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["Elaine (Moore) Purkey was an activist songwriter and musician from Harts Creek, West Virginia in Lincoln County. She was born in 1949, on the same piece of property where she lived when she died in 2020. She was raised in a family of musicians and flatfoot dancers and attributed her powerful voice to the acapella singing she learned as a member of the Church of Christ. As a teenager she played in bands with her brother, and in early adulthood she was the lead singer of a local country band. In the 1980s, she began performing regularly on the Wallace Horn Friendly Neighbors Show, a live radio program out of Logan County that has been on the air since 1967. She eventually became the host of the show. Read state folklorist Emily Hilliard's tribute to Purkey: https://wvfolklife.org/2020/09/03/a-tribute-to-west-virginia-labor-singer-songwriter-elaine-purkey-1949-2020/"]%

1. Portrait of Elaine Purkey

Identifier:
4224.PurkeyElaine.Photo.001.10.27.16
Title:
Portrait of Elaine Purkey
Date:
2016-10-27
Creator:
Hilliard, Emily
Subject:
Purkey, Elaine, Working class--Songs and music, Country music
Location:
Harts (W. Va.)
["Elaine (Moore) Purkey is an activist songwriter and musician from Harts Creek, West Virginia in Lincoln County. She was born on May 29, 1949, on the same piece of property where she still lives. She was raised in a family of musicians and flatfoot dancers and attributes her powerful voice to the acapella singing she learned as a member of the Church of Christ. As a teenager she played in bands with her brother, and in early adulthood she was the lead singer of a local country band. In the 1980s, she began performing regularly on the Wallace Horn Friendly Neighbors Show, a live radio program out of Logan County that has been on the air since 1967. She now hosts the show."]%

2. Elaine Purkey and Rick Wilson

Identifier:
4224.PurkeyElaine.Photo.002.10.27.16
Title:
Elaine Purkey and Rick Wilson
Date:
2016-10-27
Creator:
Hilliard, Emily
Subject:
Purkey, Elaine, Wilson, Rick
Location:
Harts (W. Va.)