Katie Starks was born on September 25, 1909 in Redwater, Texas. Katie was 36 at the time of her attack. She was married to Virgil Starks and lived at their farmhouse of five years, which was on 500 acres of farmland, off Highway 67 East, almost ten miles northeast of Texarkana. Her sister, Mrs. Allen, lived directly across the street from Katie. She was the daughter of Jim Strickland. Katie and Virgil went to school together growing up because their parents lived on neighboring farms in Red Springs, Texas.