A Dancing Tradition
Jim Matthews and 9-year-old Susan Simpson practice their steps.
Members and guests of the Buckeroo Barn community within a community are keeping Roseburg’s long tradition of square dancing alive.
Story by Sarah Stacey Photos by Robin Loznak
Driving over a small bridge spanning a creek, one approaches the Buckeroo Barn, a decent-sized dance hall featuring life-sized silhouette art, a 19th-century buggy and an honest-to-goodness disco ball.
Inside, a group of square dancers are intently listening to the caller, Mark Wheeler, musically holler out different moves from a repertoire of 68 steps. The eight, partnered dancers, ranging in age from 11 to 70, are in the midst of their last lesson delivered through 30 weekly classes, after which they will have mastered and memorized all 68 steps.
For the first few weeks of class, Wheeler says he “likes to keep it vanilla.” Nothing too complex, in other words. Wheeler has been with the Buckeroo class from week one, driving down from Portland to Roseburg for each class. Being a caller is a skilled position for which only dedicated, musically inclined and passionate people need apply. And Wheeler is all of that.
He, of course, has memorized all 68 steps and masterfully executes them as he commands the dancers this way and that. The goal is to get each set of partners back to their original position at the end of the song, keeping in mind that each of the 68 steps has its own time count and falls on its own beat.
And you thought square dancing was a cake walk.
“After growing too big and too loud for the neighborhood, founders moved the barn board by board and rebuilt it where it stands today on Northeast Stephens Street.”
Roseburg’s Buckeroo Club has been a square dancing community within our community for nearly 70 years. It was founded in 1952 by a group of beginner square dancers who, after growing too big and too loud for the neighborhood on Saturday nights, moved the barn board by board and rebuilt it where it stands today on Northeast Stephens Street.
The club gives friends and family a place to dance while providing good, clean fun for whoever wants to participate. That’s a value that Bruce Knotts, president of the Buckeroos, still holds dear. “I call it family-friendly fun with a touch of exercise,” he says.
Don’t let that “touch of exercise” fool you. These dancers can really move, and anyone who joins them had better be prepared to break a sweat. Newcomers would be wise not to try and keep up with Paul, 89, and Verna McBurnett, 84, who have been square dancing consistently at the Buckeroo Barn for 35 years.
Many other members have similarly long histories with Buckeroo Barn. Knotts, who has been square dancing since the eighth grade, has had his wife and all five children participate over the years. Annette Reynolds, who has been dancing since high school, now has four generations of her family dancing at Buckeroo Barn. Susan Simpson is only 9 but has been dancing since she was 7. She hopes to be a caller one day.
Buckeroo Barn dancers represent a wide range of ages and skill levels. Since the 1950s, the barn doors have opened up to other types of dance, like line dancing and round dances such as the waltz, two-step and rhumba.
For Wednesday night’s line dancing, the floor squeaks may be coming from anything from professional dance shoes to sneakers to golden, sparkly cowboy boots. There are dancers in their 20s, 40s, 60s and beyond, from beginner to advanced. Some have their eyes glued to instructor Kathy Haskins; others are silently performing the moves from memory.
From the instructor’s easy demeanor to the side conversations, occasional stumbles and laughter, it’s clear that mistakes are OK here. While dancers are encouraged to challenge themselves, they are also there to learn at their own pace.
Haskins feels especially compassionate toward beginners. “I remember what it was like to be a new dancer,” the instructor says. “I want to make people feel comfortable on the dance floor and give them the confidence to try harder things.”
Members and dancers are unified in their belief that the Buckeroo Barn is all about community. The word “family” will pass the lips of nearly everyone in the place, as will praises about the facility. The McBurnetts call it a “legendary place” that is “dedicated to family recreation.” Buckeroo Club President Knotts speaks of square dancing as being a universal language, and instructor Haskins agrees. “Dancing unites people,” she says. “I really feel like we are a family.”
Buckaroo Barn community members put their heart and soul into the preservation of the club and the upkeep of the structure. “It takes commitment to keep up the barn, and there is a lot of behind the scenes work,” Paul McBurnett says. “There are many people who help with decorations, posters and advertising, and that takes some time.”
These and the efforts of many others, like Peggy and Lynn Miller, who recently completed some beautiful artwork for the front of the barn and some elaborate decorations for the inside, have kept the Buckeroo Barn a vibrant center for this community of dancers. Together they are keeping people dancing on the Buckeroo Barn’s 68-year-old maple floor and keeping its traditions alive.
Dancers practice during a break.
Buckeroo Barn regulars Lynn and Peggy Miller.
The Buckeroo Barn is located at 5051 N.E. Stephens St., Roseburg. For information, call 541.670.3864.
