Cooperative Living January 2014 - 33

Cline was never happily embraced by her
hometown during her lifetime. But she often
managed to finagle a spot in the parade
anyway.
Currently the Museum of the
Shenandoah Valley is hosting a " Becoming
Patsy Cline " exhibit that chronicles the
chart-topping singer's life with a special focus
on the years she spent in Winchester. Born to
a 16-year-old mother in 1932, Virginia
Patterson Hensley, as she was named, moved
19 times in the first 16 years of her life, often
thanks to the hapless nature of her oncebootlegger
father. Cline's mother, Hilda, an
accomplished and hardworking
seamstress, eventually struck out on
her own with her three children,
renting a house on Kent Street in
Winchester and doing everything
from dressmaking to laundering
and babysitting to help make ends
meet.
Country-music legend Patsy Cline's childhood home on
Kent Street is now a historic landmark (above).
Meanwhile, young Cline
imbibed her mother's work ethic,
quit school at age 16, and went to
work herself, all the while practicing
on the piano her mother had
bought her eight years before and
looking for every opportunity she
could to sing, often balancing her
work as a soda jerk at Gaunt's Drug
Store with performances at the
Winchester Palace Theater.
" She never learned to read music, "
says Scott Summers, a docent at the
Patsy Cline Historic House on Kent
Street. Simmons says Cline learned
her art by ear and received constant
encouragement from Hilda, who also
sewed most of Cline's dresses and
costumes even once she had become
a star. " The two were so close in
age, " Summers remarks. " They were
more like sisters than mother and
daughter. "
Summers developed his love of
Cline's soulful and sometimes
mournful sound as a young boy. " My
dad loved Cline and other old-time
country stars like Loretta Lynn and
George Jones, " he explains. " I grew
up listening to it, and Cline's music
is timeless and still resonates today. "
Cline, who finally gained national
recognition when she appeared on
Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts in
1957, singing " Walkin' After
Midnight, " was responsible for developing
what became known as the
" Nashville Sound. " Her music topped
both popular and country music
January 2014/www.co-opliving.com
From Top: Scott Summers, a docent in the
Patsy Cline Historic House, says Cline
learned her art by ear. Julie Armel, director
of marketing and public relations at the
Museum of the Shenandoah Valley, says a
host of Cline's dresses and costumes are on
display at the museum. Lori Wolfe, travel
counselor with the Winchester-Frederick
County Convention and Visitors Bureau,
says the city is the perfect place to retire.
31
The Winchester-Frederick County Convention and Visitors
Bureau features a Patsy Cline exhibit, including replicas of
her western-style furniture (above). The four-block Loudon
Street Pedestrian Mall showcases Winchester's historic
downtown district (below).
Cooperative Living January 2014

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