When Walter William Speed was born on 29 December 1886, in Seminary, Covington, Mississippi, United States, his father, William Martin Speed, was 34 and his mother, Joriah Sellers, was 32. He married Carrie Elizabeth Lott on 13 October 1912, in Covington, Mississippi, United States. They were the parents of at least 6 sons and 3 daughters. He lived in Beat 2 Watts, Covington, Mississippi, United States in 1900. He died on 8 February 1971, at the age of 84.