Folk

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Hubert Carl (Hugh) Ashley (1915–2008)
Hubert Carl (Hugh) Ashley lived a life revolving around country and western music and public service. He wrote...
Bobby “El Charro Negro” Butler (1937–2016)
Bobby “El Charro Negro” Butler broke down barriers as the first African American to become an award-winnin...
White woman with curly hair sitting in a chair
Iris DeMent (1961–)
Arkansas native Iris DeMent has used her distinctive voice to sing folk, country, bluegrass, and gospel music....
Portrait of smiling white woman with blond hair
Connie Dover (1958–)
Connie Dover is a musician who has received critical accolades internationally for her interpretations of trad...
Old white man in hat and glasses with acoustic guitar performing for white patrons
Jimmy Driftwood (1907–1998)
aka: James Corbett Morris
Jimmy Driftwood was a prolific folk singer/songwriter who wrote ov...
Young white woman in dress holding a kitten posing with older white woman
Emma Hays Dusenbury (1862–1941)
Emma Hays Dusenbury was an outstanding traditional singer; her work is represented by some 116 songs in the na...
African-American man and white woman with ukuleles and sombrero hats
Elton and Betty White
aka: Elton White
aka: Betty White
In the mid- to late 1980s, Elton and Betty White were highly visibl...
Print of white man violinist on horse dancing partner women children dogs outside cabin door sign "whisky"
Sandford C. "Sandy" Faulkner (1803?–1874)
Sandford C. (Sandy) Faulkner, the namesake of Faulkner County, is an iconic individual from Arkansas’s early...
Old white man playing a fiddle on stage with old white woman and white guitarists
Folk Music
Folk music is part of a society’s “unofficial culture,” much of which is passed on through face-to-face ...
Older white woman in maroon checkered dress playing a banjo
Ollie Eva Woody Gilbert (1892–1980)
Both a local and national celebrity, Ollie Eva Woody Gilbert, known popularly as Aunt Ollie, performed with Ji...
Three white men in suits one holding a guitar one holding a banjo standing behind a seated white woman
Lee Elhardt Hays (1914–1981)
Lee Elhardt Hays was a singer best known as the big man who sang bass with the folk music group the Weavers. ...
White man and woman folk costumes on stage with barn backdrop presenting violin making parts
Violet Brumley Hensley (1916–)
Known as the “Whittling Fiddler,” the “Stradivarius of the Ozarks,” or more simply, the “Fiddle Make...
White man with mustache in colorful shirt and striped pants holding an acoustic guitar with flowers painted on it in front of red background
Dan Hicks (1941–2016)
Daniel Ivan Hicks was a cross-genre singer/songwriter specializing in a type of music he referred to as “fol...
White woman posing with young white girls in matching uniforms with goat outside house
Rhena Salome Miller Meyer (1905–1988)
aka: Goat Woman of Smackover
Rhena Salome Miller Meyer—better known as “the Goat Woman”—...
White man smiling in hat and suit
Elmer Wayne Mikel (1905–1988)
Elmer Wayne Mikel was a bootlegger during Prohibition and later became a self-published author who wrote book...
Two white men and two white women sitting outside with banjos fiddles and saxophone
Richard "Curly" Miller (1954–2013)
Richard “Curly” Miller was a renowned musician who lived in Kingston (Madison County). He and his wife, Ca...
Candid photo white woman in glasses dress hair bun brushing hair over ear
Mary Celestia Parler (1904–1981)
Mary Celestia Parler was responsible for developing and implementing the most extensive folklore research proj...
Group photograph of white musicians with their instruments on signed cover of "The Rackensack Volume 1" album
Rackensack Folklore Society
The Rackensack Folklore Society was organized for the purpose of perpetuating the traditional folk music of t...
One white woman
Rackensack Folklore Society, Pulaski County
The Rackensack Folklore Society, Pulaski County (RFSPC) was founded in mid-1963 by noted political cartoonist ...
Old white man playing a fiddle on stage with old white woman and white guitarists
Almeda James Riddle (1898–1986)
Discovered by a ballad collector in the 1950s, Almeda James Riddle of Greers Ferry (Cleburne County) became a ...
man with hat glasses scarf and coat smiling and standing by a car
The Rock Island Line
“The Rock Island Line” is a world-famous song—recorded by the likes of Johnny Cash, Harry Belafonte, and...
Weathered "Abernathy" gravestone with Masonic symbol and engraving in cemetery
The State of Arkansaw
The ballad, or narrative folksong, usually titled “The State of Arkansaw” has been a principal exhibit in ...
White man singing while playing bass guitar on stage with white man smiling playing electric guitar both under a blue canopy
Trout Fishing in America
Trout Fishing in America (TFIA), based in northwestern Arkansas, is a musical performance duo consisting of Ke...
White woman with black and white outfit and heavy eye makeup sitting at a wooden table holding a silver Fender Telecaster guitar
Lucinda Williams (1953–)
Lucinda Williams is one of America’s most critically acclaimed songwriters and recording artists, as well as...
Two white men in suits with dog and house behind them
John Quincy Wolf Jr. (1901–1972)
A college professor and self-trained folklorist, John Quincy Wolf Jr. left a lasting legacy in the mid-South ...