James North Howard Summerell was born in Salisbury (Rowan County), North Carolina, on August 31, 1854. Summerell was a Presbyterian minister who served various communities in North Carolina, including Tarboro, New Bern, Rocky Mount, and Wilson, to name a few. He died in Greenville (Pitt County) on March 24, 1938. Summerell was a grandson of geologist, educator, and explorer Elisha Mitchell.