James Raymond was born in Shutesbury, Massachusetts, on December 25, 1796, the son of Thaddeus Raymond and Keziah Winch. His siblings were Simon (1794-1850), Olive (b. 1799), Silas (b. 1803), Nancy (b. 1806), Sally (b. 1810), and William (1812-1850). The Raymond family moved to Ridgefield, Ohio, in the early 19th century. James Raymond married Rachel Fletcher (d. 1844) in 1824 or 1825, and they had five children, including Lewis, William, and Mary. The two eldest sons moved to California in the early 1850s; the younger sons lived in Michigan and Wisconsin. In December 1844, following his wife's death, Raymond married Mary Ann Barry, a widow with three children from her previous marriage: Virginia, Josephine, and William. They had a son, who died young. James and Mary Ann Raymond later lived in Washington, Ohio.
From the guide to the James Raymond collection, Raymond, James collection, 1825-1858, (William L. Clements Library, University of Michigan)
