She grew up on the shore of Lake Koshkonong near to what later became St. Joseph's College in the vicinity of Edgerton, Wisconsin.
Jessica Nelson North is one of the major characters portrayed in her brother's well-known book, which was set when she was 25.
In 1917, which would have been her grandfather James Hervey Nelson's 100th birthday, several of North's uncles wrote extended biographies about their parents and their pioneer farm life.
She received a bachelor's degree from Lawrence College in Appleton, Wisconsin, where she was a member of Alpha Delta Pi, and went on to graduate school at the University of Chicago.
During college, North was the president of the University of Chicago Poetry Club and was the editor of the Adelphean and the History of Alpha Delta Pi.