4-636: Pumpkin Center may refer to: No information appears on the origins of the name; however, “Pumpkin Center” as a town name was widely publicized by one Cal Stewart , who was a popular spoken-word recording artist in the late 1890s and early 1900s. He frequently played the character of a gullible individual by the name of Uncle Josh Weathersby who hailed from the fictional town of "Pumpkin Center" or "Punkin Center". The recordings described life in Pumpkin Center, as well as
8-665: A side business. After losing a finger and two toes in an accident, he quit the railroad and focused on show business. By 1897, Stewart began recording for the phonograph companies starting with Berliner. He began to develop the character of Uncle Josh and the other citizens of Pumpkin Center further on his phonographic recordings. He wrote the song " Ticklish Reuben " in 1900. Stewart continued recording on Edison, Columbia , Victor , and independent labels up until his death on December 7, 1919. He also wrote two books based on his monologues and performed in theaters across America with his wife Rossini Vrionides and her brother and sister. He
12-549: The character's collisions with modernity in New York City . Perhaps as a result, there are at least 31 communities in the U.S. named Pumpkin Center scattered across 16 states, including Alabama (3), Arizona (2), California (2), Florida, Georgia, Indiana (2), Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Missouri (2), Mississippi, North Carolina (3), Oklahoma (4), South Dakota, Tennessee (3) and Virginia (2). Cal Stewart Cal Stewart (b. 1856 Charlotte County, Virginia, d. December 7, 1919)
16-469: Was an American comedian and humorist who pioneered in vaudeville and early sound recordings . He is best remembered for his comic monologues in which he played "Uncle Josh Weathersby", a resident of a mythical New England farming town called " Pumpkin Center " or " Punkin Center ". Born in Charlotte County, Virginia in 1856, he spent his early days working on the railroad with show business as
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