Jethro Sumner was born in Nansemond County, Virginia in 1733. Sumner moved to North Carolina by 1764 and became a tavern keeper in Bute County. A local justice of the peace, he also served at Bute's sheriff from 1772 to 1777. After attending the Third North Carolina Provincial Congress, Sumner became an officer in the 3rd North Carolina Regiment of the Continental Army, eventually attaining the rank of brigadier general. He died in Warren County in March 1785.