When George Washington Kirby was born on 3 January 1852, in Tennessee, United States, his father, Elisha E. Kirby, was 27 and his mother, Terressa Hambleton Crook, was 20. He married Mary Elizabeth Coburn on 23 December 1880, in Crockett, Tennessee, United States. They were the parents of at least 1 son and 5 daughters. He lived in De Soto, Clarke, Mississippi, United States in 1870 and Madison Township, St. Francis, Arkansas, United States in 1900. He died on 14 January 1924, in St. Francis, Arkansas, United States, at the age of 72, and was buried in Forrest City Cemetery, Forrest City, St. Francis, Arkansas, United States.