Cobblestone ‘Teen Hop’ memories

The pale green concrete block women’s restroom walls were lined with a narrow mirror with a wooden ledge underneath. This was where all the teasing, spraying and ‘picking’ happened!”

— Phyllis Moore Roelfs

Whenever I hear an old 60s song on the radio, I smile remembering how I danced to it as a teenage girl in Storm Lake! Being a good dancer was an absolute MUST in the 60s and I was not only a good dancer, I was a great dancer! 

Whenever I was at a dance, it made me thankful for the endless barefoot hours I practiced my hip swivels and arm jerks in front of the big picture window in our living room. Of course rehearsing had to be done after dark so I could see my reflection in the glass! 

I wonder how many friends and neighbors passed by, glanced in the bright window and saw this skinny little girl shaking and bucking around the room with head jerking and hair flopping side to side! What a sight that must have been! But those endless hours made me a very good dancer.  

On the weekends, I’d show off my latest moves at the weekly “Teen Hops” which were held at a huge old ballroom located on the east side of the Storm Lake called The Cobblestone.

Kids from every neighboring town and hamlet for miles around would come to Storm Lake to meet, dance, and flirt at the Cobblestone Ballroom — “The Cobb” as we all called it. If a great band was playing like the Rumbles, Fabulous Flippers, Jokers Wild, or The Four Lourdes, tickets were a high $2. But we all gladly paid it for a night of great fun and memories.  

We always tried to get there early for two reasons. One was to get a decent parking space.  The parking lot for the Cobblestone was on top of underground springs and had huge holes and ruts on most of it. Try as they might to repair it, the ruts reappeared. 

If you got bored, you could “read the booth.”

Second was to get a “prime” booth. The huge dance floor was surrounded by wooden booths. On one side of the dance floor there were two levels of booths. The desirable ones were on the top level. You could get a good overview of the entire dance floor from there. The old booths had years of names and graffiti marked into their tops. If you ever got bored, you could always read the booth.  

Upon entering, there was the ticket booth. On the left was coat check area. To the right was the hallway which led down to the restrooms and the steakhouse. After every dance, the steakhouse was packed with kids ordering Cokes and French fries.  

After buying a ticket, you’d proceed to the ticket person who would stamp the back of your hand with an invisible ink that would only show up when you moved your hand under the “black light.”

Strolling around the dance floor

We learned quickly that there was a “proper” way to stroll around the dance floor. It was a constant stream of teenagers just walking around all night long. After walking counter-clockwise for a while, it was necessary to change direction, otherwise you could possibly miss seeing someone all night long who happened to be going in the same direction as you.  

Usually, it was the dateless teens who strolled around all night. Girls, ever hopeful that a boy would notice her, and boys with the hope of mustering up the courage to ask a girl to dance. Back then, girls never asked boys to dance.  It just wasn’t done. Made for some long lonely nights for the shy girls and boys. It was also a loud announcement to the world of the kids that weren’t “going with” someone.

“Heat Wave” right before break time

The stage at the Cobb was raised on the south side of the dance floor. On our treks around the room, you would angle down a slight ramped floor on the west side that led down to the refreshment stand behind the stage. If you continued through the snack area, you came back out onto the dance floor on the east side. On the east side of the dance floor was an area that was set up with tables. This area too was always packed with kids during big dances.

You knew a break was coming when the bands started playing “Heat Wave.” For some reason, that song became every band’s break song. Then the dash to the restrooms Girls were in a hurry to check their hair and makeup. The pale green concrete block women’s restroom walls were lined with a narrow mirror with a wooden ledge underneath. This was where all the teasing, spraying and “picking” happened! It was always a mad crunch to squeeze in to check your hair. 

Then, as you exited the restroom, you'd walk between a gauntlet of boys lining the hallways who were waiting for "their" girl to come out. The boys would look over every girl, deciding if there might be a new one he should approach.

A place to make out

After people found their dates, they would go outside to cool off, have a quick cigarette or go for a stroll. Behind the ballroom and the lake was an old brick bath house from years gone by.  During breaks from the band, people would walk back to the bath house to cool off and maybe — just maybe — make out with their dates.

Cobb had a “Teen Hop” every Sunday night and it was THE place to be!

My very first Teen Hop

I will never forget the very first “Teen Hop” I attended. I couldn’t wait to go! My parents finally decided I was old enough. I had to go with my older sister. I wasn’t happy about that. I wanted to go alone, but I was going!  

Deciding what to wear was the real problem. I had so few clothes and I just knew that I would stick out like a sore thumb at a dance full of “cool” kids. I decided to wear a dark brown little dress that I had spent babysitting money to buy. It was very cute! Dark brown, straight cut. The top part, across the shoulders and upper chest was a white/brown swirl fabric. I had shortened it quite a bit so it was pretty sharp. (A good 60s word ... sharp!)

Arriving, we scanned the parking lot of great cars to see who was there already. Kids had gorgeous cars back then. Many had their own cars and others just had their dad’s. No one really cared how they got there, they just had to get there!

As soon as we walked into Cobblestone, I could have died of embarrassment! Every single kid there was wearing blue jeans, NOT dresses! Did my sister BOTHER to tell me I was dressed wrong? Of course not!

My sister immediately disappeared with her friends so I wandered around a little to stares at my bad choice of wardrobe, and then sat down in a booth alone feeling foolish! I got a Coke and sat in the booth and just listened to the band and watched the kids dance. Some of them were O.K., but not nearly as good as I was. I wished I could just go out there and show them all that this silly little 15-year-old girl in the dress really could dance!

Suddenly my eye caught my dreamboat! He was a blond-haired blue-eyed dream who was a senior in high school. He was a fantastic dancer and SO cute! How I dreamed someone like him would notice me, but realized how goofy I looked in a dress and knowing that he was WAY out of my league.

I continued to sit and wander around and really just wanted to go home. This was NOT that fun and there was no one there that I knew. I started watching the crowd for my sister, wanting to get a ride home. She was nowhere in sight.  

As I was daydreaming away the night, head down, sipping my drink, suddenly a voice asked, “Would you like to dance?”

Startled, I looked up into the beautiful blue eyes of THE DREAMBOAT!  

I turned around to see if he might have been asking someone sitting in the booth behind me.  He chuckled and said with twinkling eyes “I was talking to you.”

I said “Sure,” as I bounced out of the booth and walked out onto the floor. My heart was racing, wondering why on earth this great guy would even notice me — a little 15-year-old girl in a brown dress!  We danced and danced, and I was so thankful.