Richea Hart was the eldest of three children born to Joshua and Rebecca Hart of Charleston. In 1777, she married Abraham Mendes Seixas. Son of Isaac and Rachel Levy Seixas, brother of famed hazzan Gershom Mendes Seixas, Abraham had come south as a volunteer for the American army. He carried dispatches for General Harry Lee between Charleston and Georgia, among other duties, and apparently achieved the rank of captain. After the war, Richea and Abraham settled for a time in Philadelphia—Abraham taking an oath of loyalty to the state of Pennsylvania in 1782—and eventually returned to Charleston. Abraham worked as a merchant—sometimes a slave trader—and a lawyer. Richea gave birth to eleven children, and the family was involved with Congregation Beth Elohim, where Abraham was a trustee and served as president.