Interview Summary
Old man log house, played music together, got from Pen Vandiver
Pen sold the violin because the scroll of the neck had been broken when he was
thrown from a mulePierce repaired music instruments and guns, he swapped Uncle Pen his violin for
the one Stogner know ownsStogner and his brother Vernon swapped and gave $15 dollars. brother died at 21
and Otis kept the fiddleStogner brothers had good country band, played all night picnic Horse Branch
Olaton, Rosine, start at 6 o'clock in the afternoon, play until 2 or 3 in the morningVernon died in 1936, played violin and Clifford played the bass fiddle, Otis
played mandolin, and Carson Autrey played the guitarPaul Wilson played 5 string guitar, their band initially had no name
The band became known as the Three Musketeers when they dropped down to three
band membersViolin Case shows name of band and inscribed with “Horse Branch High School, 1933”
Did not buy because Pen's violin Pierce told them whose fiddle it was
Pierce Repaired guns and instruments and lived in a log house
Pierce and his son Myron charged a minimum fee, since the businesses was his
sole source of incomePlayed the violin pretty well, Myron played the guitar
Pierce played regular violin tunes
Stogner knew a hundred fiddle tunes when he began playing the fiddle
Stogner played fiddle for a bit after brother died.
Paul Wilson, Carson Autrey and one other band member learned how to play older
styles of music, such as the Waltz and square dancing musicHerman Alvey played a lot of older tunes on the violin
Discussion about preservation of musical traditions in western KY
Description of the fiddle’s condition when Stogner purchased it
Herman Alvey took violin to Louisville and had the scroll fixed, sometime after
1947 had keys put inBrother played violin at Western. won everything, people came from all over
Sometimes he caught a ride to play at the dances, but most of the time they walked.
Passed a hat around and often averaged $3 a piece a night
Played at Bill Hatler's place, large crowds, average about the same
Stopped played in 1936 when his brother died
Took music lessons under Melvin Kassinger, but the lessons did not help and he
continued to play by earTypically accompanied by three people
Wanted to go to Evansville and play on the radio
Did not go back to play very often, since it made him nervous and it was
difficult to travel and back forthPlayed on WGBF back in 1938 or 1939, also had an older car that was not very reliable
Herman Alvey would like to have Uncle Pen’s fiddle, but Stogner does not want to
sell itTex Atchison played the fiddle, Herman Alvey has played a few times
Veda (Otis’s wife) found picture of Tex playing the fiddle
Tex tried to give Veda his books but she did not want them
Tex continued to receive lots of royalty checks from movie appearances until his death
Veda worked at the post office until he died
Story about Stogner, Veda, Tex, and clothes
Veda was a tomboy and she met Otis while playing baseball
Rattle snake rattler in the fiddle, Pierce said it was in there to make the
sound betterStogner did not put the snake’s raddle back in the fiddle
Fiddle also has certificate of authenticity
Myron Pierce signed in front of Boise Taylor, details of purchase agreement
The Stogners attended the funeral of one of Bill Monroe’s brothers, Speedy Monroe
The couple saw Bill Monroe at the funeral home
Stogner was going to give Bill the violin, but he was not interested
General comments about the Mount Pleasant area; Tex Atchison is buried in the
Mount Pleasant CemeteryMusic was the only form of entertainment
Veda's brother Charlie Carson Hines, played the violin
Carson Autrey played the guitar, and Paul Wilson played 5 string banjo
One of Stogner’s brothers was a talented violin player
Discussion of the quality of musicians’ work over the years
Vernon won many contests over the years
Veda's brother played the violin by ear
Charlie Carson lost a finger and one of his thumbs and could no longer play
Both Stogners grew up in the tradition of grand Christian church singing
The couple attended the Fairview School
Kassinger ran a singing school, which usually ran four or five nights a week,
but went up to every night at certain timesKassinger would go from church to church and probably covered the same material
in each churchDiscussion of Sam Crowder and Lova Leisure’s interview about the Mt. Pleasant
community, Sam wanted to talk about quartetsStogner's singing school no music except for a tuning fork
Otis says singing school did not effect his band, in the older days more young
people danced, today not many people in the community danceMusic dying out because of aging population and many people moved out of the
area looking for workChris Geary is also involved in the local music scene
In the past people got together because they had no other place to go, rolled
back thecarpet and danced, young and old
Many women were very ill due to a lack of access to medical care
Discussion of depressed women
Many families left the area to seek employment elsewhere
Stogner simply wanted to leave the area and live somewhere else
Stogner’s father had hammer mill, but Otis wanted to make his own way
Stogner lived in area until 1945, and the area had experienced many changes by
the time he came returnedVeda's brother Elvis Hines has a good memory, Veda will talk to him about
participating in this projectVeda was born in Hell’s Neck, Ohio County, her father ran a store
School in the area was called Red Hill, local church has since been torn down,
unsure of denominationOtis met Veda at Hell's Neck
Veda comes from a family of eleven, with five siblings still living and has a
large extended familyFlossie Wilson Hines married Veda's brother Wavy
Gertrude Barbour Raley and James and Homer are the children of Otis’s sister
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