Oprah Winfrey's connections to Nashville

It’s been more than 40 years since Oprah Winfrey moved away from Nashville. She was recently in town for the funeral of her father Vernon Winfrey.

Oprah grew up in Nashville

Winfrey was born in Mississippi and later later moved to Milwaukee. After splitting time between her mother Vernita Lee's home in Milwaukee and and her father Vernon Winfrey's home in Nashville, Winfrey returned to Nashville in her adolescence.

In a 1986 Washington Post profile, Winfrey credits her father for helping to turn her life around, setting her on a meteoric rise through local Nashville media to worldwide media mogul.

Where did Oprah work in Nashville?

Winfrey attended East Nashville High School and Tennessee State University. While still in high school, she began her broadcasting career at radio station WVOL, which led to a TV anchor position at WLAC (now WTVF). She left Nashville for another anchor gig in Baltimore in 1976.

Oprah wins Miss Nashville

Oprah Winfrey won Miss Black Nashville in 1972. She went on to become Miss Black Tennessee and competed for Miss Black America.

Does Oprah have a home in Nashville?

The former residence of Oprah Winfrey's father, Vernon, and his former wife Barbara Winfrey was listed in 2014 for $1,499,000.

At the time, realty agent Gail Greil of Zeitlin and Co. Realtors, who is the listing agent, said she could not comment in any way on the property at 1413 Willowbrooke Circle.

The owner of record is Overground Railroad LLC, an entity that has been publicly identified with the TV talk show queen.

Oprah Winfrey also has been otherwise identified as the home's owner during a multiyear legal struggle over occupancy with Barbara Winfrey, who was evicted from the property.

Contact Harold Gater at hgater@gannett.com or 601-961-7368. Follow him on Facebook and Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Oprah Winfrey in Nashville