Ed Butler was raised on a hundred-acre hill farm in West Kentucky. He was born in 1943. His Butler ancestors homesteaded land in what is Hickman County, Kentucky in 1821. He has traced some of his family lines back as far as eight generations. Learning and preserving family history has always been one of his favorite endeavors. While teaching, he was attracted to a lady that taught public school music. In June 2017, they have been sweethearts for fifty-one years. They have three sons and six grandchildren. As a manufacturer's rep, he has worked in thirty-five states and has traveled to forty-six.