The Carter Family: America's First Family of Country Music
The story behind the Bristol Sessions, the Carter Family Fold, and a musical legacy that still echoes through Southwest Virginia and the New River Trail.
A Musical Legacy Rooted in These Mountains
Few musical groups have had a greater influence on American music than The Carter Family. Long before Nashville became synonymous with country music, three singers from a small valley in far southwestern Virginia were preserving Appalachian ballads and hymns, then carrying them to a national audience through the earliest days of commercial recording.
Their home in Scott County, Virginia, sits within the same Southwest Virginia region as New River Trail State Park, and their musical influence runs directly through communities the trail passes today, including Galax and Fries.
For music enthusiasts, history buffs, cyclists, and travelers planning a New River Trail visit, understanding The Carter Family adds real depth to a trip through this part of Appalachia — it explains why the sound of a fiddle or an autoharp still feels so at home here.
Who Were The Carter Family?
Three voices from Poor Valley, Virginia, who together recorded more than 300 songs and introduced traditional Appalachian ballads and hymns to a national audience.
Song collector, arranger, and organizer of the group, known for traveling through remote mountain communities to gather traditional material.
Lead vocalist and autoharp player, whose clear, emotional voice defined the group's signature sound.
Guitar pioneer who developed the "Carter Scratch," a technique that became foundational to country guitar playing.
The Bristol Sessions: Where History Was Made
In the summer of 1927, record producer Ralph Peer set up a temporary studio in Bristol, on the Tennessee–Virginia border, seeking to record local and regional musicians.
Among those who answered his newspaper advertisement were The Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers, both of whom made their first commercial recordings during those sessions. Music historians now regard the Bristol Sessions as the "Big Bang of Country Music," the moment traditional Appalachian and Southern music began reaching a national audience through the recording industry. Read the full story of Rodgers’ career in our guide to Jimmie Rodgers, the Father of Country Music. The traditions the Carters helped launch were later carried forward by bluegrass pioneer Ralph Stanley, flatpicking guitar legend Doc Watson, and Fries-born fiddler Eddie Bond, who continues the living tradition today.
Read the complete story in our guide to The Bristol Sessions.
Songs recorded during and shortly after the sessions — including Wildwood Flower, Keep on the Sunny Side, Will the Circle Be Unbroken, Can the Circle Be Unbroken, and Worried Man Blues — remain some of the most recognizable songs in American music.
A.P. Carter: Preserving Appalachian Traditions
Long before he was a recording artist, A.P. Carter was a collector of songs. He traveled by foot, horseback, wagon, and eventually automobile through isolated mountain communities across the region, gathering hundreds of traditional ballads, hymns, and folk songs from the people who still sang them.
In doing so, he preserved oral traditions that might otherwise have faded from memory, capturing an important part of America's cultural heritage at a moment when many of these songs existed only in the memories of aging mountain singers.
Sara Carter: A Voice That Defined an Era
Sara Carter's clear, emotional singing became one of country music's earliest signature sounds. Her voice blended the storytelling traditions of the mountains with a directness that let listeners feel every word, whether the song was a hymn, a ballad, or a tale of heartbreak.
Her style influenced countless singers who followed, and she is widely recognized today as one of the greatest vocalists of early country music.
Maybelle Carter and the "Carter Scratch"
Maybelle Carter's guitar playing was revolutionary for its time. Rather than using the guitar strictly as a rhythm instrument, she played melody notes with her thumb on the bass strings while filling in rhythm with her fingers on the higher strings — a technique now known as the "Carter Scratch."
This approach became a foundation of country guitar playing and went on to influence bluegrass, folk, rock, and Americana music. Musicians including Johnny Cash, Doc Watson, and Chet Atkins have all cited her influence on their own playing.
The Carter Family Fold
Located near Hiltons, Virginia, the Carter Family Fold was founded by Janette Carter, daughter of A.P. and Sara Carter, to keep her family's musical tradition alive.
The venue hosts live performances nearly every Saturday evening, featuring traditional bluegrass, old-time mountain music, and gospel. Flat-foot dancing is a regular part of the experience, and the atmosphere remains family-friendly and unmistakably authentic to Appalachian culture.
The Carter Family and The Crooked Road
The Carter Family Fold is a cornerstone stop on The Crooked Road, Virginia's Heritage Music Trail. This roughly 330-mile driving route celebrates the traditions the Carters helped establish, connecting live music venues, museums, festivals, historic communities, instrument makers, and community jam sessions across Southwest Virginia.
Visiting the Fold as part of a wider Crooked Road trip places the Carter Family's story in the context of the living music culture that surrounds it today. See the complete Crooked Road guide for venues, festivals, and history.
The Carter Family and the New River Trail
The Carter Family did not live directly along the New River Trail corridor. Their home in Poor Valley and Maces Spring lies further southwest in Scott County. Even so, their musical influence extends throughout Southwest Virginia, and it is easy to feel that connection while visiting the trail.
Galax and Fries continue Appalachian musical traditions the Carters helped popularize, through bluegrass concerts, old-time jam sessions, community festivals, fiddlers' conventions, local musicians, and historic theaters.
Combining a day of cycling on the New River Trail with an evening of live music elsewhere in the region creates a genuinely memorable trip — one that pairs outdoor recreation with the same musical heritage the Carter Family helped carry to the world.
The Carter Family and the Norfolk & Western Railway
The Carter Family has no direct historical association with the Norfolk & Western Railway or the rail corridor that later became the New River Trail. Even so, railroads played an important role in the broader economic and cultural development of the region during the same era the Carters were performing and recording.
Rail transportation connected mountain communities that had previously been isolated, enabling travel and the distribution of newspapers, records, and instruments. As recording technology expanded, it did so alongside these same transportation networks, helping music like the Carter Family's reach a wider audience.
Today, the former N&W rail corridor is New River Trail State Park. The railroad's story and the Carter Family's story are two complementary threads that shaped Southwest Virginia's history — one of industry and transportation, the other of music and cultural preservation.
Songs That Changed American Music
These Carter Family recordings continue to be performed at festivals, jam sessions, churches, and music venues throughout Appalachia.
Nearby Places Music Lovers Should Visit
The rustic music hall built by Janette Carter, still hosting live traditional music nearly every Saturday night.
Visit websiteA Smithsonian-affiliated museum telling the story of the 1927 Bristol Sessions.
Visit websiteA restored 1940s theater hosting live regional and touring musicians in downtown Galax.
Visit websiteHome of the Friday Night Jamboree, a weekly gathering of old-time music and flatfoot dancing.
Visit websiteA National Park Service site at Blue Ridge Parkway Milepost 213 dedicated to the music of the Blue Ridge.
Visit websiteMile 0 of the New River Trail, with its own ties to early recording artist Henry Whitter and the region's musical roots.
Visit Fries guideSuggested Three-Day Music & Trail Adventure
See the Plan Your Visit page for a full trip-planning checklist.
Explore the New River Trail from Fries to Galax, then visit the Rex Theater in downtown Galax.
Drive The Crooked Road toward Floyd, and stay for the Friday Night Jamboree at the Floyd Country Store if your visit lines up with a Friday evening.
Visit the Birthplace of Country Music Museum in Bristol, then attend a Saturday evening concert at the Carter Family Fold near Hiltons.
This itinerary combines outdoor adventure on the New River Trail with heritage music experiences across Southwest Virginia.
Fun Facts
- The Carter Family preserved hundreds of traditional Appalachian songs that might otherwise have been lost.
- Maybelle Carter's "Carter Scratch" guitar technique is still taught to guitarists worldwide.
- The 1927 Bristol Sessions are regarded by many historians as the birth of commercial country music.
- The family's influence can be heard across country, bluegrass, folk, gospel, Americana, and even rock music.
- Carter Family songs continue to be performed at festivals, jam sessions, and community gatherings throughout Southwest Virginia today.
Frequently Asked Questions
Plan Your Music Journey
Few places combine natural beauty with heritage music as naturally as Southwest Virginia. Riding a bicycle along the New River, listening to a fiddle tune in Galax, and spending an evening at the Carter Family Fold are all part of the same story — a region that continues to inspire musicians and travelers alike.
See the Plan Your Visit page for lodging, itineraries, and a trip-planning checklist, or read more on the Old-Time Music in Fries and Old-Time Music pages.
Plan Your Day Trip to Fries
Fries sits directly beside the New River, where the trail begins downtown and forested ridges rise beyond the water. It is close enough for a day trip from Winston-Salem, Greensboro, High Point and Mount Airy, and rewarding enough to feel like a genuine mountain getaway from Charlotte and the wider North Carolina Piedmont. Combine your activity with time beside the river, a walk through town and a look at the mill and railroad history that shaped the community. Check current trail conditions, weather and park notices before you travel.
Follow the Music to the Mountains
Combine a day on the New River Trail with the musical legacy of The Carter Family and The Crooked Road.