The younger of two children, Lead Belly was born Huddie William Ledbetter to Sallie Brown and Wesley Ledbetter on a plantation near Mooringsport, Louisiana. On his World War II draft registration card in 1942, he gave his birthplace as Freeport, Louisiana ("Shreveport"). There is uncertainty over his precise date and year of birth. The Lead Belly Foundation gives his birth date as January 20, 1889,"About Lead Belly", The Lead Belly Foundation. Retrieved March 8, 2020. his grave marker gives the year 1889, and his 1942 draft registration card states January 23, 1889.
The younger of two children, Lead Belly was born Huddie William Ledbetter to Sallie Brown and Wesley Ledbetter on a plantation near Mooringsport, Louisiana. On his World War II draft registration card in 1942, he gave his birthplace as Freeport, Louisiana ("Shreveport"). There is uncertainty over his precise date and year of birth. The Lead Belly Foundation gives his birth date as January 20, 1889,"About Lead Belly", The Lead Belly Foundation. Retrieved March 8, 2020. his grave marker gives the year 1889, and his 1942 draft registration card states January 23, 1889.