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Annual search for Mountain Youth Jamboree contestants

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  • This undated photograph shows Hubert Hayes (left) with two men preparing for the annual search of Mountain Youth Jamboree contestants. They are in front of the Hubert Hayes Memorial Log Cabin. Founder and director of the Mountain Youth Jamboree, Hubert H. Hayes (1901-1964) auditioned and directed youth to perform in folk dance, music, and folk and ballad singing. The jamboree was held in the Asheville City Auditorium (now known as Thomas Wolfe Auditorium) from 1948 to 1973, and Hayes’ wife, Leona Trantham Hayes (1913-1989) continued to direct the program after his death in 1964. Hubert Hayes was an author, playwright, and alumni of Duke University.