Murphy was born in Northampton, Massachusetts, USA, on 25 April 1867. She was one of 11 children born to parents John Fahey and Ann Murphy, both Irish immigrants. In her youth, her family moved to Easthampton, where she worked in a button mill at the age of 10.

In 1906, she married John M. Murphy, who worked as a gardener. During her life, she worked as a cook for private families, later in life claiming that she was among the best cooks in the area.

Her husband died in 1924. Their only son, Stephen (aged 16 at the time), went to work as an apprentice upholsterer to support his mother. He eventually started his own business and continued to support her. They lived together for many years in Florence, Massachusetts.

In her 80s, she was writing poetry and doing needlepoint. She baked her own bread until she was 100, and continued reading until she was 103, when her vision became poor. Around that time, she moved to the Hampshire County Hospital.

Murphy died in Leeds, Massachusetts on 23 December 1980, at the age of 113. She was survived by her son, three grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren.