Archive for September, 2021

Earl Scruggs

Posted in Spring Hill Cemetery with tags , , , , , on September 27, 2021 by Cade

January 6, 1924 – March 28, 2012

There are banjo players…and then there’s THE banjo player.

Earl Eugene Scruggs not only reinvented how the instrument was used, but he opened the door for an entire new genre of music. As a young man, Earl joined the fabled Blue Grass Boys (led by the legendary Bill Monroe) where his patented 3-finger picking style helped shape and define the band’s sound. “Bluegrass” would eventually become an entire sub-genre in country music and many of the sounds that came from the Blue Grass Boys became archetypes for the style. Maybe none more so than Scruggs’ fast-paced, solo banjo picking. Continue reading →

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Bernie Mac

Posted in Washington Memory Gardens with tags , , on September 20, 2021 by Cade

October 5, 1957 – August 9, 2008

Bernie Mac was a comedian and actor who rose to fame in the late 1990s and was a staple in American movies and television throughout the 2000s. Bernard McCullough was born in Chicago and grew up idolizing comedians like Redd Foxx and Richard Pryor. He began his stand-up career in the Cotton Club in his hometown and immediately starting getting noticed for his fearless performances. In 1990, he won a comedy contest that led to an appearance on HBO’s Def Comedy Jam and by the mid-90s, he was appearing in movies like House Party 3 and Friday. In 2000, he was featured alongside Steve Harvey, Cedric the Entertainer and D.L. Hughley in Spike Lee’s massive hit, The Original Kings of Comedy. Continue reading →

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Hank Snow

Posted in Spring Hill Cemetery with tags , , on September 13, 2021 by Cade

May 9, 1914 – December 20, 1999

Clarence Eugene “Hank” Snow grew up in Nova Scotia, Canada idolizing Country & Western legend, Jimmie Rodgers. Snow’s humble beginnings were marred with poverty, foster situations and abuse. But, the times he did get to live with his mother were relatively happy…and full of music. His mother was a talented singer and organ player and young Clarence soon began playing guitar and singing himself.

But, in Nova Scotia in the 1920s, music didn’t put food on the table, so Hank took various jobs – ranging from dock work to working on a fishing boat – to help make ends meet. All the while, he continued to stoke his passion for music. He eventually landed an audition at a local radio station which led to paying gigs and – eventually – a recording contract. He moved to Nashville in 1949. Continue reading →

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Harriet Tubman

Posted in Fort Hill Cemetery with tags , on September 6, 2021 by Cade

c. 1820 – March 10, 1913

Harriet Tubman was an abolitionist and activist who became one of the most famous freer of enslaved people in the 19th Century United States. Her life and legacy made her a true American icon.

Born into slavery in Maryland as Araminta Ross around the year 1820 (the birth year on her grave marker), “Minty” – as she was known – endured all of the hardships that accompanied slaves at the time. Several of her siblings were sold away, she was routinely whipped and – in one instance – was severely injured when an overseer hit her in the head with a heavy metal object. This injury caused life-long issues for her and led to visions and dreams…which she would later claim were revelations from God. Continue reading →

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