DeWitt "Snuffy" Jenkins was born on October 27, 1908 in Harris, North Carolina. He started playing fiddle before switching to guitar and building a homemade banjo with his brother Virl. Jenkins' career began when he joined J. E. Mainer's Mountaineers in 1936, performing on local radio stations WSPA and WIS. After Byron Parker renamed the group to The WIS Hillbillies in 1939, Jenkins became known as "Snuffy". He later formed The Hired Hands with Homer Sherrill in 1948, and performed and recorded throughout the 1950s and 1960s. Notable recordings include "Spanish Fandango" and "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star". Jenkins' influence on bluegrass banjo playing was significant. In 1979, The Hired Hands performed an old-time medicine show that was broadcast on PBS. Jenkins died on April 29, 1990.
