Poor Girl with 11 Siblings Punished for How She Dressed — At 77 She’s a Country Icon Married to a Loving Man

The little girl in the cover photo was born in her parents’ farmhouse located in the mountains of Tennessee on January 19, 1946. She was born on a freezing day as one of twelve kids.

Deemed as the prettiest baby by her siblings, the little girl from the South and her family grew up impoverished but had a deep sense of love for one another that kept them sustained. Although the celebrity herself described how her life was afflicted by poverty growing up, neighbors and old friends expressed that the star’s family was not exactly poorer than anyone else in their neighborhood.

The country icon’s mother had her and her eleven siblings by the time she was 35 years old. According to the star, coming from a big family runs in her familial lineage, as just like her mom, her grandmother had many kids, too.

While speaking about her family and who she became because of them, the musician expressed how she got her creativity and spirituality from her mother and her business-centered, ambitious, and go-getter drive from her father. As she put it:

“I like to think that I got the best of my dad and my mom.”

Regarding her creative pursuits, the famous artist’s singing talents were discovered from a young age. As a young girl, she began singing in public at her church, where her grandfather would preach. However, according to a former neighbor whose yard she used to play in, she wasn’t necessarily the best singer among her siblings.