Edward Albright was born around 1836 in Pennsylvania to William Albright and Catherine Garman. His father was a farmer who owned $560 of real estate and $75 of personal property by 1860. He grew up in West Beaver, Pennsylvania, and the family moved to Mottville, Michigan, in the 1850s. By 1863, he was working as a farmer in Porter, Michigan. He died sometime after June 1863.