Zephram Lavier was born around 1835 in Canada. He eventually immigrated to America and settled in New York, and he married Priscilla Haysmer there on April 30, 1859. They had two children: Amelia, born on November 10, 1859; and Laura, born on June 22, 1861. They lived in Barre, New York, and he worked as a farmer. By 1860, they owned $200 of real estate and $200 of personal property. enlisted in the Union army on August 30, 1862, and mustered in as a private in Company D of the 151st New York Infantry on October 22. According to his service records, he was 5 feet, 4 inches tall, with black hair and black eyes. The regiment took part in the Gettysburg Campaign. He died of typhoid fever in Alexandria, Virginia, on October 17, 1863.