I believe Billy Joe and her daughter were lovers who got pregnant. They used a coat hanger or something to abort the baby, or found someone local who would abort it. They were on the bridge throwing the baby in to the water, probably wrapped in a blanket. Billy Joe couldn't forgive himself for what he had done and killed himself. The girl is having a hard time with it too, as well as dealing with Billy Joe killing himself, so that she can't eat. The mother's words in the song and the things she is talking about show that she is totally unaware of what went on between her daughter and Billy Joe.
I believe Billy Joe and her daughter were lovers who got pregnant. They used a coat hanger or something to abort the baby, or found someone local who would abort it. They were on the bridge throwing the baby in to the water, probably wrapped in a blanket. Billy Joe couldn't forgive himself for what he had done and killed himself. The girl is having a hard time with it too, as well as dealing with Billy Joe killing himself, so that she can't eat. The mother's words in the song and the things she is talking about show that she is totally unaware of what went on between her daughter and Billy Joe.