On January 19, 1946, a baby was delivered in the deep country of Tennessee’s Smoky Mountains, and it would change country music forever. This baby grew up to be none other than Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Dolly Parton. Before she made it to the music industry, she was just a rural child with a dream.
The “Queen of Country” was born in a two-room log cabin on the banks of a river in Pittman Center, Tennessee. She was the fourth of twelve children. Doctors were hard to find in the area, and her father had to ride on horseback to find help when her mother went into labor. He stumbled upon Dr. Robert Thomas, a missionary and doctor. He delivered Parton in the middle of a snowstorm and was compensated with a sack of cornmeal due to the Partons’ poverty.
When she was young, the family relocated North to Locust Ridge, where they shared a small cabin that Parton calls her childhood home. Situated on farmland, the cabin had no electricity or running water. They cooked with a wood-burning stove, churned their own butter and covered the walls with newspapers for insulation. The front porch was her first stage, marking her beginnings as a performer.
Music, of course, played a big role in her Appalachian life. By the age of 6, she was singing at the church her family regularly attended. At seven, she started writing songs and playing a handmade guitar crafted from an old mandolin and two bass guitar strings. She got a real Martin guitar at eight as a gift, and made her radio debut two years later. When she was 12, she made frequent appearances on local TV, even skipping school to get more airtime.
The day after she earned her high school diploma, Parton headed straight for Nashville to grow her career as a singer, and the rest is history.
Despite her stardom, Parton’s never forgotten her country roots. In 1986, Parton created the “Dollywood” Theme Park in Tennessee. One of its biggest attractions is the replica of her childhood home, complete with original family treasures. Her 1973 song “My Tennessee Mountain Home” is an ode to her childhood, with lyrics that describe “crickets singing in the fields nearby” and other natural elements. Her philanthropic efforts often aim to increase literacy and access to medical care in rural areas of Kentucky, including her own Sevier County. With her proven, longstanding dedication to her Tennessee roots, Parton exemplifies the idea that you can take the girl out of the country, but you cannot take the country out of the girl.
