Early Years John Snyder Carlile was born in Winchester on December 16, 1817, and was the only child of Jonathan Carlile, a lawyer, and Elizabeth Snyder Carlile. Contrary to an accepted family tradition that Carlile’s father died when he was young, Jonathan Carlile was an abusive alcoholic who squandered his wife’s inheritance and whose conduct forced the family to move frequently. After he deserted his family in Bedford County, Pennsylvania, Elizabeth Carlile returned to Hampshire County, where she operated a school. On December 17, 1833, she petitioned the Virginia General Assembly for divorce, and after that request was rejected she obtained a judgment of divorce in Bedford County, Pennsylvania, on August 22, 1836.