James Henry Carpenter

Carpenter was born in New Jersey on September 14, 1846, to William H. Carpenter and Elizabeth Wallace. His father is believed to be a descendant of Rehoboth Carpenter family and of its founder William Carpenter (born about 1605 in England), who migrated to America in 1638 on the Bevis. Carpenter was the first of five children. His youngest brother, Dr. Frank E. Carpenter (born 10 Jul 1858) worked with him in the mid to late 1890s at the Carpenter Steel Company.

Carpenter spent time on Long Island as a child, both in Jamaica, Queens, and in Brooklyn. Fascinated by sailing ships and by how things worked, he learned to sail small boats and said he wanted to be a sailor. He went to sea as a cabin boy in 1860, aged 14, with his father's permission.

Carpenter attended an engineering college in New Jersey, where he completed his studies. (It may have been Rutgers University, but this has not been confirmed.) While finishing school, he met Theodora Anna Silvera (Siloena), born about September 2, 1846, in New Jersey. Her father Joseph was from Portugal and her mother Anna was born in England. Carpenter married Theodora in West Hoboken, New Jersey, on December 17, 1867. They lived for several years in Paterson, New Jersey, where their daughter Serena (January 12, 1868 – October 30, 1870) and their first son Walter (September 2, 1870 – January 13, 1895) were born. Carpenter became a block engineer and tinkered with metallurgy.

By 1875, they were living in Brooklyn, where their daughter Ruth (c. 1875 – c. 1900/1910) and second son Joseph William (March 13, 1879 – ?) were born. Shortly after 1880 the family moved to Hartford, Connecticut, where Theodora died on February 2, 1883, from complications during childbirth. The baby, a daughter, was raised by Theodora's paternal grandmother. Walter, Ruth and Joseph would later stay with Theodora's parents while Carpenter focused on working.

Carpenter then went to seek engineering work in Chicago, where he met Georgian Clara Smith (born June 1865 in Canada; died August 21, 1930) of Saint Paul, Minnesota. They married on July 16, 1884, in Chicago, and their daughter Georgette was born there on October 8, 1886. They later had two sons, Harry Rudolph (October 5, 1889 – October 2, 1903) and Wesley Folger (November 4, 1892 – ?) in Reading, Berks County, Pennsylvania.