Ancestry of Oprah Winfrey

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Updated on January 08, 2020

Oprah Gail Winfrey was born in 1954 in rural Mississippi, the child of a love affair between Vernon Winfrey and Vernita Lee. Her parents never married, and Oprah spent much of her youth being shuttled between various relatives. From her troubled childhood, Oprah Winfrey has grown into a household name, achieving success as a talk show host, actress, producer, publisher, and activist.

First Generation

1. Oprah Gail WINFREY was born on 29 Jan 1954 on in the small town of Kosciusko, Attala County, Mississippi to Vernon WINFREY and Vernita LEE. Shortly after her birth, her mother Vernita moved north to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and young Oprah was left in the care of her maternal grandmother, Hattie Mae Lee. At age six, Oprah left Mississippi to join her mother in Milwaukee. After several troubling, neglected years with her mother and half-siblings, Oprah moved again at the age of 14 to join her father in Nashville, Tennessee.

Second Generation (Parents)

2. Vernon WINFREY was born in 1933 in Mississippi.

3. Vernita LEE was born in 1935 in Mississippi.

Vernon WINFREY and Vernita LEE were never married and their only child was Oprah Winfrey:

1 i. Oprah Gail WINFREY

Third Generation (Grandparents)

4. Elmore E. WINFREY was born 12 March 1901 in Poplar Creek, Montgomery County, Michigan and died on 15 October 1988 in Kosciusko, Attala County, Mississippi

5. Beatrice WOODS was born on 18 February 1902 in Kosciusko, Attala County, Mississippi and died on 1 December 1999 in Jackson, Hinds County, Mississippi.

Elmore WINFREY and Beatrice WOODS married on 10 June 1925 in Carroll County, Mississippi, and they had the following children:

i. Lee W. WINFREY
ii. Brister WINFREY
iii. Marie WINFREY
2. iv. Vernon WINFREY

6. Earlist LEE was born about June 1892 in Mississippi and died in 1959 in Kosciusko, Attala County, Mississippi.

7. Hattie Mae PRESLEY was born about April 1900 in Kosciusko, Attala County, Mississippi and died on 27 Feb 1963 in Kosciusko, Attala County, Mississippi.

Earlist LEE and Hattie Mae PRESLEY were married about 1918 and had the following children:

i. Susie LEE was born about 1920.
ii. Hal LEE was born about 1922.
iii. Willis S. LEE was born about 1925.
iv. Hubert LEE was born about 1928.
3. v. Vernita LEE