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I want to once again thank The Ohio Arts Council and
everyone involved for allowing grants that help me pass on the tradition
of building the violin. Among them are my grandson, Jeremy Timmons, and
most recently William Arnold from West Lafayette, Ohio. I have taken two
years' vacation from applying for any grants for other reasons. ..I just
felt that I could not do enough to support the grant. While writing this,
I am pleased to have been asked to take a part in MUSIC AT HAND, to be
held in downtown Dayton, June 15-17, 2001. I also want to thank Cityfolk,
Tim Lloyd, Judy Sacks, and anyone who is involved with this year's
celebration. Clifford Hardesty, -
Fiddle Maker
I was born in Coshocton County, Ohio, in the
year 1921. My father, John Hardesty, was a coal miner, farmer and
blacksmith; if he had to have something, and he could make it, he did just
that. My father was also a pretty good carpenter, and could work with
wood. I believe that is where I may have learned a lot of what it takes to
have learned to build the violin. I grew up on the old farm of 87 acres,
where I helped work and raise most of our living from the ground. I might
add that I always seemed to be in my Dad's way when he was doing a job; I
always wanted to be a part of it, learning what it takes to work with
one's hands.
I was one of five brothers and four sisters, most of whom
grew up on the same old farm. My mother, whose name was Florence, kept
care of the house and helped in the fields and garden, milking the cows
and, of course, doing most of the cooking to feed all who lived in the
Hardesty house. I remember part of the time around our house there were
sixteen people around our kitchen table (some table) and we all had plenty
to eat.
My first six years of school were spent in a one-room
schoolhouse called The Powell's School. I was then sent to Fresno, Ohio,
where I attended The White Eyes Rural Grade and High School. Here I went
through the twelfth grade and graduated in 1940 in a class of 13: eight
girls and five boys. There are still at this date 12 of us remaining -
quite an honor. From this graduating class, there were farmers,
railroaders, grocery store operators, preachers, housewives, and, of
course, last but not least, a fiddle player and violin maker.
I learned to play the fiddle in 1931 on my older brother's
fiddle. The first tune that I played was Red River Valley, after grasping
that, I learned two others: Coming 'Round The Mountain and Can I Sleep In
Your Barn Tonight, Mister?
After graduating from High School, I did a lot of work
helping to operate the old farm for my father before he passed away in
1942.1 lived on with my mother until later, when she sold the farm to one
of my older brothers. My first job for myself was hauling coal, lime, and
anything else that I possibly could in my 1939 Chevrolet truck. After
that, I went into the gasoline hauling business, driving a tank wagon
hauling gasoline and fuel until 1961. I then leased a Service Station in
West Lafayette, Ohio, which I ran until 1974. After selling out, myself,
my wife, Lela, and my two daughters, Mary and Cindy, moved onto a half
acre of ground near  West
Lafayette, Ohio, where we lived until fall of 1999, when Lela and I moved
to Canal Lewisville, Ohio, near Roscoe Village and Coshocton, Ohio. I have
set up a new violin shop within my garage on the back of our house, which
is located at 106 Jackson Street, Coshocton, Ohio.
In 1973, I made my first fiddle, and to date
I have completed 142 fiddles, including three violas. I might add that I
am a self-taught violin maker as well as a fiddle player. In 1973, I
purchased the book How To Build Your Own Violin, by Leroy Geiger, one of
the last in print. From this book, I read and followed instructions on how
I could build my first violin. Most of my fiddles are made of Curly Maple  for
the back, side bouts and neck; the top, or sound board, is made of spruce
or cedar. I have used native maple as well as European wood, which I
purchased from supply houses.
I believe I have already said enough about my
life and making the violin, so I will make this my conclusion, and make my
next report on some of my affiliations and exposures. My affiliations are
the F. & A. M. of Ohio; Plainfield Lodge #224; Life Member American
Legion of Ohio Post #466 West Lafayette, Ohio; Amvets Post 36, Coshocton,
Ohio; retired Member of A. F. of Musicians, Local No. 404, Dover, Ohio;
and Member Loyal Order of Moose Lodge 1337, Newcomerstown, Ohio.
I helped on the following recordings: Touch of Grass, produced by Len
Shryock, Canton, Ohio; Seems Like Romance To Me, Traditional Fiddle Tunes
From Ohio, which was made possible by grants from The Ohio Arts
Council/Ohio Humanities Council Joint Program and The National Endowment
for The Arts, project direction and field recording by Howard Sacks and
Jeff Gohring. My own cassette recording, Clifford Hardesty: Ohio's Master
Fiddler (Volume 1.) is available from the address below. I was also a part
of The White Eyes Township Music Club, and Traditional Music In
Southeastern Ohio, produced by the National Endowment For The Arts,
project director David Taylor. The many demonstrations of my craft include
Festival Of American Folklife at Washington, D. C. in 1988; Gambier Folk
Festival at Gambier, Ohio; Old Worthington Folklife, Worthington, Ohio;
Kent State Folk Festival; National Folk Festival, Akron, Ohio; National
Folk Festival, Dayton, Ohio; City Folk Festival, Dayton, Ohio; Hale Farm
and Village; and Cuyahoga Valley Folk Festival, to mention a few.
Thank you for your time.
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