Allen Joyner was born around 1857 in North Carolina. Joyner worked as a laborer and resided in Bertie County, North Carolina. Joyner was charged with larceny on June 17, 1878, and sentenced to seven years in the North Carolina State Penitentiary. Joyner was recorded in the North Carolina State Penitentiary's Descriptive Register for the Years 1869-1884 as prisoner number 2740. In the descriptive register, Joyner's race is noted as Black. Joyner was twenty-one years old when he was arrested. Joyner was noted as being able to read. During his incarceration, Joyner was leased to the Western North Carolina Railroad Company to work on railroad construction. He died while incarcerated on April 17, 1879.