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

Mal Hayden - Seacoast Demonstration, 1960

This is Mal Hayden, a New Hampshire caller who straddled the space between traditional and early modern square dance calling. Information about him can be found at the Related Item.Drawing on various… View item
Moving Image

Malcolm McLaren, Buffalo Gals

Hip hop video riffing on square dancing, released in 1982 Another video shows the same material presented in a concert setting.McLaren was an English musician, performer, manager of the Sex Pistols,… View item
Moving Image

Schottische

In modern square dance programs, squares are often intermingled with round dances. Similarly, traditional dance programs often involve a variety of dances other than squares—waltz, polka, schottische,… View item
Website

Newspaper Article - The Sumter Item - Sumter, SC - First there were 13; Now there are 130... - Fun of Square Dancing Increases Tenfold Here... - 8 Mar 1963

Newspaper article describing growth of MWSD in South Carolina in early 1960s View item
Document

Ozark Square Dance, 1949 - newspaper article

Newspaper article (1949) describing dance traditions in Arkansas; includes references to local square dance patter. View item
Document

Brussels World's Fair - 1958

This article describes the square dance presence at the 1958 World's Fair in Brussels. View item
Document

Promenade (Margot Mayo)

Margot Mayo was the leader of the American Square Dance Group, based in New York City.Promenade, the group's monthly magazine, was subtitledA Magazine of American Folk Lore, hinting that the coverage… View item
Document

Pop Sweet

This item recounts a chance encounter between Margot Mayo, the leader of the American Square Dance Group, and Pop Sweet, a traditional fiddler/caller from western Massachusetts. Her excitement at… View item
Still Image

Swing Your Partner - Margot Mayo diagrams

This series of cartoons and graphics appeared in back pages of 1950 booklet, Places All, published by the Canadian Square Dance Association. If viewers know where we can locate the remaining pieces… View item
Sound

Kentucky Set Running - 1917 firsthand account

After graduation from Vassar and a summer holiday with family, Marguerite Butler, at age 22, headed for Pine Mountain Settlement School in a remote area of eastern Kentucky to try to make some… View item
Sound

Mountain Dew (clip) - Marie Armstrong

Marie Armstrong, recorded live at the Downeast Western Square Dance Club in Kittery, Maine. Immediately before this, Marie called a patter tip.To hear the lyrics for Mountain Dew used in a different… View item
Sound

Marie Armstrong - patter

Patter tip called by Marie Armstrong, Kittery, Maine, October, 1960. There are some problems with the original tape, resulting in a 5-second gap at 1:48 and a 7-second gap at 2:50. Rather than edit… View item