Jurney Alexander Floyd was born on June 14, 1893, in North Carolina. Floyd was a farmer in Fairmont, North Carolina, when he registered for the draft (World War I) in June 1917. He was subsequently inducted into the service in July 1918 and served with the 366th Machine Gun Battalion until his honorable discharge on December 21, 1918. He died in Cumberland County, North Carolina, on September 25, 1983.