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

Browse Items (357 total)

  • Collection: Northern squares
Sound

Ralph Sweet - Oh Johnny (clip)

Singing square: this clip contains once through the figure and the break, which contains a Grand Square. Recorded at the February 2, 2004, at the Guiding Star Grange, Greenfield, MA, on the occasion… View item
Moving Image

Ralph Sweet - When My Baby Smiles

Recorded at the Ralph Page Dance Legacy Weekend, Durham, NH, January 15, 2000. Musicians are Swallowtail: Ron Grosslein, fiddle; David Cantieni, saxophone; George Marshall, bodhran; Timm Triplett,… View item
Sound

Redwing - Dip and Dive - Ed Durlacher

Ed Durlacher, caller. The tune is Redwing. Durlacher's vocal style is distinctive. Recorded in 1941, with music by Al MacLeod's Country Dance Band. View item
Moving Image

Redwing - Jim Kimball

Afternoon workshop of traditional New York state square dances Sponsored by the Southern Tier Country Dance Society Saturday, May 14, 2016 Cuba Grange Cuba, NY The tune is Redwing, commonly… View item
Moving Image

Reuben, Reuben (Quadrille) - Adam Boyce

Traditional quadrille, recorded at an open house sponsored by the Ed Larkin Dancers, Tunbridge, Vermont, March 12, 2010. The prompter is Adam Boyce, and the musicians are Harold Luce on fiddle and his… View item
Document

Revival of American Square and Country Dancing - 1949

This article documents the change on American dance floors in Michigan state in the late 1940s, where, in the author's words, "croonersare replaced bycallers." She cites the work of Grace Ryan in… View item
Still Image

Rita and Mal Hayden

Photo of Mal and Rita Hayden dressed in clothing to celebrate the American Bicentennial, 1976 Jim Mayo comments: “He was calling when I first started dancing in 1947 and when I got out of… View item
Moving Image

Rod's Quad #2 - double quadrille

Dance written by Rod Linnell; the video includes a variation created by the caller, Lisa Greenleaf. (Rod Linnell composed five double quadrilles, which are published in "Square Dances from a… View item
Sound

Rod's Right and Left (clip) - Rod Linnell

This dance was recorded on the flip side of Mountain Music Madness, on the Apex label, #9-26431. The band is Don Messer's Islanders. The tune is Debbie's Jig.In her notes, Louise Winston writes, "This… View item
Moving Image

Roll the Barrel - Pistol Packin' Mama

Singing square called by Frank Kendall, Gassetts, Vermont. The Gassetts Grange hosts a monthly dance with a mix of round dances and traditional Eastern singing squares, with live music provided by… View item