Vance Randolph was a folklorist and professional writer who lived most of his life in the Ozarks region of Missouri and Arkansas. Beginning in the 1920s, Randolph wrote numerous books and articles about Ozark life and culture. He traveled throughout the Missouri and Arkansas Ozarks and observed all aspects of folk culture. Randolph personally recorded and collected ballads, songs, and stories that had been handed down orally from one generation to another in the isolated Ozark region. His published accounts of Ozark culture are of great value to folklorists.