Armfield, born near Greensboro, North Carolina in 1829, attended the common schools and later graduated from Trinity College (now Duke University).

In 1861, at the outbreak of the American Civil War, Armfield enlisted in the Confederate States Army.

While on furlough from the Army after being wounded in 1862, Armfield was state solicitor for the sixth district, until he was removed in 1865 by Governor William Woods Holden.

Armfield was chosen Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina and served in that post from 1875 to 1876.

In 1889, he was appointed and then elected to a term as a superior court judge, a post he held until his death in Statesville on November 9, 1898.