When John M. Kirk was born in March 1837 in Pike, Kentucky, his father, William, was 24 and his mother, Nancy, was 14. He married Miranda 'Marandy' Marcum on May 11, 1856, in Wayne, West Virginia when he was 19 years old. They had one child during their marriage. He died on February 25, 1911, in Martin, Kentucky, at the age of 73.