John Rice Irwin, 1930-2022

The BIB learns with regret of the death last Sunday (16 Jan.) of John Rice irwin, who founded the Museum of Appalachia in Norris, TN, to commemorate the lifestyles of the people of the region. An obituary by Richard Thompson on Bluegrass Today includes a bibliography of his writings; the picture of him on the right is from the cover of his book The unlikely story of the Museum of Appalachia and how it came to be (2012). A compilation of forty photographs of him through the years can be seen on Facebook. His funeral takes place today (20 Jan.), and a celebration of his life will be held at the Museum in April.

The Museum of Appalachia presented from 1980 to 2017 the Tennessee Fall Homecoming, a festival of the music, crafts, and culture of Appalachia at which many bluegrass, old-time, and other musicians performed every year.

© Richard Hawkins