[2] Ella was the daughter of Jupiter and Mary Jane Langdon, both of whom were kidnapped from Africa, possibly in the region of modern-day Nigeria, and sold into slavery.

The pair were freed by the British Royal Navy and eventually transported to the Grenadian village of La Digue.

[5][6] In later years, Louise's maternal uncle, Egerton Langdon, stated that her father was a bank teller from England.

[8] After her grandmother's death, she emigrated from Grenada in 1917 to Montreal, where her uncle Egerton Langdon introduced her to Garveyism and the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA).

[14] Another son, Wilfred, later remembered that Louise "received letters from the leaders of the movement thanking her for the work she had done and praising her for her devotion to the cause".

Rumors that white racists were responsible for Earl's death were widely circulated, and were very disturbing to Louise and their children.

[19] After a dispute with creditors, Louise received a nominally life insurance benefit of $1,000 ($20,000 in 2024 dollars[A]) in payments of $18 per month;[20] the issuer of another, larger policy refused to pay, claiming her husband Earl had committed suicide.