The Bluemont Morris Ale is an annual gathering of morris teams held on Columbus Day weekend. We perform at sites in Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia. The 1999 ale featured twenty teams from eastern North America and two from England.
| Albemarle | Cotswold | Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Bassett Street Hounds | Border | Syracuse, New York |
| Belles of York | Northwest | Toronto, Ontario |
| BlueMont | Cotswold | Northern Virginia |
| Cold Barn | Cotswold | Hamilton, Ontario |
| Court Square | Garland/Stave | Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Dorset Buttons Women | Northwest | Bournemouth, England |
| Dorset Buttons Men | Rapper | Bournemouth, England |
| Foggy Bottom | Cotswold | Washington, DC |
| Forest City | Cotswold | London, Ontario |
| Frayed Knot | Sword | Charlottesville, Virginia |
| Harrisville | Cotswold | Harrisville, New Hampshire |
| Loafers Glory | Northwest | asheville, North Carolina |
| Millstone River | Cotswold | Princeton, New Jersey |
| More or Less | Cotswold | Richmond, Virginia |
| Mystic Garland | Northwest | Stonington, Connecticut |
| Not-for-Joes | Border | Uncasville, Connecticut |
| Rock Creek | Cotswold | Takoma Park, Maryland |
| Sheperdstown | Northwest | Sheperdstown, West Virginia |
| Seneca Creek | Sword/Garland | Gaithersburg, Maryland |
| Thornden Morris | Cotswold | Syracuse, New York |
| Toronto Morris Men | Cotswold | Toronto, Ontario |
| Toronto Women's Sword | Sword | Toronto, Ontario |
Photographs from the 1999 Ale
Below are photographs of sixteen of the twenty-two teams attending the ale. The images below are thumbnails of the actual images. Click on the image to see it in full size.
Middletown Library
Our first stop in our Saturday tour was Middletown Library, in central Maryland. Our tour included The Basset Street Hounds, The Belles of York, Seneca Creek Sword and Garland, and Thornden Morris.
The Bassett Street Hounds, a border morris team from Syracuse, New York,
performing a stick dance at the Middletown Library. Border morris originates
from the Welsh border and their teams tend to have a wilder appearance than
their cotswold counterparts.
The Belles of York, a northwest morris team from Toronto, Ontario, performing
a dance at the Middletown Library. Northwest teams are noted for their clogs,
which make quite a loud sound.
Thornden Moris, a cotswold morris team from Syracuse, New York, performing
a stitch dance at the Middletown Library. Cotswold morris is what most people
picture when they hear the term "morris."
Middletown Park
Our tour then proceeded to Kingsbury's Pond in Middletown Park. We decided to perform on a deck that was built next to the pond, which was a nice change from the grass or pavement that we normally dance on.
The Bassett Street Hounds, performing a stick dance at the Middletown Park.
Seneca Creek, a sword and garland team from Gaithersburg, Maryland, performing
the Bamption Weavers' Sword Dance at Middletown Park.
Seneca Creek Sword and Garland, performing a garland dance at Middletown Park.
Show Dancing at Camp
After the tours, all the teams returned to camp and were greeted by a light rain. We decided the rain was light enough to allow us to continue to dance, though we did have to provide umbrellas for the musicians.
Albemarle, a cotswold morris team from Charlottesville, Virginia, performing
a handkerchief dance.
The Dorset Buttons Northwest morris team, from Bournemouth, England,
performing a northwest clog dance. They are called "Dorset Buttons" in honor
of the button trade that flourished in that region during the 17th and 18th
Centuries. The hats of the team members are covered with buttons made by the
members of the team.
The Dorset Buttons rapper team. They claim to be the only rapper team that
performs in clogs (rapper teams usually use shoes with hard leather soles).
Loafers Glory, a northwest team from Asheville, North Carolina.
Not-for-Joes, a border morris team from Uncasville, Connecticut, performing
a stick dance.
Sunday
On Sunday, the rain was heavier, so we had to perform our show dances in the chapel. The lighting was far from ideal, so the images are a bit dark.
Cold Barn, a cotswold team from Hamilton, Ontario, attempting to perform a
stick dance using handkerchiefs.
Forest City, a cotswold team from London, Ontario, performing a handerchief
dance.
Millstone River, a cotswold team from Princeton, New Jersey, performing a
handerchief dance.
Mystic Garland, a garland and northwest team from Stonington, Connecticut,
performing a garland dance. Clogs weren't allowed in the chapel, so they were
required to perform the dance using quieter footwear.
Rock Creek, a cotswold team from Takoma Park, Maryland, performing a
handkerchief dance.
Toronto Morris Men, a cotswold team from Toronto, Ontario, performing a
handkerchief dance.
BlueMont, the host team from Northern Virginia, performing a handkerchief
dance in a wheel formation. Their musician is standing in the center
of the wheel.
This page was last modified on 24 October 1999