Tradition and Sociability at Grindstone Island Square Dance

(08/30/05) Grindstone Island is a place where the past is quite present. Grindstone is just opposite the St. Lawrence River village of Clayton. It's several miles long, one of the largest of the Thousand Islands. There are no official roads. Folks get around in old jalopies or ATVs. Only 11 people live on Grindstone all winter, but when the weather changes, families who've spent generations of summers there return, and a larger community reassembles. On Saturday nights, the place to be is the big dance at Dodge Hall. Usually it's DJs or rock 'n' roll bands who supply the music. But every once in a while, some fiddlers and callers get together for an old-fashioned square dance. David Sommerstein joined in a couple of weekends ago, and sent this audio postcard.