When Robert Ferdinand Harrison was born on 14 June 1857, in McMinnville, Warren, Tennessee, United States, his father, William Joshua Harrison, was 36 and his mother, Permelia Adelaide Ellis, was 27. He married Mary Elvira Wilkes on 17 October 1883, in Culleoka, Maury, Tennessee, United States. They were the parents of at least 2 sons and 3 daughters. He lived in Santa Monica, Los Angeles, California, United States in 1910 and Brooklyn, Kings, New York, United States in 1930. He died on 16 December 1936, in Pasadena, Los Angeles, California, United States, at the age of 79.