Edward Jarvis Cushing was born on March 31, 1824, in Providence, Rhode Island, to Daniel and Susan Cushing. According to an early biographer, he came from “distinguished ancestry on both sides of his family,” and he was related to Democratic politician Caleb Cushing. His father died when he was a child, and the family moved to Illinois for several years before returning to Providence. He attended school in Providence, and (according to an early biographer), his education was “broadened by extensive reading and amplified by a mind of unusual acuteness.”
He married Mary Heath Wild on May 22, 1850, and they had at least five children: Mary, born around 1851; Edward, born around 1855; Charles, born around 1855; Daniel, born around 1858; and Arthur, born around 1867. They lived in North Providence, Rhode Island, he worked as a manufacturer and real estate agent. He supported the Democratic Party, and he served as a correspondent and “special writer” for the Providence Journal. He was reportedly “much interested in public affairs,” and he served as the local superintendent of schools. One writer described him as an “admirable public speaker” who “always [had] a stock of witty stories and a fund of sly humor.” His wife died on November 17, 1903, and he died in North Providence on June 20, 1905.