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Born April 23, 1918 in Waterville, Washington, Lloyd R. Bell worked as an educator and public servant in the state of Washington throughout the 1900s. While living as a child with his mother and brother in Winthrop in Okanogan County, Bell became afflicted with a sudden illness which caused his legs to cease functioning. In 1932, a fall resulted in complete paralysis of his legs. Bell began a year and a half long stay at the Seattle Orthopedic Children's Hospital, while there he met President Franklin Delano Roosevelt who was visiting the hospital on a tour of the region. Bell regained the use of his legs and returned home to Winthrop.

From 1939 to 1945 Bell attended the Eastern Washington College of Education where he earned a degree in education and teacher certification. Bell taught seventh grade history in Ritzville Washington for two years, marrying Amy Moody in the summer of 1945. In 1947 Bell earned a Master in History from the University of Washington, shortly after becoming a history professor and the chair of the social studies department for the Wenatchee Junior College. While working in Wenatchee, Bell took a part time job teaching in the Stehekin School, a one-room school in Stehekin, a small town just outside of Wenatchee. In 1952, dissatisfied with national politics, Bell took a year off from teaching while volunteering to support the presidential candidacy of Adlai Stevenson. Although Stevenson lost to Eisenhower, this was the beginning of Bell's journey into politics.

After teaching in both the Wenatchee Junior College and Stehekin School for several years, Bell left education in 1959 when he became the clerk for the Washington House Democratic Caucus. He served in this position until 1963, and it was in this period that Bell became a father after adopting his daughter Caitlin in 1960. Following his position as Caucus Clerk Bell became the Supervisor of Interpretive Services for the Washington State Parks and Recreation Department where he constructed the Federal Forest, Dry Falls, and Spokane House Interpretive Centers. This position only lasted two years. In 1967 Bell was given a position as Administrative Assistant to Bert Cole the Commissioner of Public Lands for the Washington State Department of Natural Resources and while Bell and Cole disagreed on many political topics, Bell served this role for 13 years. In 1979 Bell retired to the home he and his wife had built in Stehekin, where he spent his time fishing, writing books about Stehekin as well as an autobiography titled An Examined Life, and traveling as part of the Seniors Club. Bell died March 16, 2001 in Clallam County, Washington.