When Nancy Maria Badger was born on 27 February 1846, in La Harpe, Hancock, Illinois, United States, her father, Rodney Badger, was 22 and her mother, Nancy Garr, was 23. She married William Hardin Ashby on 14 January 1865, in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah Territory, United States. They were the parents of at least 6 sons and 7 daughters. She lived in Nauvoo, Hancock, Illinois, United States in 1839 and Salt Lake, Utah Territory, United States in 1850. She died on 19 November 1917, in Holden, Millard, Utah, United States, at the age of 71, and was buried in Holden, Millard, Utah, United States.