Frank Butler was born around 1863 in North Carolina. Butler worked as a laborer and resided in Montgomery County, North Carolina. Butler was charged with larceny on September 30, 1878, and sentenced to three years in the North Carolina State Penitentiary. Butler was recorded in the North Carolina State Penitentiary's Descriptive Register for the Years 1869-1884 as prisoner number 2833. In the descriptive register, Butler's race is noted as Black. Butler was fifteen years old when he was arrested. Butler was noted as being able to read. During his incarceration, Butler was leased to the Western North Carolina Railroad Company to work on railroad construction. He was discharged on June 30, 1881.