Josie Bassett lived most of her life on her father's property, operating the ranch and leading a mostly outdoor life, with camping, fishing and hunting as her primary hobbies. She married five times over the course of her lifetime. She divorced four of her husbands, allegedly running one off with a frying pan. A fifth husband died, reportedly of alcoholism, but rumors persist that Josie poisoned him. With one husband, Carl McKnight, Bassett had two sons: Crawford McKnight and Herbert "Chick" McKnight.