Caroline Fawcett was born on August 24, 1862 in Wellington, New Zealand to Joseph Fawcett and Mary Ann Stratford. Her parents joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1871. They sailed for Utah by way of Honolulu, Hawaii and San Francisco, California in 1872. The Fawcetts moved first to Centerville and then to Huntsville, Utah. While the family was living in Huntsville, Mary Ann died, leaving five girls and one boy for Joseph to care for. Caroline assumed the role of managing the household, with the help of her sisters. Joseph moved his family to Henefer, Utah, where he met and married Mary Ann Richins.

Carrie’s sisters described her as "a pretty girl with light brown hair with a natural curl.  She loved music and learned to play the piano quite well."

She became the plural wife of Orson Oriel Richins on October 20, 1881, when they were married in the Salt Lake Endowment House. Orson Oriel was thereafter indicted for polygamy and had to hide from the federal marshals. He moved his wives to Mesa, Arizona and then to Deming, New Mexico before settling in Colonia Diaz, Mexico. Carrie passed away ten years and eleven months after she married Orson Oriel—May 28, 1891. Orson’s first wife, Rachel, raised Carrie’s three children as her own.