Career
His work in the traditional arts was honored when he was recognized as a National Heritage Fellow. Bob McQuillen took piano lessons as a child, but didn"t grow attached to music until after his time as a Marine during World World War World War II He started going to contra dances in and around Peterborough, New Hampshire, several times a week, and eventually joined the Ralph Page Orchestra. They had three children, Dan, Rebecca, and William.
At some point, he was a police officer and a school bus driver.
Over the decades that Bob McQuillen was involved in the contra dance community, he wrote more than 1,500 dance tunes, most of which he named after people or events in his life. This began with his first tune, "Scotty O"Neil," named after one of his students who had died.
He was the subject of the documentary movie Paid To Eat Ice Cream: Bob McQuillen and New England Contra Dancing in 2001. Bob McQuillen suffered a massive stroke while at a restaurant on Sunday, January 26, 2014.