When Johannes von Känel was born on 13 October 1782, in Aeschi Ursenbach, Bern, Switzerland, his father, Anthoni von Kaenel, was 33 and his mother, Anna Wittwer, was 32. He married Susanna Von Kanel on 1 February 1811. They were the parents of at least 7 sons and 5 daughters. He died on 10 February 1859, in his hometown, at the age of 76, and was buried in Bern, Switzerland.