Next country music marker to honor McWilliams

Published 1:20 pm Thursday, September 9, 2010

The third marker on the Mississippi Country Music Trail will honor songwriter and lyricist Elsie McWilliams.

A news release from state tourism officials says a ceremony will be held Friday at 4 p.m. in Meridian on the lawn of the Lauderdale County Courthouse.

McWilliams, who died in 1985, was the sister of Jimmie Rodgers’ second wife, Carrie. Officials say McWilliams wrote or contributed to music and lyrics for 39 of the songs that Rodgers performed or recorded, although she never received full credit for her work.

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However, she became the first woman to sustain a successful career as a country songwriter and was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1979.