When John Thomas Arant was born on 15 January 1893, in Rockford, Coosa, Alabama, United States, his father, John Wesley Arant, was 22 and his mother, Sarah Jane Chamberlain, was 19. He lived in Justice Precinct 1, Brown, Texas, United States for about 10 years and Rising Star, Eastland, Texas, United States in 1930. He registered for military service in 1917. He died on 5 September 1960, in Big Spring, Howard, Texas, United States, at the age of 67, and was buried in De Leon, Comanche, Texas, United States.