Lead Belly pronounced his first name /ˈhuhdːee/. He can be heard pronouncing his name this way both speaking at the beginning and singing toward the end on one of his recordings of "Boll Weevil".

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 January 20, 1889, and his grave marker gives the year 1889.
 His 1942 draft registration card states January 23, 1889.
 However, the 1900 United States Census lists "Hudy Ledbetter" as 12 years old, born January 1888, and the 1910 and 1930 censuses also give his age as corresponding to a birth in 1888.
The 1940 census lists his age as 51, with information supplied by wife Martha.
 The books Blues: A Regional Experience by Eagle and LeBlanc and Encyclopedia of Louisiana Musicians by Tomko gives January 23, 1888,  while the Encyclopedia of the Blues gives January 20, 1888.

His parents had cohabited for several years, but they legally married on February 26, 1888.
When Huddie was five years old, the family settled in Bowie County, Texas.
  The 1910 census of Harrison County, Texas, shows "Hudy Ledbetter" living next door to his parents with his first wife, Aletha "Lethe" Henderson.
Aletha is registered as age 19 and married one year.
Others say she was 15 when they married in 1908.
It was in Texas that Ledbetter received his first instrument, an accordion, from his uncle Terrell.
By his early twenties, having fathered at least two children, Ledbetter left home to make his living as a guitarist and occasional laborer.

Between 1915 and 1939, Ledbetter served several prison and jail terms for a variety of criminal charges.
In 1934, when Lead Belly was released from one of his last incarcerations, the United States was deep in the Great Depression, and jobs were very scarce.
In September of that year, in need of regular work in order to avoid cancellation of his release from prison, Lead Belly asked John Lomax to take him on as a driver.
For three months, he assisted the 67-year-old in his folk song collecting around the South.
Alan Lomax, his son, was ill and did not accompany him on this trip.
Lead Belly pronounced his first name /ˈhuhdːee/. He can be heard pronouncing his name this way both speaking at the beginning and singing toward the end on one of his recordings of "Boll Weevil".
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 January 20, 1889, and his grave marker gives the year 1889.  His 1942 draft registration card states January 23, 1889.  However, the 1900 United States Census lists "Hudy Ledbetter" as 12 years old, born January 1888, and the 1910 and 1930 censuses also give his age as corresponding to a birth in 1888. The 1940 census lists his age as 51, with information supplied by wife Martha.  The books Blues: A Regional Experience by Eagle and LeBlanc and Encyclopedia of Louisiana Musicians by Tomko gives January 23, 1888,  while the Encyclopedia of the Blues gives January 20, 1888.
His parents had cohabited for several years, but they legally married on February 26, 1888. When Huddie was five years old, the family settled in Bowie County, Texas.   The 1910 census of Harrison County, Texas, shows "Hudy Ledbetter" living next door to his parents with his first wife, Aletha "Lethe" Henderson. Aletha is registered as age 19 and married one year. Others say she was 15 when they married in 1908. It was in Texas that Ledbetter received his first instrument, an accordion, from his uncle Terrell. By his early twenties, having fathered at least two children, Ledbetter left home to make his living as a guitarist and occasional laborer.
Between 1915 and 1939, Ledbetter served several prison and jail terms for a variety of criminal charges. In 1934, when Lead Belly was released from one of his last incarcerations, the United States was deep in the Great Depression, and jobs were very scarce. In September of that year, in need of regular work in order to avoid cancellation of his release from prison, Lead Belly asked John Lomax to take him on as a driver. For three months, he assisted the 67-year-old in his folk song collecting around the South. Alan Lomax, his son, was ill and did not accompany him on this trip.
Lead Belly