James W. Sproul was born around 1833 in New Jersey to James and Julia Sproul. His father was a farmer and carpenter who owned $7,000 of real estate and $1,200 of personal property by 1860. Sproul grew up and attended school in Raritan, New Jersey, and by 1850, he was working as a “merchants clerk.” He moved to Brooklyn, New York, by the early 1860s and earned a living as a grocer.
He married Elizabeth Newton around 1864, and they had three children: Ida, born around 1868; Albert, born around 1871; and James, born around 1874. They settled in New York City, and in 1870, they were living with Elizabeth’s father, a retired merchant who owned $5,000 of real estate and $80,000 of personal property. By 1880, he was working as a customs collector. His wife died in the early 1900s, and he died sometime after 1910.