Percy, Tom

Dancer from Over Wyresddale, Lancashire. Born c. 1896.

He arrived in Wyresdale in about 1913.  His wife was the daughter of Edward Winder born 1872, one of the family who had performed the Wyresdale Greensleeves Dance.  He and his wife were able to provide considerable background genealogical information on the family.  He was able to recall the visit of Cecil Sharp to the village to collect the dance and provided information as to who else had performed it:

James Winder
Edward Winder,
John Winder
Bartle Doddin
Dave Burns

Mrs Winder had her grandfather’s manuscript book containing the tune for the dance and also many others.  It was written in 1830 by another Edward Winder (Mrs Percy’s great-grandfather) and mentions another James Winder as a dancing master.

Mr Percy also recalled dances being held in the local Abbeysted School (in about 1913), these being

He was able to provide a notation for the Cottagers.

Information derived from an interview by Tom Flett with Tom Percy, 31 March 1960,  3 April 1960 and  1 July 1960.