As fans celebrated the 80th birthday of Dolly Parton this month, a remarkable piece of South Georgia music history is now center stage at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, Tennessee.
According to Dolly superfan and Evans County Probate Judge Darin McCoy, Parton’s Friday, May 2, 1975 concert at Pinewood Christian Academy in Bellville, Georgia, is prominently featured in the museum’s special exhibit, Dolly Parton: Journey of a Seeker. At the heart of the display is an original Hatch Show Print concert poster promoting her Bellville appearance with Dolly Parton and her Traveling Family Band — a rare artifact highlighting her close ties to small Southern communities during a pivotal moment in her career.
McCoy, a lifelong resident of Bellville, GA and graduate of Pinewood, was not only in the audience for this show, but he was called onto the stage and serenaded by Dolly.
According to exhibit text, the poster advertised Parton’s performance shortly after she parted ways with Porter Wagoner in 1974. She formed the Traveling Family Band following that split, bringing her family on the road with her, including sisters Rachel and Freida, brothers Floyd and Randy, along with uncles and cousins. The Bellville concert reflected Parton’s determination to chart her own artistic path while staying rooted in family…