Country Music’s Oldest Living Legend Dies at 109
Violet Hensley, known as the "Whittlin' Fiddler," has died at the age of 109, the city of Leslie, Arkansas announced on Facebook. Hensley was a celebrated figure in country music and Ozark folk tradition, renowned for hand-carving fiddles and performing traditional mountain music, and her death marks the loss of one of the genre's oldest and most enduring figures.
Hensley learned to carve and play the fiddle from her father in Arkansas after her mother's death, later marrying and raising nine children before returning to music in her 50s. She went on to spend more than 50 years crafting fiddles at Silver Dollar City theme park in Branson, Missouri, appeared on The Beverly Hillbillies, toured widely, performed at the Grand Ole Opry, and was inducted into the National Fiddlers' Hall of Fame. In 2025, Leslie honoured her with a Key to the City and an official Violet Hensley Day in recognition of her lifetime preserving whittling and Ozark musical traditions.
- Violet Hensley, the "Whittlin' Fiddler," has died aged 109
- She hand-carved fiddles for over 50 years at Silver Dollar City
- Inducted into the National Fiddlers' Hall of Fame; honoured by Leslie, Arkansas in 2025
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Violet Hensley, known as the Whittlin' Fiddler, was an Arkansas-born musician and craftswoman who spent her long life at the heart of Ozark folk and country traditions. She learned to carve and play the fiddle from her father as a girl, and after raising nine children, returned to music in her 50s, eventually becoming known for hand-making fiddles as well as performing.
Over the following decades she became a fixture of the Ozark music scene, working for more than 50 years as a fiddle-maker at the Silver Dollar City theme park in Branson, Missouri, appearing on national television and at the Grand Ole Opry, and earning a place in the National Fiddlers' Hall of Fame. Her home city of Leslie, Arkansas, recognised her contribution in 2025 by giving her a Key to the City and naming an official day in her honour.
She has died at the age of 109, making her among the oldest and longest-serving figures associated with country and traditional mountain music, a tradition built on skills passed down within families and communities rather than through the mainstream music industry.