Benjamin Hill was born around 1854 in North Carolina. Hill was a boatman who resided in Wilmington and Harnett (New Hanover County), North Carolina. Hill was charged with larceny on June 3, 1878, and sentenced to two years in the North Carolina State Penitentiary. Hill was recorded in the North Carolina State Penitentiary's Descriptive Register for the Years 1869-1884 as prisoner number 2737. In the descriptive register, Hill’s race is noted as Black. Hill was twenty-four years old when he was arrested. Hill was noted as possessing no formal education, meaning he could not read or write at that time. During his incarceration, Hill was leased to the Western North Carolina Railroad Company to work on railroad construction. He was discharged on March 30, 1880.