Selma Hortense Burke was born in Mooresville, North Carolina, the seventh of ten children of Rev. Neil Burke and Mary Jackson Burke.
On December 31, 1900, Selma Hortense Burke was born in Mooresville, North Carolina, to a large and supportive family. She was the seventh of ten children born to Reverend Neil Burke, a Methodist minister, and Mary Jackson Burke, a nurse. From an early age, Burke was encouraged to pursue education and artistic expression despite the challenges of the era, especially being a black woman in the segregated South. Her familial support and early experiences played a critical role in shaping her future as a trailblazing sculptor and educator.
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