Loretta Lynn famously wed her husband, Oliver "Doolittle" Lynn, when she was a teenager and had multiple children by the time she achieved acclaim as a country singer-songwriter. Overall, she had six children. At one point, the whole family lived together on the family's ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee. Here are some things you might not know about Loretta Lynn's children.
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Patsy Lynn and Peggy Lynn
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The youngest of Lynn's children were twin daughters. Patsy was named after her mother's close friend and mentor, Patsy Cline. Patsy's twin sister was named after her mother's sister, fellow recording artist Peggy Sue Wright.
Perhaps the best known of the Lynn children, Patsy and Peggy followed in their mother's footsteps and started their own musical group, The Lynns. The sisters received CMA Award nominations for Vocal Duo of the Year in 1998 and 1999, mostly due to their hit song "Woman To Woman."
The sisters first started singing together in 1996 but wanted to create their own success in Nashville, so they didn't play up their family connections. They landed a weekly gig at Tootsie's Orchid Lounge on Broadway, which led to a meeting with a record label. Just like their mother and aunt Crystal Gayle, the sisters found success and went on to record a self-titled album with two charting singles.
Patsy Lynn (now Patsy Lynn Russell) co-produced her mother's 2018 album Wouldn't It Be Great with another member of country music royalty: the son of Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash, John Carter Cash.
Clara Marie "Cissie" Lynn
Cissie got her mother's musical gene, and her mother has even produced some of her music. She married singer-songwriter John Beams and told Nashville Music Guide that they have stayed busy performing on the road over the years.
"My husband and I traveled with our own bus and band till my Daddy got sick," Cissie said. "Then I wanted to go home and stay with him. We opened for several superstars over the years, such as Conway, George Jones and Mel McDaniel."
Ernest Ray "Ernie" Lynn
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Second son Ernie also inherited a musical gift. There are multiple clips of him performing with his country legend mother as well as other relatives.
Betty Sue Lynn
Lynn's oldest child, Betty Sue passed away in 2013 after a battle with emphysema in Waverly, Tenn. She was buried in the Lynn Family Estate Cemetery and had two daughters, Lynn Markworth and Audrey Dyer.
Jack Benny Lynn
Jack Benny passed away in 1994 at the age of 34. He drowned, trying to cross Duck River on the family's property.
This article was originally published on September 30, 2020.
