Tom and Eloise McLaughlin dance together at the annual Mid-Ohio Valley Shaggers dance at the Belpre Shrine Club on Saturday. The couple met at the club 13 years ago, then started dating, fell in love and got married. (Photo by Douglass Huxley)

BELPRE — The Mid-Ohio Valley Shaggers club had its annual dance night over the weekend at the Belpre Shrine Club.

Randy Kinsolving, one of the founding members of the club, said shag dancing started in the 1940s and ’50s in South Carolina and is the official dance of that state. The exact origin of shag is typically attributed to either the Atlantic Beach or Myrtle Beach area.

It began as a jitterbug spinoff but was a bit slower and is similar to swing. The music is a combination of rhythm and blues dance mixed with some of the music of today that fits the beat of shag — generally between 105 and 120 beats per minute.

“The key to the dance is to feel the beat,” Kinsolving said.

There are four official shag dance clubs in West Virginia, in Charleston, Beckley, Clarksburg and Bluefield. The dance can be found all over the country but is most popular on the East Coast, from Florida up to New York and as far as Ohio and Indiana.

Shag dance lovers from all over the region dance together at the Belpre Shrine Club Saturday night. (Photo by Douglass Huxley)

The Mid-Ohio Valley shag club was founded in 2004, and events have been held at the Belpre Shriner’s Club for the last four years. At each event, members bring appetizer and deserts and Der Dog Haus in Parkersburg caters.

This weekend’s event drew more than 80 people, with some coming from as far away as Cleveland and Indiana. Saturday’s dance had two visiting DJs and dance instructors, Kevin and Dee Twohig, who traveled from Charleston They are both members of the National Living Legends of Dance organization and travel to the Mid-Ohio Valley for big events.

“Shag is supposed to be grounded and smooth,” Dee Twohig said.

Two local dance instructors who teach weekly, Mike and Pattee Goodwin, met through the club and ended up getting married. Mike was from Ravenswood, and Pattee was from Clarksburg.

And they aren’t the only ones.

The Mid-Ohio Valley Shaggers club had its annual dance night Saturday at the Belpre Shrine Club. The club was founded in 2004 while the shag dance became popular in the 1950s in the Carolinas, and plays off of the timing of rhythm and blues music. (Photo by Douglass Huxley)

Tom McLaughlin, from Spencer, met Eloise, from Ravenswood, 13 years ago at an MOV Shaggers event. They started taking classes, then Tom asked Eloise for her phone number. She gave it to him, and he quickly began calling her every night at 9:30 p.m. They took a trip to Canaan Valley and rode the ski lift up the mountain to see the view, and that was when Tom first told Eloise he loved her.

“By that time we both were in love,” Eloise said. They have been married for nearly 12 years.

The meetings for the MOV Shaggers are Thursday nights from 7 to 9 p.m. at the American Legion on Ohio Avenue in Parkersburg, and there is no cost to join. Membership isn’t required, and the club is open to all ages. Those interested are encouraged to find the club on Facebook under the name “MOV Shaggers”.

Maddie Harris can be reached at mharris@newsandsentinel.com

The Mid-Ohio Valley Shaggers club had its annual dance night Saturday at the Belpre Shrine Club. The club was founded in 2004, while the shag dance became popular in the 1950s in the Carolinas, and plays off of the timing of rhythm and blues music. (Photo by Maddie Harris)