When Susannah Shearer was born on 10 December 1818, in Ashe, North Carolina, United States, her father, John Shearer, was 26 and her mother, Mary Ann Green, was 21. She married William Wallace Cottrell on 6 March 1835, in Caldwell, North Carolina, United States. They were the parents of at least 3 sons and 9 daughters. She lived in Lower Creek Township, Caldwell, North Carolina, United States for about 30 years. She died on 27 June 1896, in Caldwell, North Carolina, United States, at the age of 77, and was buried in Lenoir, Caldwell, North Carolina, United States.