This Pocahontas County native was one of West Virginia’s greatest traditional fiddlers. The Hammons family was well known for music and storytelling, with roots going back to Ireland. Edden lived as a farmer and hunter but preferred fiddling over work.

In 1947, folklorist Louis Chappell recorded Edden playing 52 tunes in a Richwood hotel room. These recordings, later released by West Virginia University Press, preserve a unique fiddling style that connects West Virginia’s music to traditions of the British Isles.