The Ralph Stanley Museum is a monument to
Ralph Edmond Stanley, an American
bluegrass musician known for his distinctive singing and
banjo
The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and in modern forms is usually made of plastic, where early membranes were made of animal skin.
...
playing.
History and description
The museum opened in October 2004, in
Clintwood,
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...
(close to
McClure, Virginia
McClure is an unincorporated community in Dickenson County, Virginia, United States. McClure is located along the McClure River and Virginia State Route 63, southeast of Clintwood. McClure had a post office
A post office is a public fa ...
, where Stanley was born). The Museum is housed in the Chase House, which has been an historic landmark in Dickenson County since its construction in 1903. It is also accompanied by a Traditional Mountain Music Center, also known as the Dickenson County Community Center, where private parties and meetings can be held.
The museum is one of the venues of
Crooked Road, Virginia, on Virginia's Heritage Music Trail, which is designed to generate tourism and economic development in the
Appalachia
Appalachia ( ) is a geographic region located in the Appalachian Mountains#Regions, central and southern sections of the Appalachian Mountains in the east of North America. In the north, its boundaries stretch from the western Catskill Mountai ...
n region of Southwestern Virginia by focusing on the region's unique musical heritage. The vision for the museum and music center is to preserve and promote mountain and Bluegrass music with workshops, seminars, and conventions.
The museum is decorated to look more subjective, including the front desk which looks like an oversized
banjo
The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and in modern forms is usually made of plastic, where early membranes were made of animal skin.
...
. The museum describes many of Stanley's travels and contains some of his older possessions, including instruments and journals.
See also
*
List of music museums
This list of music museums offers a guide to museums worldwide that specialize in the domain of music. These institutions are dedicated to the preservation and exhibition of music-related history, including the lives and works of prominent musicia ...
References
External links
*
Museums in Dickenson County, Virginia
Music museums in Virginia
Stanley, Ralph
Museums established in 2004
2004 establishments in Virginia
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