Country Singer, Songwriter. He is remembered as the "Kentucky Folk Singer" making American traditional country music in the decade following World War II (WWII). His singing style was compared to Roy Acuff, the Bailes Brothers, and Hank Williams. During his popularity, it was reported that he was the highest-paid performer in the radio and television field in Louisville, Kentucky. Born James Allen Osborne Jr., he was a farmer's son. When he was a teenager, his father purchased a fiddle for him, but he asked for the fiddle to be exchanged for a $4 guitar, which was done. A neighbor helped him learn the basic cords but he was mainly self-taught. From that point, he was on his way to becoming a country music star. In 1940, he graduated from high school, married Margaret Lacy, and won first place in an amateur talent show, which got him a disc jockey position at WLAP radio station in Lexington, Kentucky. During World War II (WWII), he worked in a defense plant and played music on the weekends. By 1946, he was on KWKH radio in Shreveport, Louisiana, the home of the country music show the Louisiana Hayride. Becoming the leading folk singer in the Gulf Coast area, he toured over 50,000 miles making personal appearances throughout Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana. In September of 1947, he signed a recording contract with King Records in Cincinnati, Ohio. His first recording was "My Heart Echoes" made #10 on the Billboard Juke Box Survey. Having mostly a melancholy theme, other hits were "Mom is Dying Tonight," "A Vacant Sign Upon My Heart," and "Tears of Saint Ann." His lyrics usually told a story. After the tragic death of a three year old girl who fell down an old well, he wrote and released the song called "The Death of Little Kathy Fiscus," which sold more than a million copies and reached the Country Music Billboard Top Ten. He donated half the earnings from this recording to the Fiscus family. He received 2,000 fan letters within three days of the song's release for airtime. With the start of the Korean War conflict in June of 1950, he wrote and recorded patriotic songs such as "The Voice of Free America," "Thank God for Victory in Korea," and "God Please Protect America," which hit the Top Ten. An article in "Country Song Roundup" magazine dated June of 1951 stated that he had a smile that lit up his entire face, had a smooth singing voice and played the guitar well. He often played benefits such as fund raising for the March of Dimes. His hometown of Winchester, Kentucky gave him a home-coming day and the key to the city was given to him by Mayor, Dr. Snowden, who was the physician who delivered him at his birth. He made appearances on Nashville's Grand Ole Opry and on WLS Chicago's National Barn Dance. He moved to Louisville in 1952 where he opened a record shop and had a popular disc jockey show at WKLO radio station. He moved to a smaller station for a while before deciding to return to WKLO. Most of his adult life, he fought the demons of Major Depression. During a low point, he took his own life with a gunshot wound to the head leaving not only his fans but his wife and two children to grieve. He recorded 66 songs during his short career. Many of his recordings appeared on albums released by King Records in the 1960s. Strictly Country, a recording company in the Netherlands, re-released 15 songs on an album in 1988. His albums "Jimmie Osborne: Hills of Roan County" and "Jimmie Osborne Vol 2" are still available for purchase.