When Joshua Barnes Farmer, Jr. was born on April 5, 1895, in Wilson, North Carolina, his father, Joshua, was 29 and his mother, Annie, was 29. He had three brothers and four sisters. He served in the U.S. Army during World War I as a Corporal in Machine Gun Company, 26th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division. He was Killed in Action on July 18, 1918 at the age of 23 and is now buried in Maplewood Cemetery, Wilson, Wilson County, North Carolina, USA. His name is inscribed on the Buzancy monument in the 16th Infantry Regiment.