French S. Evans was born in Virginia on August 16, 1801. Originally a Methodist minister, he took a position in the U.S. Treasury Office as a clerk in 1829. He then worked as a clerk in the U.S. Pension Office from 1833 to 1849. In December 1850 he briefly served as the pension office's chief clerk and by 1853 he was taking on private claims cases. After serving as the editor of the Baltimore Patriot, in 1861 President Abraham Lincoln appointed him to a position with the Baltimore customs house. He later worked as a clerk in the U.S. Post Office dead letter office. He died in Washington, D.C. on October 7, 1887.