James Stephens Trogden was born on August 4, 1892, in Leaksville, North Carolina. Trogden was a second lieutenant in the 55th Engineers from September 1918 until his honorable discharge in December 1918. He served stateside during World War I, at Camp Humphreys, Virginia; Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana; and Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He died in Winston-Salem (Forsyth County) on January 6, 1951.