Unveil Inspiration Behind The Iconic Tv Show “The Waltons” By Creator Earl Hamner Jr.

Fans of The Waltons became intimately acquainted with Earl Hamner Jr.’s fictional family over the show’s nine-season run. Characters like Ellen Corby, who embodied the quintessential American grandma, and John-Boy, the brother we all wished for, captured the hearts of viewers each week.

As audiences tuned in to CBS, The Waltons not only entertained but also offered a window into an entire time period and way of thinking. In a 1973 interview with Detroit Free Press, Hamner said every character in The Waltons was inspired by someone around him: his own family and neighbors in Virginia.

Experiences of Earl Hamner Jr.’s family’s during the Great Depression and World War II.

“The Waltons,” a beloved TV series, was created by Earl Hamner Jr., drawing from his own upbringing in a large family during the Great Depression and World War II.

“THE WALTONS revolves around a Depression-era family in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains. John Walton Jr. lives with his parents John and Olivia Walton, his grandparents Zebulon ‘Zeb’ and Esther Walton, and his six siblings. The series chronicles the day-to-day lives of the Waltons as they manage their lumber mill and go through life’s ups and downs within their small community,” The Cinemaholic wrote.

Earl Hamner Jr. captivated audiences with the heartfelt story of the Walton family’s resilience during tough times. John and Olivia Walton witness their four sons—John Boy, Jason, Ben, and Jim Bob—heading off to war. They endure heartache as Mary Ellen loses her husband at Pearl Harbor, Erin faces the challenges of her fiancé’s post-traumatic stress syndrome, and Elizabeth eagerly awaits her brothers’ return from the battlefield.

While the portrayal of World War II’s impact on the family is moving, it’s the earlier episodes set during the Great Depression that truly tug at the heartstrings.

We see how important the vegetable garden is to the family. Mama and Grandma can produce to sustain them through winter. We see Daddy hunting to put meat on the table. Daddy hunts to put food on the table, and the struggle to find work and pay bills is a constant challenge. That’s why we often see candlelight evenings when electricity is out of reach in the movie.

Through the eyes of John Boy, the hardships his family faced seems joyful when he looks back.

The Waltons’ family members were based on the real Hamner household in Virginia.

Characters in “The Waltons” are real. The Walton family members, neighbors, tradespeople, and the town itself were all reflections of people and places from Hamner’s upbringing.

In the show, John and Olivia Walton are depicted as wonderful loving parents. John is portrayed as the one who keeps the family in line, while Olivia is a nurturing and affectionate mother. They are both known for their strong work ethic and encourage their children to be hard workers as well. Despite their busy lives, they always make time to show affection to their children, and their love for each other is evident.

“My mother and father were very much as I have portrayed them,” he says, “My mother was very religiously oriented. But my father was a self-confessed heathen. And yet they had a wonderful marriage, there was a great deal of love between them.”

Schuyler, where the story is set, was a company town. Many of its residents, including Hamner’s own father, lived in small houses rented from the soapstone quarry where they worked. Hamner’s father, much like John Walton in the show, was characterized as a gruff but loving man whose wisdom surpassed his formal education.

“My father only went to school up until the second grade then he had to start work to help support his family. My grandfather had infantile paralysis, so my father had to help the family. He was rough-hewn but he was wise, and I use this in one of the episodes,” Hamner says, “When I left home, my father felt he had to give me a ‘son and father’ lecture. So he took me aside, and he said, and these are his very words, ‘Son, when you’re away from here, look every man straight in the eye, pay all debts, and don’t run with bad women.’ That was my father.”

Though his parents did not have the opportunity to pursue higher education, they took school very seriously.

“My mother was a little better educated. She had graduated from high school, and she used to help each of us with our homework. We sat around the kitchen table, and each kid did their homework, and she helped them. She said later because of eight children, she had been to high school eight times!” Hamner laughs at the memory.

Supporting characters were also inspired by real people.

In addition to the Walton characters, other roles in “The Waltons” were not just figments of Earl Hamner Jr.’s imagination.

The Baldwin sisters, known for their unique recipe-making and charming quirks, were actually inspired by real people. Hamner drew from a mother-daughter pair he knew well, who “had a love of alcohol.” Hamner slightly changes their personalities, making them sweeter and more refined than their real-life counterparts.

“But there were two ladies who were bootleggers, but being a writer, I romanticized them considerably.”

Similarly, the character of Ike Godsey, owner of the local general store, was based on a clerk from a nearby store frequented by the Hamner family. Even after a fire destroyed the original store in the early 1990s, it was rebuilt in homage to the iconic series that immortalized it.

Hamner says, “It’s a little filling station that also supplies groceries and things to local folks. They have a big sign outside saying, ‘Ike Godsey’s country store.’ It’s become a tourist stop. People often go by there. And they usually end up having an ice cream cone and soft drinks. I’m happy because it brings some income to the area.”