Matthäus was born on December 18th, 1788. Matthäus' father was Jacob Zorn and his mother was Christina Kohler. His paternal grandparents were Jacob Zorn and Magdalena Zorn. He had two brothers and two sisters, named Jacob, Johannes, Magdalena Susanna and Barbara. He was the youngest of the five children. He died at the age of 68 on July 1st, 1857.