Edward Stillings was born in Havre de Grace, Maryland in the early 19th century.
[1] His parents descended from English immigrants of the colonial era who participated in the American Revolution as intelligence operatives, among other activities.
[5] Edward was raised in a Christian home and was well-educated as a young man, going on to graduate from Augusta College in Kentucky, studying the classics and mastering the Greek language.
[9] Mary was the granddaughter of Lt. Col. Cyrus Smith, who served under General Hull during the War of 1812 and for whom Edward had known from Maryland.
However, he was educated at the University of Heidelberg in Germany after lacking interest to attend Yale as Exeter had prepared him for.
[12] With the outbreak of the American Civil War, many of Edward's relatives would serve on the Union side.
[14] Shortly thereafter, a friend of Edward's he knew earlier in life from Kenton, Ohio, Thomas Carney, had become the Governor of Kansas.