Gospel/blues singer and musician Blind Willie Johnson was born--as far
as is known, since not much information is available about his early
life--in 1902 in Marlin, TX. Supposedly, he was blinded when he was
about three years old when his stepmother threw lye at his father
during an argument, missed and it hit Willie in the face. He earned a
living later on by singing on street corners. In 1927 he became a
Baptist preacher, married and moved to Dallas, TX, where he eventually
recorded a gospel album for Columbia Records. Many of the cuts on that
album later became classics in the gospel genre. He stopped recording
in 1930, but continued to perform up until the 1940s.
In 1947 he died in Beaumont, TX. Reportedly, the house he was living in
burned down, and after spending the night sleeping in its remains, he
caught pneumonia and died soon afterwards.
