Sarah Jane Honnoll was the daughter of Robert Honnoll (b. ca. 1798) and his wife Jane Honnoll. The Honnolls were from South Carolina but by 1822 were living in Tennessee, where their oldest son, William, was born. By 1826, the family was living in Mississippi where the rest of their children were born. Two sons, William B. (b. ca. 1822) and Hugh L. (b. ca. 1826), served as sergeants in the “Caledonia Rifles,” Co. D, 24th Mississippi Infantry. The Honnoll family lived in Monroe County, Mississippi.