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John R. Gay was born on July 20, 1887, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. It is not known when he came to Arkansas, but he was vice-principal and taught at the Lee County Training School, Arkansas. He later was named principal of the Hot Springs (Arkansas) Grammar School, was a food administrator for the Federal government, and a bookkeeper for the Stringer Mercantile
He was a Mason and a founder of the Good Samaritan Lodge. He also edited the Arkansas Pathfinder publication. He was a rural mail carrier for the U.S. Post Office. After a period of study, in July 1922, he passed the bar examination and became the first African American to practice law in Marianna, Lee County. He died in January 23, 1935.
Sources: History of Lee County, Arkansas, pp. 238-39 (from Blake Wintory).