Portrait of Fiddler "Uncle Jimmy" Thompson, January 1926

Jesse Donald "Uncle Jimmy" Thompson began playing fiddle as a boy in Texas. Later in life he competed in fiddling contests, including one sponsored by a Kentucky Ford dealer in 1926. Thompson's most notable performance was in Nashville on November 28, 1925, when he became the first artist featured on WSM radio's Barn Dance -- soon renamed the Grand Ole Opry.