Born 108 Years Ago Today in West Virginia, the Star Fiddle Who Helped Old-Time Music Evolve Into Country Alongside His Wife
Stoney Cooper, born in West Virginia on 16 October 1918, helped carry Appalachian fiddle music into country through his partnership with his wife, Wilma Lee Cooper. Their traditional sound and successful recordings made them a prominent country act from the 1940s to the 1960s, including two decades as Grand Ole Opry regulars.
Cooper grew up playing regional fiddle music and met Wilma Lee while both were with the Leary Family Singers; they married in 1941. The duo joined the Wheeling Jamboree in 1947, signed with Columbia Records in 1949 and moved to the Opry in 1957, maintaining an old-time style amid the rise of the polished Nashville sound. They scored three top-five hits in 1959 and a final top-10 hit in 1961; Stoney died aged 58 in 1977, while Wilma Lee continued as a solo performer until a stroke in 2001.
- Stoney and Wilma Lee Cooper brought Appalachian music to country audiences.
- They kept a traditional sound as Nashville country changed.
- Their hits included three top-five songs in 1959.
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Appalachian old-time music grew from the fiddle and song traditions of the mountain communities of the eastern United States. As country music developed in the mid-20th century, performers brought these regional styles to radio, records and larger audiences.
Stoney Cooper was a West Virginia fiddler who performed with his wife, Wilma Lee Cooper. They met as members of the Leary Family Singers, married in 1941 and built a career as a duo, keeping an old-time sound as country music increasingly took on a more polished Nashville style.
Their path from the Wheeling Jamboree to the Grand Ole Opry shows how regional music became part of mainstream country. The Coopers’ recordings and years on the Opry helped make their traditional style familiar to audiences beyond Appalachia.