The BRADFORD ARENA was open from about 1939 until 1963. There were always large crowds,
but when WW II ended the crowds swelled to 400 or more every Saturday evening, regardless of the weather.
Frank's nephew, Stewart,
remembers his father making a good week's wage pulling cars out of the ditch or snow banks, as the hall was on a very steep hill. He also taught his daughter to run the tractor so she could help him.
People came to the dances from most of the towns in Merrimack and Sullivan Counties as well as Manchester and even Boston and New York during the summer, the summer residents from the lakes region also came. It was named the "Arena" because Frank had sold the property and the new owners tried to have roller-skating in the hall also, but that never really took off and the Saturday night dancers complained that the skating was ruining the floor. In those days a dance floor had to be perfectly smooth and waxed to a high gloss. Dancers wore leather sole shoes that would glide on the floor while dancing. There was always an ongoing debate as to whether the floor was too slippery or not smooth enough. The floor had to be waxed every week between dances. A Dance Wax powder was sprinkled on the floor to keep it smooth. If Dance Wax was not available, cornmeal could be used.
The admission to the dances was fair for the times. An ad circa 1946 states, "Popular Prices - Admission 64 cents, Fed. Tax 12 cents - Tot. 74 cents." Frank later went up as high as 99 cents. At that time, if he charged under $1.00 he did not have to pay taxes, so the admission remained the same for quite a while. Among the ticket sellers over the years were Don Keith, Frank's brother Ted, his sister Zinella, and his neighbor Don Douglas. There was also a ticket taker who tore the tickets in half for the door prize and stamped the hands of those who left the hall so they could come back in. Tickets were not sold to anyone who appeared too intoxicated. Alcohol was not allowed inside the dance hall in those days. Those who wished to imbibe had it in their car and frequent trips were made out of the hall when one got thirsty, especially at intermission. What went on outside the hall at these dances has kept the gossips of the surrounding towns entertained for years. Frank was well aware of the activities and hired town police officers to keep things under control. He wanted to have a respectable establishment where families could enjoy themselves. We fondly remember two of these, then Chief of Police, Jay George, and his deputy, Lester Witham. These two kept any trouble outside the hall and could settle disputes with little fanfare. It is recalled that there was a gang from Claremont and one from Newport that came to the Arena wanting to cause trouble. The officers took care of these outside the hall, and they were ushered off the property. In those days, their only weapons were their fists.
The snack bar has been a topic of much discussion during this research. Frank's wife, Ann, and other helpers, usually wives of the ticket sellers (Shirley Keith, Harriet Douglas, and Frank's sister-in-law Ula Fortune), sold hot dogs, hamburgers, cheeseburgers and potato chips throughout the evening. Ann used to take a hot dog and slit it and put cheese in it on the grill.
Frank would put bowls of popcorn out on the tables located in front of the snack bar. He made sure it was plenty salty so dancers would need to buy drinks to quench their thirst.
The property exchanged hands many times over the years, but Frank still ran the dances and did the calling. Around 1950 the property was owned by Dorothy Fischer. One Christmas she sent out a picture card of the house and barn (right). According to information found in local newspapers it appeared that Colby's Orchestra with Frank Fortune calling played at the arena until late 1958. It is believed that Frank's voice may have given out and he was ordered to give it a rest. During the early 1960s there were a variety of bands and callers for the dances at the Arena. 
In 1959 Frank sold the Arena to Raymond Lawler, but again continued to call for the dances when he could. Mr. Lawler was peculiar and timed the dances with a stop watch to make sure the sets of squares and round dances were exactly the same length. That did not go over well with Frank and the Orchestra.
An ad in a local newspaper from 1960 advertised Brother Wayne and the Ramblers as providing the music. One of the callers who filled in occasionally was Larry Guaraldi from Lebanon.
The Bradford Arena burned on August 6, 1963 (see photo, to the right). The Stark Mansion Hall, Dunbarton, NH. In 1959 Colby's Orchestra was not playing at Bradford Arena as Frank was having trouble with his voice and Mike had been ill. Marguerite and Jesse Boynton owned the Stark Mansion in Dunbarton and ran a restaurant in the Mansion. Stark Mansion was built in 1785 by Revolutionary War General John Stark and his son Caleb, for Caleb and his family. There was a smaller barn on the property, which had been used for sheep. The Boyntons renovated it and started having round dances. The round dancing alone did not draw large crowds. When Marguerite heard that Mike wasn't playing she asked him to come with his Orchestra and play for her. 
She then hired Frank Morrison from Laconia to call the squares.
The format for the dances was exactly the same as it had been at the Bradford Arena, as most of the dancers had been dancing in Bradford previously. This barn only held 200-250 people,
but was admired for the huge fieldstone fireplace and knotty pine interior. When the fireplace was in use, only the really cold-blooded people could stand to be the set directly in front of it.
Marguerite played the piano in the beginning. A little later Woody Roberts started playing the piano so Marguerite could be free to attend to the snack bar. George Rounds and Bob Messer also came to the Mansion to play. Marguerite's son, Robert, played the standup bass and became a part of Colby's Orchestra and married Mike's older daughter, Janice. Danny Clear from Manchester played drums and was later replaced by Stewart Fortune, Frank's nephew. As Marguerite was an excellent cook and ran a restaurant across the road from the dance hall, the snack bar featured items such as
As the dance hall also served as the function hall for the restaurant, it was not unusual for the band to play for a wedding reception or party in the afternoon and again in the evening for the regular dance. Most of the regular dancers at the Stark Mansion had also gone to Bradford. Some of them were the children of people who had gone to the Bradford Arena in its early days. This was also a place that couples met, went on dates, and often went on to be married. Frank Fortune came to call at the Stark Mansion sometime in 1963, as his voice had recovered. The dances continued until 1965 as Marguerite's health was failing. The hall was sold in 1967 and was used for a printing business. Fortune's Barn Frank bought a barn on Fairgrounds Road in 
Bradford, just a couple miles past the Arena, and
completely renovated it with all new timbers and a new hardwood floor. Bob Messer's son, Rick,
worked on the flooring and Frank was so pleased with
the finished product that he gave Rick a bonus, which was not something Frank usually did.
Other local workmen did much of the work on this barn.
It opened as Fortunes Barn in 1965. This new barn was very fancy compared to the old one. It had screens on the windows and double barn doors, which could be opened on each end. It even had indoor plumbing! The stage was in the center of one long side of the hall with the snack bar directly across from it. The snack bar was larger and there were more tables in the snack bar area. The new kitchen also sold French fries.
The crowds followed Frank to the new barn and the dances continued as they had always been run. The crowds were not as large, as many of the original dancers had families to care for or had moved on, but the "good old standbys" were there every week. At each dance a door prize was drawn for a free admission to a future dance.
Some pictures from Fortunes barn in 1968, the year after Mike Colby died (click image to enlarge it). The band consisted of (left to right) Al Lavoie, George Rounds, Bob Messer, Lyle Glidden, an unknown drummer, Woody Roberts, and Frank Fortune calling Frank sold Fortune's Barn to Cliff Sellers in 1968, but continued to call there until his voice gave out about six months later. As Myron Colby had died in 1967 and Frank had to give up calling in 1968,
Later Halls In the mid 1970s, Fortunes Barn closed and smaller groups of musicians and dancers found smaller halls to dance in, such as Webster and Hopkinton.
The Emerson Hill Club building burned on August 8, 1999. Since that time the group of dedicated dancers has danced at the Town Library Community Room in Contoocook. In 2006 Walt and Lou retired from playing as they were both in their 80s and Woody Roberts went back to playing for the squares again. There have been numerous musicians who have played for this group. 
Over the years Ken Holt, Wilfred French and George Kemp have played the drums. Royce Riddle, who has been instrumental in keeping the group going, has played the banjo, often assisted by Brian Carroll. The group continues to hold dances with varying other musicians. They are indeed a dedicated group. At the March 3, 2007 dance you could see Woody Roberts still at the piano, with Bob Boynton again calling the squares that Frank Fortune called and John Boynton playing the drums. (Bob and John being Myron Colby's grandsons.) The dancers there that night had all attended the Bradford Dances at some time.
Both Woody Roberts and Walt Heath have said that the piano at Emerson Hill Club was the best one they ever played. They both felt so bad that it had burned in the fire. Early on Ed Price glued a mirror onto the piano so that Woody could watch the dancers as he played so he didn't have to miss anything while he was playing. |
Written 2006/2007 by Janice Colby Boynton, with help from Myrna Colby Toutant