Clark Kessinger, born on July 27, 1896, in South Hills, Kanawha County, West Virginia, was an American old-time fiddler. He started playing banjo at age five before switching to fiddle and performing at local dances. In 1928, Clark Kessinger and his nephew Luches "Luke" Kessinger recorded twelve sides for Brunswick-Balke-Collender as The Kessinger Brothers, including classics like "Wednesday Night Waltz" and "Turkey in the Straw". Kessinger retired from recording in 1930 but returned to the music scene in 1963. He won prizes at fiddling contests and recorded several albums, including The Legend of Clark Kessinger (1965) and Old-Time Music With Fiddle & Guitar (1972). In 1971, he won the World's Champion Fiddle Prize at the Old-time Fiddler's Convention in Union Grove, North Carolina. After suffering a stroke, Kessinger passed away on June 4, 1975.
