Robert W. Keyworth was born on February 25, 1832, in Washington, D.C., to Robert Keyworth and Mary Taylor. He attended Georgetown University and the United States Military Academy. He married Anna Anderson in Washington, D.C., on October 30, 1850, and their daughter Mary was born around 1854. The couple lived with Keyworth’s mother in Washington, and Keyworth worked as a clerk. Anna probably died sometime between 1860 and 1863. He enlisted as a 2^nd lieutenant in the Confederate army in 1861 and eventually earned a promotion to major. Keyworth married Mollie Wright in Harris County, Texas, on December 8, 1863, and they had at least two children: Katherine, born around 1865; and Robert, born around 1867. He died of yellow fever in Galveston County, Texas, on August 8, 1867.