Born in Albemarle County, Virginia, around 1839, Major Givens enlisted in the Union army on December 10, 1863, near Jefferson City, Missouri. Givens was born into slavery, and at the time of his enlistment, he belonged to J. W. Rollins, who resided in Boone County, Missouri. Givens enlisted for a period of three years, and he stood 5 feet, 8 inches tall, with black hair, eyes, and skin complexion. Givens mustered into the 65th USCT Infantry Regiment at Benton Barracks in St. Louis, serving as a private in Company B. Givens and his regiment then travelled down to Morganza, Louisiana, for garrison duty. Unfortunately, Givens was in the hospital fighting symptoms of "dropsy" starting on June 18, 1864. He died on August 22, 1864, at the Corps d'Afrique Hospital in New Orleans, Louisiana. No family member filed a pension for his service after the war.