Trending Stories

When Tammy Wynette Brought Country Glory to Malden’s Fourth of July

 

MALDEN, Mo. — For the residents of Malden, Missouri, July 4 has long echoed with the patriotic chords of celebration — and for a few unforgettable years, the familiar voice of country music icon Tammy Wynette.

 

On Independence Day in 1989, Tammy Wynette came, the rain departed, and after it was all over, the “First Lady of Country Music” promised she would return in 1990 to headline another Malden Fourth of July Celebration.

 

Police Chief Bob McDonald estimated the crowd between 1,800 and 2,500 people as Malden’s 10th annual summer event concluded with fireworks late Monday night. Wynette’s brother-in-law, Carl Richardson of Malden, served as master of ceremonies for the evening.

 

Prior to Wynette’s show, guest performer Mark Gray sang and accompanied himself on electric piano. Wynette told the audience she would take them on a musical “tour” of the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, delivering favorites including I Don’t Wanna Play House, Your Good Girl’s Gonna Go Bad, D-I-V-O-R-C-E, Rocky Top, and others. She and Gray later performed a duet of Sometimes When We Touch.

 

At 4 p.m. that Monday, the country-and-western singing star donated $10,000 to the Bootheel Education Center at 700 North Douglass Street, pledging her commitment to education and noting that three of her children were then in college. A plaque mounted beside a BEC classroom door commemorates her contribution toward the local $150,000 fundraising goal, supported in part by a $337,500 state appropriation.

 

Malden Mayor Bill Johnson presented Wynette with a framed resolution approved by the city council, designating the area where she performed as Tammy Wynette Park. A wrought-iron sign was later placed in the park’s southeast corner, and Johnson proclaimed July as Tammy Wynette Month in Malden to recognize her unselfish contributions of time, talent, and support of education.

 

Rain briefly threatened the evening’s performances but stopped before the first band, Dirt Road Express, took the stage, allowing the concert to proceed. At a news conference earlier that day, Wynette told reporters she had been performing for 23 years and expected to continue another decade.

 

The celebration began June 24 with the Miss Fourth of July and Junior Miss Fourth of July pageants at the Malden Community Center. The Downtown Merchants Association hosted a sidewalk arts and crafts fair June 30–July 1, and the annual Fourth of July Parade rolled through downtown at 11 a.m. July 1 along Business Route 25.

 

Chamber of Commerce Manager Carol Demaree said the celebration “went beautifully.” She credited volunteers, air base crews, and park staff, adding, “I think Tammy was pleased with the crowd. The fireworks at the end were absolutely beautiful. Without the volunteers and the people of the community, you couldn’t go on.”

 

Wynette, who was married to Malden native George Richardson — later known in Nashville as George Richey — often returned to the city for the holiday. Richey, a songwriter and television producer, went on to produce many episodes of the country music classic Hee Haw.

 

For several years, Wynette was accompanied by her then-husband and “King of Country Music,” George Jones, who often preceded her performances with dazzling solo shows, then joined her for duets that proved timeless.

 

Wynette’s final appearance in Malden was bittersweet. The icon glided across the outdoor stage toward the microphone, apologized to the audience, and announced she was too ill to perform.

 

“But I brought along a friend,” she told the crowd. The audience roared when Wynette introduced her close friend and fellow country-music queen Loretta Lynn, who accompanied her to Malden to continue the Independence Day tradition.

 

Information in this story was originally published July 6, 1989, in the Malden Press-Merit newspaper.

For more stories from Malden’s past, visit bootheelbeacon.com or follow the Bootheel Beacon on Facebook.