Asahel W. Thompson was born around 1800 in North Carolina. He married a woman named Nancy, and they had at least eight children: Mary, born around 1828; John, born around 1831; Jonathan, born around 1833; Louisa, born around 1836; Asahel, born around 1838; James, born around 1840; Nancy, born around 1844; and Charles, born around 1846. They lived in Chesterfield, South Carolina, and Thompson worked as a farmer. By 1860, he owned $1,500 of real estate and $5,050 of personal property. He died sometime after 1864.