It's a common enough story — a man and woman fool around behind a cover of deception. And although they are careful, their tryst results in a child. This is the story Sharon Preston-Folta claims as her heritage, saying she's the daughter of Louis Armstrong, commonly believed to be childless. The evidence of her lineage came to light through a batch of letters she sold at auction in 2012, as this New York Times story explains.
According to a short book written by Preston-Folta, it was the mid-'50s when Armstrong began his alleged affair with her mother, Lucille "Sweets" Preston. When Preston found out that she was pregnant, she contacted Armstrong to tell him the news. The book details that Armstrong was overjoyed. He called the little baby "little Satchmo." He even wrote letters to Preston, telling her how much he loved her and how he wished he could leave his wife (also named Lucille) and become her husband.
Their affair continued for around 10 years. Armstrong had his office pay bills for Preston and their daughter. He bought them a house, and Preston-Folta says he even socked away money to pay for a college education for the child. The affair ended in 1967 in an argument in a hotel room — a moment Preston-Folta says she remembers to this day.
Wisps of Armstrong's daughter's secret snuck out from time to time, but Armstrong's wife swore by affidavit that Armstrong had no children. He left nothing in his will to Preston-Folta.
If you research Armstrong's life at the Louis Armstrong House Museum, it's doubtful that you'll find any reference to Preston-Folta or her mother. It's a story that is all too often true: a child never knows his or her whole story; all they know is whether or not they are loved.
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