Hiram B. Valentine was born in Shelby in Orleans County, New York, approximately 1821. His wife, Catherine Valentine (born Catherine Wright), was similarly born in New York approximately 1825. Together they had a total of four children: Anna (born approximately 1844), Elizabeth (born approximately 1846), Frances (born approximately 1853), and Milo (born approximately 1863).

After relocating from Shelby, NY to Brady Township in Kalamazoo County, MI, between 1850 and 1860, Hiram developed a 40-acre farm, located roughly 2.5 miles southeast of the southernmost tip of Indian Lake. Hiram appears to have cultivated mostly wheat and corn; however he also diversified into potatoes, apples, and livestock (i.e., cattle) for leather and milk (used mostly for the production of small amounts of butter). According to the 1870 United States Federal Census, the farm was valued at approximately $1,500 (with personal assets valued at around $100). He also had a close working relationship with another farmer, Milo Cowles, with whom his daughter Anna served as a housemaid. Around 1870, Catherine Wright’s father, Ebenezer Wright, joined the household. Anna married Alexander Cropsy ca. 1865, and remained in the Brady area for most of her life. Elizabeth married Darius A. Beebe in 1863, settling in Geneva Township in Van Buren County. Frances married Charles Loudon in 1880, settling in Geneva Township in Van Buren County. Milo served as a laborer on his father’s farm, until marrying Mable R. Sonders in 1880 in Wakeshma Township, Kalamazoo. Milo then moved to South Haven and worked as a farm laborer; he eventually acquired his own farm ca. 1905. Hiram died on November 5, 1891, and was survived by his wife and four children.