Couple researches small town dancing in the 1930’s through 1950’s



TO THE EDITOR:

My wife, Kay Calam Dalstrom, and I are working on a history of dance bands and dancing in rural and small town Minne
By
on February 16, 2005




TO THE EDITOR:

My wife, Kay Calam Dalstrom, and I are working on a history of dance bands and dancing in rural and small town Minnesota from the 1930s through the 1950s. Our interest stems from Kay’s childhood recollections of summertime travel in the 1950s with her father’s band, “Bob Calam and His Music,” which was one of a number of Omaha-based “territory bands.” (Calam had earlier co-authored Lawrence Welk’s theme, “Bubbles in the Wine.”) As a history professor at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, I found the story of dance bands and dancing to be an interesting facet of the Midwest’s past. We have published articles on this topic in the historical society journals in Nebraska, South and North Dakota, and after we both retired from UN-O, we decided, with the encouragement of the Minnesota Historical Society, to extend our work to your state.

We would appreciate hearing from your readers who have recollections about dancing at such places as the Hollyhock in Hatfield, the Playmor in Pipestone, the Gem (Hardwick), the Blue Moon (Marshall), the Show Boat (Lake Benton), and the Valhalla in Slayton. Popular places across the state line were the Dell Rapids Pavilion and the Flandreau Park Ballroom. We are especially interested in crowd size; how far people traveled to dances; age groups attending; whether parents brought children; food and refreshments and decorum. Any memories about individual bands will be helpful. Among the bands playing “modern” music that appeared most frequently were Jimmy Barnett, Jimmy Thomas, Clem Brau, Al Menke, Al Hudson, Lee Williams and Bob Calam. Popular “old time” bands included “Whoopee John,” the Six Fat Dutchmen, the WNAX Bohemian Band, the Jolly Lumber Jacks, and The Vikings. A group with ties to Pipestone was Tiny Bostic’s Band. Frequent dance ads in the Star suggest that dancing was a popular pastime in southwestern Minnesota, but as has been the case elsewhere, we need recollections and photos to develop the story. Of course, we will provide proper credit for any material that we use in this project which we plan to submit to the Minnesota Historical Society for publication.

Thank you for your help.

Yours truly,

Harl A. Dalstrom

3022 Rainwood Road

Omaha, NE 68112-14444

e-mail: kdalstrom@msn.com

Written by: Harl A. Dalstrom