When John Murdock was born on 2 November 1806, in Whitingham, Windham, Vermont, United States, his father, Hezekiah Murdock, was 30 and his mother, Polly Taft, was 29. He married Mary Cummings on 5 July 1840, in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States. They were the parents of at least 2 sons and 1 daughter. He lived in Worcester, Massachusetts, United States in 1860 and Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States for about 10 years. He died on 8 December 1891, in Dedham, Norfolk, Massachusetts, United States, at the age of 85, and was buried in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States.