John T. Wallace was born around 1829 in South Carolina to Jane Wallace. He grew up in Abbeville District, and by 1850, he was working as a farmer. He married a woman named Letitia. He worked as a farmer in Anderson District, South Carolina, and by 1860, he owned $500 of personal property. He enlisted in the Confederate army on March 20, 1862, and he mustered in as a private in Company K of the 1st South Carolina Rifles. He received a $50 bounty. The regiment took part in the Second Battle of Manassas, the Battle of Antietam, and the Battle of Fredericksburg. He was killed in action at Fredericksburg on December 13, 1862.