When Theodosia Burr Calbreath was born on 22 August 1864, in Lebanon, St. Clair, Illinois, United States, her father, John Hamilton Calbreath, was 40 and her mother, Rhoda Penn, was 37. She married Edmond Joseph Avis on 23 January 1888, in Trenton, Clinton, Illinois, United States. They were the parents of at least 2 sons and 2 daughters. She lived in St. Clair, Illinois, United States in 1880 and Cliff Township, Custer, Nebraska, United States for about 30 years. She died on 24 January 1953, in Broken Bow, Custer, Nebraska, United States, at the age of 88, and was buried in Cliff Table Cemetery, Merna, Custer, Nebraska, United States.