When John Bounds was born in 1735, in Somerset, Maryland, United States, his father, James Bounds Sr., was 39 and his mother, Ann Dykes, was 35. He married Mary Allen about 1765, in North Carolina, United States. They were the parents of at least 2 sons and 5 daughters. He registered for military service in 1748. He died in 1810, in Rockingham, Richmond, North Carolina, United States, at the age of 75, and was buried in Rockingham, Richmond, North Carolina, United States.