Jack McNatt was born around 1844 in South Carolina. McNatt worked as a laborer and resided in Robeson County, North Carolina. In 1874, the Wilmington Weekly Star reported that McNatt had attempted to vote in an election, and was challenged by Daniel McNatt, and Jack McNatt’s ballot was rejected as “it was found that he was not a legal voter.” Jack McNatt was then accused of burning Daniel McNatt’s turpentine still in retaliation for the obstruction and was sent to the Lumberton jail. McNatt was charged with burning a turpentine still on October 3, 1874, and sentenced to three years in the North Carolina State Penitentiary. McNatt was recorded in the North Carolina State Penitentiary's Descriptive Register for the Years 1869-1884 as prisoner number 928. In his sentencing records, McNatt’s race is noted as “colored.”  McNatt was thirty years old when he was arrested. He was noted as possessing no formal education, meaning he could not read or write at that time. During his incarceration, McNatt was leased to the Western North Carolina Railroad Company to work on railroad construction. He was discharged from the railroad on August 1, 1877.