This will probably sound a bit goofy, but it's something I've often wondered about: I have many relatives and ancestors who migrated from VA and the Carolinas to SCKY. Later their children including my gggrandpa migrated from there to MO. I have long been aware of this family history, and many details. However, one detail I'm curious about is how music may have played a role in their lives. By the time they arrived in KS from MO, their music was a strong tradition. But how about earlier, in say the 1830-1860 period? e.g. Every time I've heard Stephen Foster's "My Old Kentucky Home," I've wondered how many were aware of that song back then. He died at the end of the Civil War. When I was a little boy growing up in KS, us kids would go to dances in Clay Co. It seemed like every older male in the family could play an instrument, a fiddle, some sort of harp, etc. and seemed to know a lot of old music. That was in the 1930's. I wonder where it started, and whether it carried down from MO and KY??