The Carter Family in Del Rio
Del Rio, Val Verde County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Known as country music's First Family, the Carter family first found national acclaim while on XERA radio. Owned by Dr. John R. Brinkley, the powerful radio station across the Rio Grande from Del Rio reached listeners around the country. A.P. Carter, his wife Sara, and his sister-in-law, Maybelle, first broadcast from the station during the 1938-39 season. For the next few years, they and others performed gospel and folk standards, early elements of country music. Often opening their "Good Neighbor Get-Together" show with "Keep on the Sunny Side," the group at times included other family members, who continued to influence American music for many decades. (2005)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
In the 1938–39 season, the Carter Family — A.P., his wife Sara, and sister-in-law Maybelle — began broadcasting from XERA, a powerful border station just across the Rio Grande from Del Rio owned by the notorious Dr. John R. Brinkley. Beaming across the country, the station carried their gospel and folk standards to a national audience, often opening the "Good Neighbor Get-Together" with "Keep on the Sunny Side." These broadcasts helped lay down the foundations of American country music.
Why it matters
From a Texas border town, radio turned a single family's harmonies into a national sound, seeding the country-music tradition that shaped American popular culture for generations.
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Related people
- · A.P. Carter
- · Sara Carter
- · Maybelle Carter
- · John R. Brinkley
Themes & tags
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