Mary Catherine Thompson (maiden name: Rodgers) was born on November 7, 1841, in Brookville, Pennsylvania, to William Rodgers and Sarah Clements. Her father was a farmer and local official in Brookville. According to one local writer, she joined the Baptist church “early in life…and was baptized in the creek near the church.” She married Oliver Thompson on July 19, 1860, and they had at least eleven children: Anna, born around 1861; William, born around 1862; Robert, born around 1864; Sarah, born around 1866; Uriah, born around 1867; Mack, born around 1870; Mary, born around 1870; Jennie, born around 1874; Myrtle, born around 1877; Alice, born around 1879; and Parker, born around 1883. The family settled in Rose, Pennsylvania, and by 1870, they owned $200 of real estate and $150 of personal property. Her husband Oliver died on January 25, 1926, and she followed on August 28, 1930.