Sallie Swepson Sims Cotten (née Southall) was born in Lawrenceville (Brunswick County), Virginia on June 13, 1846. In 1866, she married Robert Randolph Cotten, and the family lived mainly in Tarboro and Wilson. Cotten was an influential writer, social organizer, and member of the North Carolina Federation of Women's Clubs. She died in Winchester, Massachusetts on May 4, 1929.