Lauraett Katon was born on December 20, 1840, in Pittston, Maine, to Alexander and Grace Katon. Her father was a farmer who owned $1,200 of real estate and $416 of personal property by 1860. She grew up and attended school in Pittston, and she married James F. Thompson on April 26, 1865. They had at least five children: Alice, born around 1866; William, born around 1869; Gracie, born around 1872; Linda, born around 1882; and James, born around 1885. They lived in Pittston, and her husband worked as a farmer. By 1870, they owned $1,000 of real estate and $500 of personal property. Her husband died on May 24, 1899. She applied for a widow’s pension the following month and eventually received one. She moved to Chelsea, Maine, in the late 1800s, and she died there of acute bronchitis on December 19, 1921.