It is with heavy hearts and profound sadness that we announce the passing of John Murray "Hippie Jack" Stoddart, Jr., on Friday, September 25, 2026, at his home in Crawford, TN. 

Born February 28, 1951, in Miami, FL, Jack was a beloved photographer, artist, storyteller, humanitarian, and friend to the people of the Cumberland Plateau. In 1972, Jack and his wife of 54 years, Lynne DesGrange Stoddart, came to Tennessee. Jack arrived with a camera and a desire to see the people and places around him clearly. He rented space on the square in Livingston, where he began developing black-and-white film. What started there became a lifelong passion for telling stories through photography. Over the next five decades, he documented the beauty, history, character, and daily lives of the people of Appalachia. 

Some of Jack's earliest works included Benton Lee, Ms. Copeland, Elmore and Ruby, Claude Ramsey, Snaking Logs, and the vanishing culture of the Upper Cumberland. He became friends with the Hobecker family, a Mennonite family living in Muddy Pond, and began documenting their daily lives. He never stopped finding stories and beauty in the people and places that others sometimes overlooked. 

In the late 1970s, Jack made his first artistic appearance in Nashville at the American Artisan Art Show, started by Nancy Saturn. A family friend, Steve Luten, moved from Jacksonville, Florida, to the Upper Cumberland and began making barnwood frames, helping Jack present his photographs in a way that reflected the character and spirit of the region he loved. 

In 1980, Jack held his first one-man art show at Cheekwood Botanical Garden & Museum of Art. Throughout his career as a fine-art photographer, his work received numerous awards and became part of permanent collections, including those of the Smithsonian, the Tennessee State Museum, the museum at Hartwick College in Oneonta, New York, and the Atlanta Art Museum, among others. 

Jack had a gift for drawing people in. His wit, charisma, unconventional spirit, and unmistakable personality made him a memorable individual and an even more beloved friend. Behind the humor, the camera, and the signature straw hat was an artist who paid close attention to people, to place, and to the stories that deserved to be remembered. 

In 2004, when changing technologies discontinued the silver gelatin paper he used to develop his photographs, Jack moved to video production. In May 2007, he launched the Jammin' at Hippie Jack's Music Festival at the family farm, which grew into an annual event supporting his mission of preserving Americana Roots Music. This led to live music recordings from his home in Crawford and later at the Tennessee State Museum. Recorded artists included The Steeldriversfeaturing Christ Stapleton, Darrell Scott, Dan Tyminski, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Guy Clark, and many more.   

Through the founding of the nonprofit Council for Americana Roots Music (COARM), his events became a gathering place for singer-songwriters and Americana musicians. Jack welcomed artists, friends, fans, and strangers alike, creating a space where music, conversation, storytelling, and community could come together. 

It wasn't long before he began producing his recordings as Jammin' at Hippie Jack's which became a nationally syndicated PBS television series that ran for more than a decade, bringing Americana Roots music from Jack's farm to audiences across the country and around the world.  His radio show on WDVX in Knoxville became another platform for music and mission. 

For Jack, art and music were never separate from service. As he traveled throughout the Upper Cumberland, taking photographs and getting to know the people who lived there, he saw a need he could not ignore. He believed that the richest country in the world should not have hungry people. He believed that the least among us deserved to have their most basic needs met. And he believed that helping someone was not something to simply talk about; it was something you did. 

Beginning in 2011, Jack and Lynne began serving their neighbors with food and clothing that were distributed directly to families who needed help.  But the work went far beyond a food pantry.  Jack and his fellow volunteers delivered firewood, provided school meals and backpack-program support, distributed children's coats, holiday gifts, and helped with medical bills, funeral expenses, and other essential needs. He became an ambassador for people who needed a voice. He did not always follow the expected path, and he was never afraid to speak his mind. But when someone needed help, he believed you helped. When someone needed a voice, you spoke up. When a neighbor was hungry, you fed them. Jack wanted people to have what they needed to survive with dignity. 

Those who loved Jack will remember so many unmistakable pieces of him: his daily calls, his unique perspective on life, his willingness to help people without hesitation, his passion for knowing right from wrong, his exhausting strength when debating politics, and his determination to say exactly what was on his mind.  Jack was also an avid reader, writer, and poet. He loved a good fire in the fireplace, walking in the woods, gardening, flowers in the fall—especially zinnias and sunflowers—and, above all, his children and grandchildren. Football season was his favorite time of year. He loved the Miami Dolphins, the NFL in general, and the Vanderbilt Commodores. 

Jack's photographs preserved the people and places of the Cumberland Plateau. His music gatherings brought people together from across the country. His radio and television work gave musicians a place to be heard.  His legacy lives on in the images he made, the music he welcomed, the words he wrote, the people he loved, and the community he served: one person, one meal, one winter coat, and one act of generosity at a time. 

He will be deeply missed by his wife, Lynne DesGrange Stoddart; his children Avery Stoddart Hutchins (Mark Hutchins), Jason Stoddart (Beth Stoddart), Jessica Stoddart Ladd (Jon Ladd), and Silas Stoddart (Erica Stoddart); and his grandchildren Alix Stoddart, Reid Owens, Casen Stoddart, Elin Ladd, Celia Stoddart, and Marilyn Stoddart, and bonus grandchildren Jan Kathryn Hutchins and Claudia Hutchins; his sister, Sally Stoddart Hayes; his many friends; the musicians and artists who knew him; and the countless people across the Cumberland Plateau whose lives he touched. 

There will never be another Hippie Jack, but there will always be a little more light in the world because he was here. He will be remembered for his blue jean jacket, his boots, his signature straw hat, and his sayings. "The wrong people doing the right thing" will forever live inside of us all. 

A Celebration of Life for John Murray "Hippie Jack" Stoddart, Jr., will be held November 7, 2026, from 1:00–3:00 p.m. at the Hippie Jack Farm in Overton County, TN. 

In lieu of flowers, all are encouraged to donate to the Council for Americana Roots Music by visiting JamminatHippieJacks.com. 

Those wishing to send a note or letter to Lynne, may mail it to: 

642 Shiloh Road  

Crawford, TN 38554 

You may also call Lynne at 931-260-5058. 

Main Street Journal

Sept. 27, 2026

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