Sarah Ridley was born in Watauga, an early settlement in East Tennessee, in December 1773. Her father was Captain George Ridley. According to Ellet, the Ridleys left Watauga in 1779 as part of a large party moving westward, and settled in the area near present-day Nashville, Tennessee, in 1780. The Ridleys' fort where Sarah lived was one of a dozen forts in the area built to protect their inhabitants from frequent attacks by the neighboring Cherokee and Creek Indians.
