There's a new honorary street sign at Fourth and Trenton, and the name on it doesn't need much introduction around Tulsa: Roy Clark Way. His widow, Barbara Clark, unveiled it Tuesday, November 3, as the city paid tribute to the entertainer who made Tulsa his home for more than four decades. The sign was the public finish to a celebration that began inside The Church Studio, where Barbara had brought along one of Roy's fiddles for another musician.

If you watched Hee Haw, you recall that grin, the jokes and the way Roy could pick up a guitar or banjo as if the hard part had already been taken care of. Then he'd play, and you knew the jokes weren't the whole show. His musicianship carried him from television to concert stages around the world, and in 2009 he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. He had the kind of career that made him famous just about everywhere.

But Tulsa was the place he came home to. Roy was born in Virginia, and he and Barbara moved here in 1974. The city named an elementary school after him just four years later, and he continued living here until his death in 2018. By the time Tuesday's dedication came around, Tulsa had been part of his life for decades. He wasn't a celebrity passing through town. He was a neighbor who happened to be famous.

Barbara had already brought another important part of Roy's history to the city. This past August, she donated his personal and professional archive to The Church Studio. KOSU reported that the collection includes instruments, photographs, awards and stage clothing, with plans for future public displays still taking shape. So the studio was a fitting place to begin the dedication. It was already caring for a big piece of Roy Clark's musical life.

Inside the Live Room at The Church Studio, music historian John Wooley led the program while Cody Marriott and Tempest Revival were there to perform. During the celebration, Barbara presented Marriott with one of Roy's fiddles. It was quite a gift on its own, but the instrument came with a history that reached further back than Roy's years in Tulsa.

According to Tulsa Flyer reporter Tim Landes, the fiddle had originally been given to Clark by Roy Acuff, another legendary name in country music. Now Barbara was passing it along to Marriott. Roy Acuff had played a part in its history, then Roy Clark, and now a younger musician in Tulsa had the chance to play it. Marriott did just that during the ceremony.

He and Tempest Revival also performed “Tulsa Time,” as Tulsa Flyer reported. That was an easy song choice to appreciate. Roy had played for audiences all over the world, and now a band was playing in his honor, right here in Tulsa. It gave the afternoon the kind of musical tribute a street sign alone couldn't provide.

After the music, Wooley asked Barbara to say a few words. Her answer, according to the report, was simply “I'm speechless.” Sometimes a moment doesn't need a long speech. There were remarks from Tulsa Mayor Monroe Nichols and Church Studio owner Teresa Knox, and then the gathering headed outside to Fourth and Trenton for the unveiling.

That's where Barbara unveiled the Roy Clark Way sign, giving Tulsa a lasting way to honor the man who had chosen to make his home here. The sign is at Fourth and Trenton for anyone to see. And now there's a fiddle story to go with it: Barbara passed one of Roy's instruments to a musician who played it that very afternoon. That's a pretty good tribute to a man who spent his life making music.