Deb,
You don't say what kind of dancing is being done, how long the dance lasts and how many dancers dance at one time. Is your dance activity a one-time event or like Gadsby's, does it happen with great frequency and includes public participation? Are you sure the floor boards date back to the 18th century, or like Gadsby's, was an old floor that by the 1970s, everyone thought was 18th century? It sounds like you are using the hallway of the house for dancing, which was commonly done in the 18th century. Hallway floors saw a lot more traffic than floors in the rooms off of the hallway; chances are that it may not be old or date back to when the house was built. It's hard to advise you without knowing how you use your floor and what kind of floor you really have.
Having worked at Gadsby's Tavern Museum and with the dance program, I would advise the following:
1. Check with your dancers about add-ons to the dance floor. Let them advise you about what surface can or cannot be used for dancing. Dancing on anything other than a regular surface is difficult and dangerous. You could have dancers tripping on a mat (regardless of how thin) or falling off a stage (regardless of how high).
2. Get a floor expert to tell you about your floor. Granted, finding someone who actually knows what an 18th century floor looks like is hard, but you might find someone who could date the floor you have. They would look not only at the wood but also at how the boards were laid.
3. Once your floor is dated, then re-assess how you will use it. If it is truly the original floor or old enough to be historic, you have something unique and wonderful and you may not want to have any dancing take place on it. You will instead want to protect it with a carpet. Hallways often had carpeting. You will want to check your house inventory for your period of interpretation if there is one, or check to see if inventories of other houses in your vicinity show hall floor coverings.
4. If it is not the original floor or one that could qualify as historic, don't worry about it! Go ahead and let your dancers use the floor without any covering at all. But like all well-used floors, you will have to replace floor boards from time to time and will have to budget for that. If anyone tells you to sand it, find another floor expert!
Finally, do check with the Gadsby staff in Alexandria, VA. Gadsby's puts on many balls and dances throughout the year in its 18th-century ballroom and attracts quite a crowd each time. They are the true experts when it comes to dancers, dance masters and staying true to the period dance form and protecting original elements of a historic house.
Monta Lee
=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:
The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).
If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).