Meet late singer Woody Guthrie’s eight children, including two who are famous musicians in their own right

Woody’s oldest three children came from his first marriage to Mary Jennings. According to Woody’s biographer, Ed Cray, who wrote Ramblin’ Man: The Life and Times of Woody Guthrie, Bill died at the age of 23 as the result of an automobile accident in Pomona, California. 

Sue and Gwendolyn both died of Huntington’s disease in their early forties. Evidently the disease had been passed on from their father, although Guthrie himself was diagnosed with the condition later in life, in 1952, when he was 43 years old. Guthrie and Mary divorced sometime between 1943 and 1945.

On November 13, 1945, Woody married Marjorie Greenblatt and the couple had four children together, sons Arlo and Joady and daughters Nora and Cathy. Cathy tragically died in February 1947 due to fatal burns sustained in a residential electrical fire. The fire occurred in their apartment, shortly after her fourth birthday, and was a profound tragedy for the family.

Perhaps the most famous of Woody’s children, Arlo followed directly in his father’s musical footsteps. Rising to fame in the late 1960s, he became known for songs like “Alice’s Restaurant Massacree” and built a decades-long career in folk music. Arlo’s storytelling style and social commentary echo his father’s influence, and he has long been regarded as one of the key figures keeping Woody’s musical spirit alive.

Joady, Woody’s other son from his marriage to Marjorie, had a short-lived career as a musician and producer and collaborated on Woody’s 20 Grow Big Songs. “I’m not a big achiever like my brother and sister, so I don’t like being compared to them,” he said in a rare interview with Patch.

Nora has played a pivotal role in preserving her father’s work. As the longtime steward of the Woody Guthrie Archives, she has helped introduce his music and writings to new audiences, collaborating on projects, books and recordings that celebrate his life. She recently oversaw the Okemah Rising projects and continues to run Woody Guthrie Publications.

Woody met Anneke van Kirk when they both spent time in a potter’s studio. A relationship developed, and two months later, they left for New York. The pair married in 1953 and had a daughter, Lorina Lynn Guthrie. Tragically, Lorina Lynn died in a car accident in 1973 at the age of 19. She was also put up for adoption as a child due to the strain of Woody’s illness on Anneke.