Renfro Valley Barn Dance Crew

[MikeEdgerton]

I tried to find a larger copy of this image. I was pretty excited to see the two guys sitting on the floor on the left of the picture. I've never seen their pictures when they were that young.

[NursingDaBlues]

How cool is that! Good find!

[MikeZito]

Absolutely classic - THANKS for sharing!

[Jim Garber]

That is a cool photo. According to Wikipedia:

Renfro Valley Barn Dance was an American country music stage and radio show originally carried by WLW-AM in Cincinnati, Ohio on Saturday nights. It debuted on October 9, 1937 from the Cincinnati Music Hall and moved to the Memorial Auditorium in Dayton, Ohio. It was hosted by John Lair, Red Foley, Cotton Foley, and Whitey Ford.

The show later moved to larger quarters near Mt. Vernon, Kentucky in November 1939 and was carried by WHAS-AM in Louisville, the NBC Radio Network and WCKY-AM in Cincinnati.

The program is no longer broadcast, but a live show bearing its name takes place on Saturday nights at the Renfro Valley Entertainment Center in Renfro Valley, Kentucky. A sister program, the Renfro Valley Gatherin' (established in 1943), continues to air.

PBS did a documentary series on American Roots Music called "In the Valley Where Time Stands Still", which is a film about the history of the Renfro Valley Barn Dance.

I wonder if the current Renfro Barn Dance organziation might have a larger copy of that photo or maybe the Country Music Hall of Fame?

And from Homer and Jethro's Wikipedia page:

In 1939 they became regulars on the Renfro Valley Barn Dance radio program in Renfro Valley, Kentucky.

Here is a promo photo probably from about the same time (from Country Music Hall of Fame). Same haircuts and outfits.

[David Kennedy]

How tall is the woman on the extreme right? Does anyone recognise her?

[Jeff Mando]

How tall is the woman on the extreme right? Does anyone recognise her?

I enlarged the picture to read the names of the last two people in the second row -- Shorty Hobbs and Eller. I then googled that and found they performed as Roy Shorty Hobbs and Little Eller Long. It listed her height as 6'5"

[MikeEdgerton]

That is a cool photo. According to Wikipedia:


I wonder if the current Renfro Barn Dance organziation might have a larger copy of that photo or maybe the Country Music Hall of Fame?

And from Homer and Jethro's Wikipedia page:


Here is a promo photo probably from about the same time (from Country Music Hall of Fame). Same haircuts and outfits.

I think they are even younger in the Renfro picture. I was all over the Renfro site looking for a larger copy. If it was there it eluded me.

[Jim Garber]

I think they are even younger in the Renfro picture. I was all over the Renfro site looking for a larger copy. If it was there it eluded me.

Well, someone there has a the original I would think. Have you tried contacting them? I will bet that that was from some sort of promotional brochure or booklet.

I did find another scan at the HSGA page featuring Jerry Byrd. That one is even smaller and washed out but has the year 1940. Maybe HSGA has a source for it?



One other possible source might be the Berea College archives. They have a whole collection of ephemera on the Renfro Valley Barn Dance. I just tried this search result but there might be other possibilities.