Elizabeth Byrd was the daughter of John Wesley Byrd, Sr. and Susan Hennington. John Wesley Byrd, Sr. was born about 1790 in South Carolina and died in December 1849 in Rankin County, Mississippi. Susan was also born about 1790 in Orangeburg District, South Carolina and died after the 1860 Federal Census was taken. At that time, she was living in Beat 5, Terry post office, Simpson County, Mississippi. In the 1860 census, Elizabeth Byrd's first child, Samuel Dorsey Byrd, was living with Susan Hennington Byrd, his grandmother.
It appears that John and Susan Byrd came to Mississippi from South Carolina sometime between 1818 and 1821. Not many paper records are available to support their being the parents of Elizabeth Byrd; however, the use of DNA has greatly assisted the reconstruction of their family tree. DNA and other evidence supports their also being the parents of Flora Ann Byrd Barlow - Memorial ID 40423093 (who named her son John Wesley Barlow.) It also supports their being the parents of John Wesley Byrd--Memorial ID 46954531.

Newspaper clippings from the Magee Courier dated 31 May 1979 and 3 December 1981 by Vivian Love Williams, a descendant of John Wesley Byrd, Sr. and Susan Hennington give evidence that John Byrd's daughters were: 1. Elizabeth (sic) Byrd who married Normel (sic) Barlow. 2. Flora Byrd who married Wash Barlow (Flora Ann Byrd 21 February 1818--19 September 1885, married George Washington Barlow 6 July-1813--6 November 1874. 3. Mary Byrd married Green Barlow. Mary Byrd 2 May 1815--11 October 1909. Nathaniel Green Barlow 6 July 1813-1880. Wash and Green were twin brothers, sons of John Barlow and Lydia Bryant. Narvle Barlow, husband of Elisabeth Byrd was grandson of John Barlow and Lydia Bryant.

Elisabeth was the granddaughter of Nathaniel Byrd, who was born about 1750 and died about 1818 in Orangeburg District, South Carolina, and his wife, Flora (possibly McDonald or Fisher,) born about 1750 in South Carolina, and died about 1816 in Orangeburg, South Carolina. They are buried in the Byrd Cemetery in Branchville, Orangeburg County, South Carolina. Nathaniel Byrd, Memorial ID 33844972 and Flora McDonald (corrected) Byrd, Memorial ID 33845076. Her other grandparents were (possibly Thomas) Hennington and Ann Howell Hennington, Memorial ID 17146591.

Elisabeth Byrd married Narvle Barlow 24 February 1845 in Rankin County, Mississippi.