Nelson W. Napier was born in 1816 in Ashtabula, Ashtabula County, Ohio, the son of Capt. Benjamin A. Napier and Erepta (Landon) Napier. His parents are listed in "Pioneer Settlers of Ohio" at the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center in Fremont, Ohio. On Sept. 26, 1840, Nelson married Henrietta Marie Scoville in Ashtabula, Ashtabula County, Ohio.

Nelson followed his sea-faring father, uncles, and brothers to become a Great Lakes captain. He settled near St. Joseph, Michigan, and soon had a regular sea route hauling fruit between St. Joseph and Chicago. He also had his own fruit orchards.

A quote from Nan Card on the "Ohio Memory" website:
"A gentle giant like his father, Napier was loved and revered as one of the finest sailors on Lake Michigan. First on the "Comet," then the "Corona," and finally on the refurbished side-wheeler "Alpena," Captain Napier plied the waters of Lake Michigan. Three nights each week, he carried a cargo of fruit and passengers across the lake."

Nelson and Henrietta had ten children, 3 who died by age 3:
*Edward Ellingward Napier (1841 – 1925) Sgt. in Civil War
*Elizabeth W "Libbie" Napier (1843 – 1871)
*Adelaide Erepta "Addie" Napier (1844 – 1882)
*Arthur N. Napier (1846 – 1923)
*Emma Frances Augusta Napier (1848 – 1850) 2 yrs
*Henrietta Emma Napier (1851 – 1854) 3 yrs
*Walter Charles "Harding" 10 mo (Jul 28 1854 – June i 1855)
tragically drowned when the ship he was on with his mother and brother hit the harbor deck and capsized.(It was not his father's ship.)
*Jackson (Hubert) Napier (1858 – 1885)
*Nelson Wood Napier Jr (1862 – 1943)
*Frank Lyle Napier (1865 – 1937)

Captain Nelson W. Napier was lost in a violent storm on Lake Michigan on Oct 16 1880. On board the side-wheeler ALPENA, he had his usual cargo of fruit, 25 crew members, and about 50 passengers. Newspaper reports of that period said that the October afternoon temperature of 65 degrees had fallen to below zero by the time he had reached halfway through his route, and snow, sleet, and hurricane force winds slammed against the ship. The ship sank and all on board were lost. The captain's body was never found.

There is a cenotaph for Capt. Nelson Napier at Saint Joseph City Cemetery, Berrien County, Michigan.