(18 June 1915 - 1939) (divorced) 3 children
Gladys Carter (b. April 20th 1919, died March 11th 1944), Janette Carter (b. July 2nd 1923, died January 22nd 2006) and Joe Carter (b. February 27th 1926, died March 2nd 2005).
On June 18, 1915, he married Sara Dougherty and they had three children: Gladys (Millard), Janette (Jett), and Joe. In 1927, he formed the Carter Family band together with his wife. They were joined by Sara's cousin, Maybelle, who was married to A.P.'s brother, Ezra Carter, and they together formed the first commercial rural country music group. Carter was known for traveling extensively throughout the country and collecting and blending songs, particularly from Appalachian musicians. Some of the songs became so closely identified with A. P. Carter that he has been popularly, but mistakenly, credited with writing them. For example, "Keep on the Sunny Side of Life" was published in 1901 with the words being credited to Ada Blenkhorn and the music credited to Howard Entwisle, and "The Meeting in the Air" has been published giving credit for music and words to I. G. Martin.
A.P. and Sara separated in 1932, in part as a result of Sara having an affair with A.P.'s cousin, due to A.P.'s long absences from home in search of new musical ideas. They officially divorced in 1939. The band remained together for several years afterwards, but broke up in 1943. While Maybelle and her daughters continued to tour as The Carter Family, A.P. left the music business to run a general store in Virginia. In 1952, A.P. reformed The Carter Family with Sara and some of their grown children; the reunion lasted until 1956.