DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to honor every word. Born west of Crockett on October 21, 1876 — that's where Vicory Barker Tunstall came into the world, and the world was going to hear from him whether it was ready or not. Now, most folks pick one thing and stick with it.
Vicory Barker Tunstall picked about four things, and he was excellent at all of them. Start with the violin. He studied it as a boy, and by the time he was sixteen he was already teaching it.
Not learning — teaching. At twenty, he opened Tunstall Music House, which tells you something about a young man's confidence and, presumably, his talent. He was a barber by trade, and he served Houston County as District Clerk from 1918 to 1922.
So picture that: a barbershop, a music house, a government office, and still a fiddle tucked somewhere nearby. But here's where the story really picks up its pace. Vicory traveled East Texas for fifty years with a band — and that band included his ten children.
Ten. Not a couple of kids along for the ride, not a few of them joining him on weekends. Ten children, out on the road, making music across East Texas for half a century.
That is a traveling family operation of considerable scale, and I would have bought a ticket. Then, in 1937, he went and founded the World's Championship Fiddler's Festival. He didn't just enter it.
He founded it. And in 1951, at the state fair, Vicory Barker Tunstall was proclaimed the Champion Fiddler of Texas — which is about the most Texas-sized destination a Texas fiddler can reach. He married twice: first to Emma Virginia English, and later to Mrs.
Lillie Shanks. He passed on February 8, 1953. The man opened a music house at twenty, put ten children on the road, built a festival from the ground up, and still found time to win the championship.
Vicory Barker Tunstall didn't just play music. He built the stage everyone else stood on.
What the marker says
(October 21, 1876 -- February 8, 1953) Born west of Crockett. A noted musician. Houston County District Clerk, 1918-22. A barber by trade. In boyhood, studied violin. At 16, began teaching. At 20, opened Tunstall Music House. Traveled East Texas 50 years with band that included his ten children. Founded World's Championship Fiddler's Festival, 1937. At 1951 state fair was proclaimed the Champion Fiddler of Texas. Married (1st), Emma Virginia English; (2nd) Mrs. Lillie Shanks.