28 Facts About Hank Snow

Clarence Eugene "Hank" Snow was a Canadian country music guitarist, singer, and songwriter.

Hank Snow recorded 140 albums and charted more than 85 singles on the Billboard country charts between 1950 and 1980.

Hank Snow wrote songs about a wide range of topics including joy, freedom, travel, anguish, and love.

Hank Snow's work was often inspired by his personal experiences, such as his childhood in a small town in rural Nova Scotia.

Hank Snow experienced extreme poverty, abuse, and physically punishing labor during the Great Depression.

Hank Snow's mother encouraged him to pursue his dream of becoming an entertainer, like his idol, country star Jimmie Rodgers.

Hank Snow received various music awards and is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, the Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame, and the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.

Clarence Eugene "Hank" Snow was born on May 9,1914 in the small community of Brooklyn in Queens County, Nova Scotia to George Snow and Maude Marie Hatt.

Hank Snow was the fifth of six children, of whom the two eldest died in infancy.

Hank Snow's parents were married on November 10,1909, in Liverpool, Nova Scotia.

Hank Snow's father worked for low pay as a foreman in sawmills, often far from home, while his mother helped support the family by washing clothes and scrubbing floors.

Hank Snow said his father loved to sing, and described his mother as an accomplished singer who played piano during silent films at the local theatre and sometimes performed in minstrel shows.

Hank Snow went to live with his paternal grandmother, who forbade him from mentioning his mother and abused him.

Gradually, Hank Snow began visiting his mother in nearby Liverpool, and eventually, after his grandmother's attempt to send him to reform school failed, he was allowed to rejoin his mother.

In 1926, Hank Snow worked on a fishing schooner as a "flunky" or cabin boy.

The job was unpaid, but Hank Snow was allowed to sell cod tongues and fish he caught.

Hank Snow returned home and worked at various odd jobs, including peddling fish, transporting passengers, unloading ships, and working in the woods.

Hank Snow bought a new guitar and, playing in the style of Jimmie Rodgers, performed in a fish house and a minstrel show in Bridgewater.

Hank Snow later auditioned for Halifax radio station CHNS, and was hired for a Saturday evening show.

Hank Snow adopted the stage name "Hank, The Yodeling Ranger," and performed in various venues, gaining popularity through radio broadcasts.

Hank Snow auditioned for RCA Victor in Montreal, Quebec in 1936, securing a recording contract.

Hank Snow helped launch the career of Elvis Presley by giving him stage time at the Grand Ole Opry and by introducing him to Colonel Tom Parker.

Hank Snow continued to reference Canada in his work, such as in his 1968 album My Nova Scotia Home.

Hank Snow was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1978 and several Canadian music halls of fame.

Hank Snow established the Hank Snow International Foundation For Prevention Of Child Abuse.

Hank Snow died on December 20,1999, at his Rainbow Ranch in Madison, Tennessee, and was buried in Nashville's Spring Hill Cemetery.

Hank Snow is portrayed by David Wenham in Baz Luhrmann's Elvis.

Hank Snow is referenced in Jimmy Buffett's song "The Wino and I Know".