When Martha Thorp was born in 1807, in Washington, Kentucky, United States, her father, James Thorp, was 52 and her mother, Lucy DePriest, was 34. She married John William Barlow Jr. on 1 December 1828, in Washington, Kentucky, United States. They were the parents of at least 7 sons and 7 daughters. She died in 1861, in Tipton, Indiana, United States, at the age of 54, and was buried in Sidner Cemetery, Tipton, Tipton, Indiana, United States.