When Hugh Tolin was born on 2 September 1823, in Montgomery, Kentucky, United States, his father, Porterfield Tolin, was 45 and his mother, Rebecca Vanlandingham, was 35. He married Mary Jane Pickett on 29 November 1853, in Buchanan, Missouri, United States. They were the parents of at least 4 sons and 1 daughter. He lived in Daviess, Missouri, United States in 1850 and Saint Joseph, Buchanan, Missouri, United States in 1860. He died on 24 November 1907, at the age of 84, and was buried in Mount Mora Cemetery, Saint Joseph, Buchanan, Missouri, United States.