Brief History of Clogging

The origins of clogging come from the Appalachian Mountain folk dances of the 1800's. Folk dances were often a mix of the jigs and step dances brought to America by English, German, Scottish, and Irish settlers, eventually turning into the traditional American folk dance. Clogging gained national attention in the 1920's when Sam Queen's Soco Gap dance team from Maggie Valley, North Carolina danced for President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Clogging is a form of dance that can be done individually or with a group. Clogging is characterized by the footwork. Contrary to popular belief, modern American clogging does not involve wooden clogs. Clogging is generally done in leather-soled shoes with some form of metal tap on the balls and heels of the shoes; two common types of taps are solid and jingle.

Contemporary clogging today is less improvised and more complicated than the simple folk dances done in our early history. New influences are coming from multiple styles of dance such as tap dancing, Canadian step dancing, Irish hard shoe and even street dancing and hip-hop, all these styles are affecting the type of steps, the music, and the dances done by cloggers today.

References:
Double Toe Times