Western, and singing… View item
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Kathy Anderson - Sandy Bradley, an appreciation

Sandy Bradley was a dynamic Seattle caller who burst onto the dance scene in the 1970s and early 1980, bringing an enthusiastic presence and a love of traditional western squares to audiences around… View item
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Kathy Anderson - Patter Calling

Caller Kathy Anderson is well-known for her fast-moving squares, accompanied by equally lively patter calling. She talks about how she uses patter, what she chooses to include and what to leave out,… View item
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Kathy Anderson - Getting started as a caller

Today, Kathy Anderson is one of the more active callers of traditional and newly-composed square dances in the contra dance world; she is a featured caller at dance weekends and camps across the… View item