The singer had a rough childhood and an even rougher marriage, but in the last years, she was in utter bliss at the ranch house of her dream.
At the age of 90, early 1960s country music icon Loretta Lynn passed away peacefully in her sleep last year at her Tennessee residence. The Coal Miner's Daughter singer, who was actually a poor coal miner's daughter from Kentucky, was a trailblazer in the field, particularly for female singers, and sang songs about tenacity, resiliency, and independence.
The singer had a rough childhood and an even rougher marriage, but in the last years of her life, she was in utter bliss at the ranch house of her dream. The location of the ranch, commonly known as Loretta Lynn's Ranch, is in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee. On Instagram, Lynn frequently shared images of her cherished property.
She passed peacefully on that ranch and was surrounded by loved ones when she passed, having formed an especially close bond with her grandchildren. Lynn's grandson, Anthony Brutt shared about her spirit before her death to PEOPLE, "It's amazing to see the will and fire she has inside … Nothing can get her down, and nothing will get her down. … She's still witty. She's still very sharp. She's still very funny. When I went over there last week she said she's writing songs and playing the guitar, so it's really awesome to get to see that."
Her grandchildren also enjoyed visiting her at the ranch and can recall the beautiful moments they spent with their grandmother who was also a fabulous cook. Following her death, Lynn's ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee, has gained popularity as a tourist destination for her admirers. However, it was also the late singer's private residence where she held Christmas celebrations for her family. "Everybody holds hands and prays before the meal," granddaughter Tayla Lynn told PEOPLE in 2016 of holidays in Hurricane Mills. "It's love and hugs and good food."
Tayla, who's a singer now, revealed to PEOPLE that it was her grandmother who ushered her toward music. "Memaw wanted me to make this record."
She distinctly recalls a memory of her childhood that pushed her to sing. "About six months after my grandfather passed away, my Memaw went back out on the road and took me with her," Tayla remembers. "I would stand on the side of the stage, and she would sing Here I Am Again, and she would start crying and the audience would start crying. When I recorded that song for the album, I just had tears streaming down my face thinking about her singing that song to the audience," per PEOPLE.
A piece of advice from her grandmother always stayed with her. "She said, 'I want you to know that there is a difference between being honest and telling people your story," Tayla remembers. "She would say, 'I want you to remember that at the end of the day, country music is about family and there are families in that audience and whatever you do is a reflection on me. I'm proud of you and what you're doing, but you've got to figure out a different way to tell your story.' That was an awakening for me, that's for sure," she added.
References:
https://people.com/country/loretta-lynn-dead-age-90/
https://people.com/country/tayla-lynn-talks-addiction-recovery-new-record/
https://www.instagram.com/p/CjTS41oOCUc/
Cover Image Source: Getty Images | Terry Wyatt
