The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #174582   Message #4233515
Posted By: David Ingerson
27-Dec-25 - 03:48 AM
Thread Name: Joe Hickerson memorial gathering, hybrid-Jan 10
Subject: RE: Joe Hickerson memorial gathering, hybrid-Jan 10
For those of you who don't know who Joe Hickerson is . . .

Joe Hickerson, a seminal figure in the folk music world, died on August 17, 2025. His was one of the formative voices of the folk revival of the 1950s and 60s during which he introduced a number of its foundational songs: Kumbayah, Where Have All the Flowers Gone (with Pete Seeger), Bonnie Heelan' Laddie, and Drive Dull Care Away. He was also a researcher and archivist and held the position of Librarian and Director of the Archive of Folk Song at the American Folklife Center of the Library of Congress for 35 years. During the last 13 years of his life he made Portland his home (to be close to his sweetie, Ruth Bolliger) and participated in many Portland FolkMusic Society's activities including writing a series of articles about the early days of the folk revival for Local Lore. To read them, navigate to Portlandfolkmusic.org, pull down the resources menu, click on Members' Pages, and then Joe's page. There will be a memorial gathering to celebrate his life on Sat., Jan. 10 at 1:00 p.m.(Pacific time) at the Lucky Labrador Beer Hall on NW Quimby St. (which will also be zoomed online). He will be deeply missed.