Born in Montcalm, West Virginia, to a mining family.
Hazel Dickens was born on June 1, 1935, in Montcalm, West Virginia, into a family closely tied to coal mining. As the eighth of eleven children, her early life was marked by the harsh realities of Appalachian life, which significantly influenced her music and activism. Her father was a Primitive Baptist preacher who also worked in the mines, shaping her understanding of working-class struggles and community resilience. These formative experiences would later be reflected in the themes of her music, advocating for miners and the rights of the working class.