Storyteller, old time musician and author John Thomas Fowler will be signing his new book at Calvert’s Kitchen this Saturday, March 15.
The book, “Trotting Sally: The Roots and Legacy of a Folk Hero” is based on the life and times of a regional legend from the upcountry of South Carolina.
He was known far and wide as the man who could out run automobiles and trains, do the work of two, and make his fiddle talk.
His real was George Mullins but most knew him as Trotting Sally because he trotted everywhere he went.
He was born a slave in Greenville, S.C. in 1856 but spent most of his life in nearby Spartanburg County. He was a construction worker and street musician.
During the early 1900’s he’d travel by foot from Spartanburg to Hendersonville stopping at points along the way to entertain for pennies, nickels and dimes. Mullins performances were liken to medicine shows of the times, which featured him dancing and playing his fiddle, sometimes neighing as if he was a horse.
He would ask his fiddle a question, and then squawk out the answer with his bow screeching across the strings. It seemed that everyone looked forward to seeing Trotting Sally as he passed through Landrum, Tryon and Columbus.
John Fowler has spent over 20 years researching and collecting stories about George Mullins and has recently published (Kennedy Free Press) a comprehensive biography on his life.
Fowler will be at Calvert’s Kitchen, located at 306 E. Mill St. on March 15 between 12-2 p.m.
Additional information can be found at www.hairytoeproductions.com or 864-216-5578.

– article submitted
by John Thomas Fowler