When Zemriah Garrison was born in 1782, in Orange, North Carolina, United States, his father, Captain George Adolphus Garrison, was 23 and his mother, Margaret Hall, was 32. He married Percilla James on 27 September 1811, in Orange, North Carolina, United States. They were the parents of at least 4 sons and 3 daughters. He lived in Monroe Township, Ogle, Illinois, United States in 1840 and Saline, Illinois, United States for about 5 years. He died in 1861, in Gallatin, Illinois, United States, at the age of 79.