George McEachin (alias John McKay) was born around 1857 in North Carolina. McEachin worked as a laborer and resided in Richmond County, North Carolina, with his wife Harriet McEachin (née Dobbins). McEachin was charged with larceny on May 10, 1878, and sentenced to four years in the North Carolina State Penitentiary. McEachin was recorded in the North Carolina State Penitentiary's Descriptive Register for the Years 1869-1884 as prisoner number 2701. McEachin's race is described as “colored." McEachin was twenty-one years old when he was arrested. McEachin was noted as possessing no formal education, meaning he could not read or write at that time. During his incarceration, McEachin was leased to the Western North Carolina Railroad Company to work on railroad construction. He escaped from prison on January 28, 1881, and was recaptured on January 31, 1881. He was discharged on May 13, 1882. McEachin died on August 8, 1909, in Hoke County, North Carolina.