Nelson in 2013, photo by s_bukley/Bigstock.com
Birth Name: Willie Hugh Nelson
Place of Birth: Abbott, Hill, Texas, United States
Date of Birth: April 29, 1933
Ethnicity: English, some Scots-Irish/Northern Irish, Irish, Scottish, and Welsh
Willie Nelson is an American singer, songwriter, musician, guitarist, actor, poet, writer, and activist. He starred in the film Honeysuckle Rose.
He is the son of Myrle Marie (Greenhaw) and Ira Doyle Nelson. His sister was pianist and singer Bobbie Nelson, who also performed with Willie. He has two children, including musician Lukas Nelson, with his wife, Annie D’Angelo; three children with his former wife, Martha Matthews; and two children with his former wife, Connie Koepke.
Willie has also been said to have Cherokee Native American ancestry. It is not clear if this ancestry has been verified/documented.
Willie’s paternal grandfather was William Alfred Nelson (the son of Franklin Claud Craig Nelson and Aprilla Ann Marshall). William was born in Arkansas. Franklin was the son of Newton Nelson and Amanda Midget. Aprilla was the daughter of William Andrew Jackson Marshall and LaMartha/Martha Ann Hemphill.
Willie’s paternal grandmother was Nancy Elizabeth “Nanie” Smothers (the daughter of William Marion/Morris Smothers and Mary Elizabeth Rose). Nancy was born in Arkansas. William was the son of Austin Lee Smothers and Mary Elizabeth Henry. Willie’s great-grandmother Mary Elizabeth Rose was the daughter of Allen Martin Rose and Nancy Caroline Long.
Willie’s maternal grandfather was William Alex/E. Greenhaw (the son of Daniel Gabriel Greenhaw/Greenhow and Lucy Nancy Standridge). William was born in Arkansas. Daniel was the son of William Lambert Greenhaw and Susana/Susan A. Jones. Lucy was the daughter of Alexander Elisha Standridge and Elizabeth Ann Jones.
Willie’s maternal grandmother was Bertha F./L. Randle/Reynolds (the daughter of James L. Randle/Reynolds and Susan Frances O’Daniel). Bertha was born in Arkansas. Susan was the daughter of William O’Daniel and Nancy Jane Harper.
Sources: Family history of Willie Nelson – http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com
Genealogies of Willie Nelson – https://www.geni.com
Willie’s parents on the 1930 U.S. Census – https://www.familysearch.org
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