When Volney Columbus McCrary was born on 7 March 1867, in Henderson, North Carolina, United States, his father, Adolphus McCrary, was 39 and his mother, Julia Ann Jones, was 39. He married Dora Patterson about 1889, in Henderson, North Carolina, United States. They were the parents of at least 4 sons and 1 daughter. He lived in Hendersonville, Henderson, North Carolina, United States in 1920 and Penrose, Transylvania, North Carolina, United States in 1941. He died on 9 September 1941, in Little River, Transylvania, North Carolina, United States, at the age of 74, and was buried in Crab Creek Baptist Church Cemetery, Hendersonville, Henderson, North Carolina, United States.