Biography
Renowned as one of country music's standout all-female string ensembles, the Coon Creek Girls ranked among the earliest such acts to perform on their own instruments while emphasizing genuine Appalachian traditions over sentimental ballads or western-themed numbers. Lily May Ledford founded the enduring ensemble. A native of Pilot, KY, she grew up as the child of impoverished tenant farmers whose frequent string-band sessions led the young Ledford to master both guitar and fiddle. As a teenager she assembled the Red River Ramblers alongside her siblings Rose and Cayen, and the trio soon performed at neighborhood square dances. Talent scouts heard the Ramblers in 1935; Lily May alone was selected for WLS Chicago's Barn Dance. Her appearance drew the notice of announcer John Lair, who took her on as a client, secured her a steady slot on the program, and inspired the station's magazine to feature her in a comic strip.
After the Chicago run proved successful, Lair relocated the broadcast first to Cincinnati and later to Renfro Valley, where he built an all-female string band around Lily May. The original Coon Creek Girls consisted of Lily May, her sister Rosie, Evelyn "Daisy" Lange, and Ester "Violet" Koehler. They made their first live radio appearance on 9 October 1937 at Cincinnati Music Hall. Soon afterward the quartet joined the Renfro Valley Barn Dance roster, remaining on the show for the following fifteen years. Their debut recording session took place in 1938, yet the traditional mountain songs they captured never matched the popularity of their radio work. In 1939 Koehler and Lange departed to join the Callahan Brothers' Blue Ridge Mountain Folk in Dallas, prompting Lily May and Rosie to recruit their younger sister Minnie; the Coon Creek Girls continued under various lineups until 1957.
Once the group dissolved, Lily May pursued a solo path. She released her autobiography, Coon Creek Girl, in 1980 and died in 1985. Ester Koehler performed on the Boone County Jamboree before marrying one of Lily May's brothers. Evelyn Lange wed, relocated to Indiana, and occasionally entered fiddle competitions. During the 1980s John Lair assembled the New Coon Creek Girls for a revival of his radio program, enlisting banjoist Vicki Simmons, guitarist and vocalist Dale Ann Bradley, banjoist Ramona Church Taylor, and fiddler Katy Kinn. Simmons had studied the instrument directly with original member Lily May Ledford, thereby connecting the two ensembles through their shared legacy of challenging gender norms and uplifting audiences.
After the Chicago run proved successful, Lair relocated the broadcast first to Cincinnati and later to Renfro Valley, where he built an all-female string band around Lily May. The original Coon Creek Girls consisted of Lily May, her sister Rosie, Evelyn "Daisy" Lange, and Ester "Violet" Koehler. They made their first live radio appearance on 9 October 1937 at Cincinnati Music Hall. Soon afterward the quartet joined the Renfro Valley Barn Dance roster, remaining on the show for the following fifteen years. Their debut recording session took place in 1938, yet the traditional mountain songs they captured never matched the popularity of their radio work. In 1939 Koehler and Lange departed to join the Callahan Brothers' Blue Ridge Mountain Folk in Dallas, prompting Lily May and Rosie to recruit their younger sister Minnie; the Coon Creek Girls continued under various lineups until 1957.
Once the group dissolved, Lily May pursued a solo path. She released her autobiography, Coon Creek Girl, in 1980 and died in 1985. Ester Koehler performed on the Boone County Jamboree before marrying one of Lily May's brothers. Evelyn Lange wed, relocated to Indiana, and occasionally entered fiddle competitions. During the 1980s John Lair assembled the New Coon Creek Girls for a revival of his radio program, enlisting banjoist Vicki Simmons, guitarist and vocalist Dale Ann Bradley, banjoist Ramona Church Taylor, and fiddler Katy Kinn. Simmons had studied the instrument directly with original member Lily May Ledford, thereby connecting the two ensembles through their shared legacy of challenging gender norms and uplifting audiences.