John W. Morrison was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1842, and moved to the village of North Liberty, Mercer County, Pennsylvania as a boy. At age 16, he went to Pittsburgh, PA to work as a clerk and general assistant in a Photo Supply House owned by his brother-in-law, John Haworth. He worked there until the outbreak of the Civil War, at which point, in 1861, he enlisted in the Union Army, Company E, 100th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, the “Roundhead” Regiment. In the early 1880s, while living in Bellevue, PA (just outside of Pittsburgh), he was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. He served as Journal Clerk of the House (1885-1887), and later, Chief Clerk of the House (1889-1891). In 1891 he was elected State Treasurer of Pennsylvania, and soon after the end of his term (1894), he was appointed Deputy Commissioner of Banking for the State of Pennsylvania. After assuming the position in 1895, he served in the role for over 20 years.

John W. Morrison and his wife, Jerusha, had four children: Mary B., Katherine H. (later Johnston), Alice T., and James B. Around 1892, Morrison purchased a home in Wayne, Delaware County, Pennsylvania at 425 Chestnut Lane and moved there with his family. The home was designed by architects F.L. & W.L. Price, and built by Wendell & Smith.