Eliza R. Lewis was born on October 24, 1836, in Ohio to John and Sarah Lewis. Her parents were Welsh immigrants, and her father earned a living as a farmer. She grew up and attended school in Licking County, Ohio.
She corresponded with
William W. Williams during the war, and in January 1862, she told him that she was “glad you are geting over the war feaver. It is well to be ready to fight of Liberty and Union, but there is soldiers enough I think for the present.” She married Williams around 1865, and they had at least two children: Eliza, born around 1869; and William, born around 1877. They lived in Troy, Ohio, and her husband worked as a farmer. Her husband died on February 17, 1907. She remained in Troy with her son William, and she died in Delaware County, Ohio, on December 8, 1928.