Country Dance & Song Society

Appalachian / Old-Time Mountain Style

As the quadrille was gaining popularity in American cities and urban areas, a unique style of square dancing and fiddle music was developing in more isolated communities across the Appalachian Mountains of the American East. This style of dancing has many different names, including "Southern," "Appalachian," "mountain," "Running Set," and "old-time." Depending on whom you ask, Appalachian square dancing and old-time fiddle music have English, Scots-Irish, African, or other ethnic origins.

Sometimes referred to as "Southern," this style appears to have developed in rural communities in the Southern Appalachian Mountains. Englishman Cecil Sharp came across old-time mountain style in Kentucky during the last of several trips to America between 1915-1918. In The Country Dance Book, part 5 (1918), Sharp published a description of old-time mountain style, and named it "Kentucky Running Set." There is no evidence that the locals referred to the dance this way; more likely, Sharp misunderstood someone talking about "running a set." Sharp asserted that the dances were English in origin, and pre-dated the quadrille. There are compelling arguments developed more recently (notably a 1969 article called "Appalachian Square Dancing" by Hugh Thurston in Northern Junket vol. 9 nos. 11 and 12, and by Lee Ellen Friedland in her article, "Square Dance," in The International Encyclopedia of Dance) that indicate Scotch-Irish origins, and also leave the door open for other possible ethnicities.

Some characteristics of old-time mountain style squares:

• Danced in four-couple square sets, or in a large circle of couples, depending on community: North and West of the Blue Ridge, the tendency is four-couple square sets; South and East, the tendency is a big circle of couples.
• Danced to the beat of the music, not necessarily connected to the phrase.
• A caller typically leads the dance. The timing of the calls is consistent from one dance event to the next, and is usually not affected by what is happening on the floor. The caller in old-time mountain style provides: the overall timing (including length of the figure, the swings, transitions on to the next, etc.); starting the dance and ending the dance; and entertainment (calls are expected and are as much a part of the dance as the music).
• Many figures have associated rhyming calls that have been passed down over generations of callers, musicians, and dancers.
• No honors, and no quadrille figures.
• Short swings: 4 to 8 beats.
• Danced to hoedowns (reels) played in the Appalachian style.

External links:

• The Origin of the Appalachian Square Dance, part 1 & part 2, by Hugh Thurston — An interesting and compelling theory arguing the Scots-Irish origin of Appalachian square dancing
• Square Dancing in Haywood County, North Carolina, by Phil Jamison — Fascinating article from the Old-Time Herald about the 19th and 20th century story of Appalachian square dancing
• West Virginia Square Dances, by Bob Dalsemer— From the CDSS E-Library focusing on Appalachian-style squares
• Kentucky Mountain Square Dancing, by Patrick Napier — From the CDSS E-Library focusing on Appalachian-style squares

Traditional Western Squares

The quadrille and Appalachian mountain-style square dance forms traveled with the settlers of the American West, and a new style of square dancing slowly developed combining elements of both forms. This new form of Western square dance (now named, by some, "traditional Western") eventually captured the attention of the American public, through the efforts of a young educator in Colorado named Lloyd Shaw. Motivated in part by Henry Ford's book, Good Morning — which was written to help revive the "old-fashioned" American quadrilles, contras, and couple dances that had been, by the early 20th century, largely replaced by the jazz-inspired fashions of the ballroom — Shaw set out to publish a book of traditional American square dances with a particular focus on collecting and documenting dances found in the American West. The book Cowboy Dances gave rise to Shaw's popular caller training classes, as well as his nationally-traveling teenage dance demonstration team, the Cheyenne Mountain Dancers. All of this energy and exposure led to a square dance craze in the mid-20th century, with millions of Americans participating in the activity on a regular basis.

Figures in this style of square dancing bear a resemblance to old-time mountain style because many of the early settlers of the American West came from Appalachia and brought their dance and music traditions with them. As more settlers moved West, a "new" Western square dance tradition slowly developed, combining elements of quadrille style and old-time mountain style square dance.

Some characteristics of traditional Western style:

• Danced in four-couple square sets.
• Sometimes danced in connection to the phrases of the music (as in quadrille style), sometimes danced to the beat rather than the phrase (as in old-time mountain style).
• A caller provides the directions for the figures of the dance, using the traditional old-time mountain style described above, but also incorporating quadrille style prompts and "sight timing" (watching the dancers, and delivering the next call just as the dancers are completing the previous move) to keep the dancers moving smoothly through the figures.
• The caller uses extra language to fill in the spaces between directions (often colorful rhyming language, not necessarily directive), commonly referred to as "patter."
• Choreography combines honors, some quadrille figures, and figures from old-time mountain style, as well as new choreography developed during the heyday of traditional Western style square dance (1935-1955).
• Short swings: 4 to 8 beats.
• Danced primarily to hoedowns (reels) played in the Appalachian style.

External links:

• Lest We Forget: Henry Ford and American Dancing and The Dean of American Square Dancing: A Short Sketch About Benjamin Lovett, both by Ralph Page— More information about Henry Ford and his dancing master, Benjamin Lovett

Modern Western Squares

The extraordinary interest in square dancing in the mid-20th century gave birth to the branch of the activity now named "modern western." Many callers learned from Lloyd Shaw, then took their newly acquired skills and interpreted them for use in their own local communities. The 1960s and early 1970s saw a flood of new calls appearing as callers tried to outdo each other in creativity. It became difficult for dancers (and for other callers) to keep up with the vast number of new figures that were being invented; clearly, some effort at standardization was essential to support the continuing widespread growth of square dancing. As a result, the governing organization for modern western square dance leaders, CALLERLAB, was founded in 1974. The original stated goals of the charter were: "To put the dance back into square dancing; establish standardization for calls; and provide adequate training for callers."

Modern Western square dancing began in the 1940s, and overlapped in a twenty-year period of transition with traditional western squares. During this transitional time, the hybrid style of traditional Western dance began to develop, characterized by all four couples in a square moving simultaneously. This resulted in the potential for more complex patterns; since the 1960s, the modern western square dance movement has realized the full potential of that complexity by creating many new choreographic building blocks, and training callers and dancers, by way of a hierarchy of classes, to gain the knowledge necessary to navigate the ever-changing MWSD landscape.

Some characteristics of modern Western square dance:

• Danced in four-couple square sets.
• The role of the caller is more prominent than in the traditional styles described above. The caller creates the dance as it is called, and must match it to the skills of the dancers; a particular sequence of dance figures is not taught beforehand, nor can dancers anticipate the next calls.
• To help callers manage the increasing complexity in MWSD, a governing organization named CALLERLAB was founded in 1974.
• Dancers belong to clubs offering classes that allow them to progress through the various levels. Clubs also host dances that are for members only, as well as hosting larger events that are open to the public.
• In the last century a dress code was widespread, but has become less common recently. The most formal dress is known as "traditional square dance attire." For men, this used to call for western style shirts with string ties or bolos, and often cowboy boots. For women, the dress code has changed substantially over the years, but even now usually has a wide skirt, often with a full petticoat. The longer prairie skirt is becoming more popular today.
• Danced to recorded music, including both hoedowns and accompaniment for singing squares.

External links:

• History of CALLERLAB — More information about the transition from the Lloyd Shaw era to modern Western square dancing, from the organization's website
• Square Dance Foundation of New England 1960's Era Recordings — Listen to audio examples of popular callers from the early days of MWSD. Five of the callers included were charter members of CALLERLAB. These recordings made available through the meticulous work of Jim Mayo for the Square Dance Foundation of New England.
• Western Style Square Dancing Is in Trouble, by Ralph Sweet — Ruminations on the future of modern Western square dancing, excerpted from a 1965 book by Ralph Sweet (with a brief introduction by Clark Baker)

Singing Squares

A relatively modern form of square dance, found throughout the United States and Canada (except where old-time mountain style predominates) from the 1930s to the present. Singing squares use figures from quadrille, old-time mountain, and traditional Western styles; a figure is paired with a popular song, and the original lyrics are rewritten as directions for the dancers. This style has roots in 18th century European and American quadrilles, some of which were danced to the popular music of the day.

Some characteristics of singing squares:

• Danced in four-couple square sets.
• Danced to the phrases of the music.
• A caller provides the directions for the figures of the dance, sung as lyrics to the tune of the associated song. Depending on the local tradition, the caller might use prompting, sight timing, patter (within the structure of the melody of the song), or some combination of those three skills, to keep the dancers moving smoothly through the figures. It is common in traditional communities, where dancers know most of the figures by heart, for callers to simply sing the rewritten lyrics without regard to what is happening on the floor, and let the dancers adjust as necessary to keep the calls and the dancing in sync.
• Timing of swings vary: Northeastern singing squares tend towards longer swings of 8 to 16 beats; singing squares in the traditional Western style tend towards shorter swings of 4 to 8 beats; swings in modern Western singing squares tend to be only once around.
• Danced to popular songs from the late 19th century to the present.

‘Traditional Style’ Modern Squares

In the midst of the growth of modern Western square dance, traditional dancing continues to exist in many areas. Traditional squares have lately been experiencing a surge of interest as part of contra dance events across the country, as well as in dance series devoted to old-time mountain style and traditional Western square dance. Traditional square dancing also happens spontaneously at gatherings with a music jam, eight willing dancers, and a caller to facilitate the action on the dance floor.

Ever since modern Western square dance established itself as a unique entity in square dance culture in the mid-20th century, there has been a separate category of squares developing across the United States. "Traditional style" modern squares use choreographic elements and calling skills from quadrille, old-time mountain, traditional Western, modern Western, and singing square styles. In today's community dance culture, this style is often found at dances with a mixed program of contras and squares, and can range in complexity from very simple to very challenging. Thanks to groundbreaking callers and dance writers such as Ralph Page, Ted Sannella, and Gene Hubert, and the many others who are still living and actively writing new square dances influenced by traditional styles, there will be a supply of excellent material to add to the vast and rich repertoire provided by the square dancing's long history in this country.

External links:

• The Dances in Bradford, NH (c. 1942),
• Duke Miller calling a Dance at the Peterborough NH Golf Club (August 20, 1965),
• Glenn Pease: Old-time Barn Dance Caller (c. 1973) — Three fascinating pages offering descriptions and audio examples of traditional square dances (which also include contras and couple dances) in New England in the mid-20th century, all from Walter Lenk's website
• Dare to Be Square — Blog post describing a recent (2011) old-time square dance in Hallsville, MO
• Reinventing Square Dancing — An April 2011 NPR piece on the traditional square dance scene in Washington D.C. (make sure to scroll down to the bottom of the page to find the piece)
• A Grand Ole Time in East Nashville — YouTube clip showing a great example of a traditional square dance happening at a house party

Canadian Squares

As with the US, Canada as a rich square dance history. Many regions each have their unique traditions that have evolved in their local text (e.g., Newfoundland; Cape Breton; Quebecois; the Arctic; Ontario; the Prairies).

Below are a few examples of square dances from various regions. If you would like to be involved in adding more information about Canadian squares to this page, please email portal@cdss.org.

Additional Links

General history:

• A Brief History of Square and Round Dancing — A brief history of American square dance, with a particular focus on how modern Western square and round dance developed
• History and Heritage of Modern American Square Dancing — Website by the European Association of American Square Dancing Clubs; presents a summary of essays on the history of the American square dance (a selected few of which are offered as links above)
• Northern Junket, Dance History Index — Links to all the Ralph Page articles mentioned above, in addition to many other fascinating articles and commentary on the history of American social dancing
• An Online Guide to Square Dancing — An introduction, history, overview of types of square dancing, links and general tips

General interest videos:

• Thousands of square dancers in Central Park, circa 1945 — New York City's Parks and Recreation sponsored a series of these Summertime square dances in four NYC locations, called by Ed Durlacher
• Pete Seeger with Margot Mayo's American Square Dance Group — Video from the late 1940s made by Margot Mayo's "American Square Dance Group" in NYC, featuring a young Pete Seeger on banjo
• Square dance promotional video, 1951, — A 1951 promotional video made by Bob Osgood in Los Angeles, CA for "Sets in Order," the national square dance magazine.
• Song: "Square Dancing's Calling Me" — Documentary film about the modern Western square dance anthem, "Square Dancing’s Calling Me," recorded by MWSD callers at the 1986 CALLERLAB convention in Baltimore, MD
• Not Your Grandparents' Square Dance — Documentary short about the thriving traditional square dance scene in Portland, OR; footage of various callers and events, and interviews with caller/organizers Michael Ismerio and Bill Martin
• Square dance at the Tractor Tavern — A 2008 traditional square dance at the Tractor Tavern in Seattle, WA, with commentary by caller Charmaine Slaven
• Square dance at HM157 — A 2010 traditional square dance at HM157 in Lincoln Heights (Los Angeles), CA, with multiple callers
• Square dance at Bell's Bend — A 2010 party at "Bell's Bend" in Ashland City (outside of Nashville), TN
• Square dancers do-si-do at the local library — A 2010 traditional square dance in Oakland, CA, with calling by Jordan Ruyle
• Square Dance at the Lakewood Community Center —A 2010 traditional square dance in Seattle, WA, with calling and additional commentary by Suzanne Girardot; footage also includes comments from organizer Catherine Alexander
• "Sail Away Ladies" host a Barn Dance — A 2011 barn dance at the New England Conservatory in Boston, MA, with calling by Will Mentor
• Let's Go! Episode TWO: "Old-Time Square Dance" — A 2011 traditional square dance at The Bishop Bar in Bloomington, IN, with calling and additional commentary by Michael Ismerio
• Square Dancing on the Ice - someplace VERY COLD — Impromptu square dancing on a frozen lake
• Community of the Square — The Monday night square dance in Minneapolis, MN, with voice-over commentary about the mini-community that forms during the experience of dancing a single square. Also, a video of their square dancing on wheels!

Collections for further browsing:

Want an even bigger selection of square dance videos to browse through? Here are some of the great collections I used to compile the above lists.

• Dare to be Square — various sessions from 2009 and 2010 (Tony Mates's videos)
• Square Ball, daytime sampler and evening sampler — Montpelier, VT
• Dan Freligh's YouTube channel — video footage of old-time square dances with caller Dan Freligh (OTM, SS) to recorded music in Saegertown, PA
• Fred Feild's YouTube channel — video and audio footage of traditional square dancing from Fred Feild (Tucson, AZ caller and dance historian)