Robert Carmichael was the son of James Y Carmichael and Julia Carmichael (the daughter of his cousin Abraham) and the husband of Maggie McElroy. Robert served in the Georgia 7th Infantry during the Civil War and fought in most of the major battles. He grew up in Coweta County, but moved to Atlanta when Maggie became sick and disabled. He later lived in southeastern Georgia, where he promoted unsuccessfully a new town called Vacuna.