In 1947, Scruse met
Joseph "Joe" Jackson, a fellow resident of East Chicago, Indiana, and they began to date after Jackson obtained an annulment of his earlier marriage. After dating for a year, Scruse and Jackson married on November 5, 1949. In January 1950 they purchased a
house on 2300 Jackson Street in
Gary, Indiana that had just two bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen, and a small utility room for the washing machine and freezer. Their sons slept in bunk beds in one bedroom, Katherine and Joe in the other, and their daughters in the living room. From 1950 to 1966, ten children were born to them, including Brandon Jackson, who was the twin of
Marlon but died a few hours after their birth. Those children are: The Jackson 5 performed in talent shows and clubs on the
Chitlin' Circuit, then signed with
Steeltown Records in 1967 and released two singles. The group was managed by Joe Jackson. In 1968, the group left Steeltown Records and signed with
Motown and
Berry Gordy, where they were the first group to debut with four consecutive number one hits on the
Billboard Hot 100 with the songs "
I Want You Back", "
ABC", "
The Love You Save", and "
I'll Be There". During the couple's early years in Gary, Indiana, Katherine sang together with Joe Jackson as he played
guitar. Joe and his brother Luther also formed an R&B band, the Falcons, in the mid-1950s, for extra income. Joe had a
boxing career, but later went on to work as a crane operator at East Chicago's
Inland Steel Company to support the family. Katherine, a devout
Jehovah's Witness, began to work part-time at
Sears in Gary and played clarinet, cello, and piano on the side. She knew that her son Michael loved music and had rhythm from an early age; one day she saw him dancing to the rickety old
Maytag washing machine. Another son, Tito, would sneak to play Joe's guitar while he was not home and one day broke a guitar string. After the guitar was fixed, Tito played for Joe. That sparked the forming of the family group that was named “The Jackson Brothers 5”, that later became the Jackson 5. While Joe led the rehearsals in the living room, Katherine designed and hand-sewed the stage outfits for the boys, and visited
The Salvation Army for shoes. Jackson also spent time singing harmonies with the boys around the kitchen table. Jackson served as the family's backbone. == Personal life ==