Loretta Mary Aiken was born in Brevard, North Carolina on March 19, 1894[REF] to James Aiken and Mary Smith, who married on May 21, 1891, in Transylvania County, North Carolina [REF].
By age 14, Loretta had been raped twice (at age 11, by an elderly black man, and age 13, by a white sheriff) and had two children who were given up for adoption [REF].