This is the story of a mountain woman whose life revolved around her family and an oral tradition of song and story. She was too busy to write about her life but songs and stories flowed form her lips as she went about her work. Her nine children said they always knew where their mother was because she sang all the time. People who came to her home said they found themselves with a lap full of beans to string or apples to peel, but they hardly noticed because she was telling stories- Jack tales, fairy tales, stories about her life and her experiences or she might be singing ballads that tell stories of ancient times or fun songs to lighten the heart. She contributed more songs and ballads to Cecil Sharp than any other singer in the southern mountains and forty of those songs are found in English Folk-Songs from the Southern Appalachians. Betty Smith tells the story of Jane Gentry, interspersed with ballads, songs, stories and riddles.

From "Lady Isabel" who took care of her own salvation and the "Farmer's Cursed Wife" who ruined Hell to "Little Margaret" who took her own life and "Little Omie Wise" whose life was taken from her, we take a look at the roles women play in traditional ballads and songs. The women who sang them were carriers of the culture, not performers. They sang songs as they went about their daily chores and rocked their babies. This program will also look at why certain songs stayed alive and why women chose to sing them--indeed, why some women are still singing them.

Requirements for Programs: PA system requested for large audiences