Discover a different side to country music in Virginia. 50 years since the tragic passing (1963) of Patsy Cline, one of the most enduring country music legends, the home in which she spent her teenage years before her rise to fame is now open to travellers as a museum in the State for Lovers.

Located in the historic town of Winchester, the Patsy Cline Historic House serves as a reminder of her incredible legacy, and is a National Historic Landmark and on the Virginia Landmarks Register. When visiting this quaint and modest three-room house, visitors will gain a unique insight into the “Crazy” singer’s life as a young adult (from the ages of 16 to 21), which were the years leading up to her rise to fame before she began her career in 1957.

Untouched since the days when Patsy’s ambitions were nurtured as a young adult, the house boasts an array of original artefacts which help portray the story of how Patsy helped support her family while living here with her mother Hilda, and her siblings Sylvia and Sam Jr following the divorce of her mother and father.

Determined to realise her dreams, Patsy’s ambitions started to come to life in this very city, Winchester, where she was first featured as a weekly singer on a local radio station. Impressed by a performance at the local theatre, this legendary house is where Patsy was first approached by famed gospel singer Wally Fowler, which later led to her signing her first record deal in 1956 and the subsequent fame which propelled her to the top of the charts in the late 50s and 60s.

Since her tragic death in a plane accident in 1963, Patsy’s legacy has endured and her exuberant style and expressive voice have earned her the first place of a woman in the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1973, in what was a largely male-dominated country music industry.

The Museum of the Shenandoah Valley,also located in Winchester, is hosting an exhibit showcasing one of its most famous citizens from August 2013 until February 2014. Becoming Patsy Cline will focus on the early years of the legendary singer.While in Virginia the official Birthplace of Country Music, Bristol is a ‘must see’. A major stop on Virginia’s Crooked Road music trail, this is where the first country music recordings were made for national distribution. The city boasts impressive murals and monuments to country music which line the city’s State Street, and expansive collections of musical instruments and memorabilia can be found at the Birthplace of Country Music Alliance Museum.

To find out more about the Patsy Cline Historic House, visit www.CelebratingPatsyCline.org

To find out more about Virginia and the Capital Region USA, visit www.CapitalRegionUSA.co.uk

July 2013

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