Francis, known as Frank, was born in Providence, Rhode Island, on the 30th of April, 1892. He joined the US Navy in 1917 and was a Chief Machinist's Mate when he was stationed at Naval Air Station Pensacola in 1918. It was Frank's actions here that would earn him the Navy Cross, which was later upgraded to the Medal of Honor. The citation reads:

"For extraordinary heroism while attached to the Naval Air Station, Pensacola, Fla., on 25 September 1918. While flying with Ens. J. A. Jova, Ormsbee saw a plane go into a tailspin and crash about three-quarters of a mile to the right. Having landed near by, Ormsbee lost no time in going overboard and made for the wreck, which was all under water except the 2 wing tips. He succeeded in partially extricating the gunner so that his head was out of water, and held him in this position until the speedboat arrived. Ormsbee then made a number of desperate attempts to rescue the pilot, diving into the midst of the tangled wreckage although cut about the hands, but was too late to save his life."

Frank remained in the Navy after the War and went on to earn his aviation wings two years later. After twelve years of service, he left the Navy and went on to fly airmail in Central America and was known for flying the world's longest airmail route at the time; Miami, Florida to Santiago, Chile. Frank became the Assistant Manager of the First Air Navigation Division for the Bureau of Air Commerce in 1935, and also was a Patrol Pilot and Inspector. On the 24th of October, 1936, he was flying alone in overcast conditions and when he attempted to land in order to wait for the bad conditions to clear, he crashed into a mountain near Woodford, Oklahoma. Francis Edward Ormsbee Jr was 44 when he died and his body was found the following day. He is buried with his brother Harry and their mother Sarah in the Saint Francis Cemetery in Pawtucket, Rhode Island: Section 45, Lot 225.