When Joel Adams III was born on 18 October 1802, in Whitehall, Whitehall, Washington, New York, United States, his father, Joel Griswold Adams II, was 41 and his mother, Louisa Tupper, was 39. He married Love Prudence Mellor on 17 June 1834, in Washington, Ohio, United States. They were the parents of at least 2 sons and 3 daughters. He lived in Watertown Township, Washington, Ohio, United States in 1860. He died on 30 October 1865, in Watertown, Washington, Ohio, United States, at the age of 63, and was buried in Beverly, Washington, Ohio, United States.