Catherine (Dick) Kimball was born on February 7, 1945 in Alexandria, Louisiana. She was raised in a large house with four younger brothers and a mother who did not work outside of the home. Her father had several businesses.
She really liked school and learning. After she graduated from Bolton High School, she went on to LSU. She enjoyed learning so much that she took classes the summer before her first fall semester, and then took the maximum hours allowed during the year. After her second year at LSU, she went over to Ole Miss because they allowed her to take even more hours per semester.
At that time, a student could attend law school without first earning an undergraduate degree. Justice Kimball had enough undergraduate hours to qualify, so she went straight on to law school at LSU. While still in law school, she married Clyde Kimball and had two children. Because of her pregnancy, the administration forced her to temporarily take a break from school. Thus, she graduated a year late, in 1970.
