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

Browse Items (1941 total)

Document

A Look at Square Dancing in Colorado

"Square dancing evolved a western version probably sometime in the late 1800s when the pioneers moved to settle the states west of the Mississippi. It was a square dance form that was much… View item
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Popcorn Quadrille

Variations on Grand Square figure, danced to early electronic music, a record named "Popcorn." Chicago caller Andy Anderson created the dance to go with it. From a demonstration of historical dances,… View item
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Pappy's Do-Si-Do – Rocky Mountain Dancers

This video shows the group dancing to a recording of Lloyd "Pappy" Shaw calling. The calls are designed to showcase a series of different figures.Performed by the Colorado Rocky Mountain Dancers. The… View item
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Rocky Mountain Dancers - Lloyd Shaw tribute

The Colorado Rocky Mountain Dancers formed in 1999 to represent Lloyd Shaw's Cheyenne Mountain Dancers in a historical pageant to be presented at the 50th National Square Dance Convention. The pageant… View item
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Herb Egender - part 2

Herb Egender was a member of Lloyd "Pappy" Shaw's legendary square dance demonstration team, the Cheyenne Mountain Dancers. This footage of his recollections of that experience was… View item
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Herb Egender - part 1

Herb Egender was a member of Lloyd "Pappy" Shaw's legendary square dance demonstration team, the Cheyenne Mountain Dancers. This footage of his recollections of that experience was… View item
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Fiddlers' Festival dance - Cape Breton

We're not sure where this event took place. The musicians here are Brian MacDonald and Hilda Chiasson.This is one of a large collection of videos posted on Facebook by the Cape Breton Music Media… View item
Document

Swing Your Partner  (Texas, Doc Journell)

This is the first issue (see Additional Files) of a square dance magazine edited by C.D. "Doc" Journell. A major focus of this issue is a discussion about the formation of a national square… View item
Sound

Chain Lightning - Butch Nelson (clip)

Another example of Butch Nelson's calling, with fast-paced patter keeping dancers moving briskly. Again, the patter clearly shows the caller's western roots. The music is played by the… View item
Sound

Half Sashay - Butch Nelson (clip)

"Pull up your pants and tighten the tracesAll join hands, we're off to the races."With opening patter like this, we know we're in traditional western square dance territory. Thirty seconds later, when… View item
Document

Square Dances of the Southwest

This 1951 booklet, by caller Butch Nelson, is a useful collection of calls from that region. You can hear Nelson calling Oklahoma Cyclone here.The Related Items provide audio or video clips, called by… View item
Sound

Oklahoma Cyclone (clip) - Butch Nelson

Butch Nelson was a regular caller at the Lighted Lantern dance camp in Colorado. View item