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

Browse Items (1930 total)

Website

TAMinations - animated MWSD diagrams

This website offers animated diagrams illustrating all the calls in the various CALLERLAB programs from Mainstream through C-3A. If you're a traditional or MWSD dancer encountering an unfamiliar term,… View item
Still Image

Square Dance in Tacoma, 1940–1960

A collection of seven photographs from the collection of the Tacoma (WA) Public Library. It's likely that similar collections of photographs and-- we hope!--old films exist in libraries and historical… View item
Website

Utah Square Dance History

The June 28, 1973 issue of the Deseret News (a Mormon-owned daily newspaper published in Salt Lake City) contained a supplement on the 22nd National Square Dance Convention. The article on Utah square… View item
Website

Ralph Sweet's Personal Square Dance History

This is a 2005 presentation by Ralph Sweet to NECCA (New England Council of Callers Associations), a group of MWSD callers. Reviewing his own interest in this activity provided Ralph with an… View item
Document

The Birth of the Cotillion and the Quadrille, French Contredanses

This is a translation of Simonne Voyer's article, "La naissance du cotillon et du quadrille, contredanses françaises."The translation is by Susan Kevra, Senior Lecturer in French and American… View item
Website

John Roach Square Dance History - Minnesota

This website, curated by Lon Roach of Glencoe, Minnesota, documents the career of his parents, John (Jack) and Mabel Roach. Jack was a square dance caller from 1949 to 1974; his career spanned the… View item
Document

Patter Calling - origins

Patter calling is a style of square dance calling in which the caller speaks the words or chants them on a musical pitch, hopefully in harmony with the tune. The classic form of patter is rhyming… View item
Moving Image

Milagro Square called by Larry Edelman

Larry Edelman calls his version of Herb Greggerson's Milagro Square (sometimes known as Take Three Swings) at the Dare To Be Square weekend held November 18-20, 2011, at the John C. Campbell Folk… View item
Moving Image

Double Birdie called by Larry Edelman

Larry Edelman calls a variation of Birdie in the Cage and Seven Hands Around at the Dare To Be Square weekend held November 18-20, 2011, at the John C. Campbell Folk School, Brasstown,… View item
Moving Image

Silly Threesome called by Larry Edelman

Larry Edelman leads the walkthrough and calls the figures at the Dare To Be Square weekend held November 18-20, 2011, at the John C. Campbell Folk School, Brasstown, NC. The trio mixer Silly… View item
Sound

Devils Dream (clip) - Ernest Legg & Kessinger Brothers

Ernest Legg (1904-1970) was from Charleston, WV (Kanawha County) Kessinger Brothers were fiddler Clark Kessinger (1896-1975) and his nephew, guitar player Luches Kessinger (1906-1944) "Devil’s… View item
Sound

Lazy H (clip) - Ed Gilmore

Recording of Ed Gilmore calling his composition, the Lazy H. You can also watch a video of that dance with Tony Parkes calling. View item