Background information

The Lila Warnken Dance Card Collection contains fifteen dance cards collected by Lila Warnken from 1916 to 1920, some of which are from her years at Grand Forks High School and others when she attended the University of North Dakota. The cards are arranged chronologically in folders by year. These cards take the form of small booklets that would fit in the palm of a woman's hand, usually with a pencil attached by a string used to hang around the woman's wrist. The inside of the card had each song and dance that would be performed along with a blank for the name of the woman's dance partner, provided that her suitor properly introduced himself and asked for a dance.  Besides the name and date of the dance, the dance cards contain information on the venue, the sponsors of the dance, patrons and patronesses, class officers, and committees. The popular dances in Lila's time include the One-Step, Foxtrot, Waltz, and Moonlight Waltz. The cards also vary in general appearance: some are plain and consist of little more than a single piece of folded paper, while others are leather-bound, multi-paged booklets with colored ink and images on the front. Also included is a folder with background information about Lila Warnken's years at the University of North Dakota.