William Roberts Sturgis was born around 1801 in Maine to James and Mary Roberts. He married Joanna McDonald on December 26, 1826, and they had at least four children: Major, born around 1828; Mary, born around 1832; James, born around 1837; and William, born around 1839. They settled in Standish, Maine, and Sturgis worked as a farmer. By 1860, he owned $2,000 of real estate and $200 of personal property. He remained in Sturgis for the rest of his life, and he died there on September 21, 1865.