Susan was the eldest daughter of Peter Ames and his wife, Ellen. After her mother's death in a car accident, she became the new mother figure in the family. She was usually responsible for the well being of her younger siblings, Jerry Ames, and her youngest sister, Amy. She also resented any plans of her father to remarry, a situation shared by her maternal aunt, Pauline Rysdale. Despite all her plans, though, he did eventually remarry, first to Myra Lake, whom she outright despised, and then to Valerie, whom she somewhat got along with.