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

Browse Items (30 total)

  • Tags: article
Document

La naissance du cotillon et du quadrille, contredanses françaises

Article (in French) by Simonne Voyer, who is the author of La danse traditionnelle dans l'est du Canada: quadrilles et cotillons. For a translation in English by Susan Kevra, click here. View item
Website

Late Eighteenth-Century Social Dance (article)

Article that provides a summary of 18th century dance, including the contredanse française, a dance for four couples in a square. Also offers links to documents in the Library of Congress… View item
Website

Nineteenth Century Social Dance (article)

Library of Congress overview of dance history, including links to specific books in their collection. View item
Website

Set Running - Cecil Sharp in America

The name "running set" comes to us from the work of the great English song collector Cecil Sharp, founder of the English Folk Dance Society and, in 1915, what became Country Dance and Song Society.… View item
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Amish Barn Dance

Article from Pennsylvania Folklife (winter 1962-63) describing how a traditional community with no electricity hosts events with large crowds: "The most disturbing technical problem that faces the… View item
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Santa Monica Diamond Jubilee - 1950

At the time, it was the world's largest square dance event. Santa Monica, California, was celebrating its diamond jubilee, so it planned to celebrate in square dance style. Lloyd Shaw was invited to… View item
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Square Dancing at Maryland Line

Bob Dalsemer describes old time square dancing at the Maryland Line Fire Hall in the town of Maryland Line, MD as he encountered it in 1974.You may also be interested in a similar article describing… View item
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John Ramsay - Set Running, a Southern Folk Dance

This article, written in 1987 and updated in 2013 by longtime dancer, caller, and organizer John Ramsay, presents his views on what has been termed "set running," a style of dance that was… View item
Website

Ozarks - Old Time Fiddling

Article about Ozark fiddling traditions, including a long section on fiddler Bob Holt, heard playing on videos elsewhere on this site. View item
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Ozark Square Dance, 1949 - newspaper article

Newspaper article (1949) describing dance traditions in Arkansas; includes references to local square dance patter. View item
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Stu Jamieson - The Old-Time Kentucky Running Set

Although the title speaks of Kentucky Running Set, this article deals with many different variations of the big circle or big set formation of Southern Appalachian mountain dancing. The author is Stu… View item
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"Dancing to the Music: Domestic Square Dances and Community in Southcentral Kentucky (1880-1940)"

This detailed examination of the role of square dances in south central Kentucky is written by a folklorist, who based his findings on interviews with 20 musicians, dancers, and callers in that… View item