What’s New

Dictionary of North Carolina Biography

According to an index created by the Olivia Raney Local History Library in Raleigh, NC, the following individuals of Martin County are included in the Dictionary of North Carolina Biography

  • Bryan, Henry H. (d. 1835)
  • Hassell, Cushing Biggs (1809-1880)
  • Hassell, Sylvester (1842-1928)
  • Martin, Joseph John (1833-1900)
  • Ross, James (1801-1878)
  • Ross, Reuben (1776-1860)
  • Roulhac, Joseph Blount Gregoire (1795-1856)
  • Spruill, Frank (Franklin) Shepherd (1862-1937)
  • Whittlesey, Sarah Johnson Cogswell (1824 -1896)
  • Wilson, James Lewis (ca. 1760 – 1802)
  • Yellowley, Edward Clement (1821 – 1885)
  • Cherry, Annie Moore (1891 – 1976)
  • Armstrong, Frank Alton, Jr. (1902 – 1969)
  • Everett, Reuben Oscar (1879-1971)
  • Chance, William Claudius, Sr. (1880-1970)
  • Biggs, Asa (1811-1878)

I’ve already started pages for a few of these on the Biographical Profiles page of the site. You can use WorldCat.org to find this book in a library near you.

BIGGS Jr., Asa (d. 1883)

New York Times
13 Nov 1883

Death of Asa Biggs

Petersburg, Va., Nov 12 — Asa Biggs, the young man who was burned in his residence, in Southampton, as reported in The Times today, was a son of the late Judge Biggs, of Norfolk, and his wife, who narrowly escaped burning to death, represented one of the oldest families in this section of Virginia.  She is a highly accomplished lady, but took a fancy to young Biggs, who was very dissipated; and finally married him against the wishes of relatives on both sides.

After the marriage Biggs left Norfolk and settled at the old family residence in Southampton.  The old house is built of colonial brick , and is an old landmark in the county.  Dr. Massenburg, the owner, died several years ago, leaving a widow and two daughters, who kept one of the grandest old homes in the country, and entertained handsomely.  The other daughter married and left home, and the mother had lived with her daughters alternately.  Biggs continued to drink after his marriage, and on Saturday night upset a lamp, set the building on fire, and perished in the flames.  It is one of the saddest affairs in the history of the county.

BIGGS, Asa (d. 1878)

New York Times
7 Mar 1878

Yesterday morning about 11 o’clock Mr. Asa Biggs, of the firm of K. Biggs & Col, commision merchantes, of Norfolk, Va., died suddenly from rehumatism of the heart.  The deceased was 68 years of age, and was a native of North Carolina.  In antebellum days he had a national reputation as a jurist and politiican.  Previous to his departure from North Carolina he had been in public life for fully 35 years, having been a member of the Convention of 1835, which framed a State Constitution.  He represented his district in Congress during the administration of President Polk.  Subsequently he was elected by the Legislature to the United States Senate, but resigned his seat in that body to accept the appointment for the District of North Carolina under Mr. Buchanan’s Administration.  After the breaking out of the late war he recevied the appointment from the Confederate Government of District Judge for the same district.  He removed to Norfolk in 1869, becoming a partner with his brother in the house of K. Biggs & Co.  He also engaged in the practice of law, being associated with the Hon. W.N.H. Smith, who is the present Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of North Carolina.  Judge Biggs was an earnest Christian, and was a member of the Primitive Baptist Church.  He leaves a large family.


Docton Warren Bagley

Today I went to the Tennessee State Library & Archives, in part, to look at the materials they have for Martin County.  They don’t have a lot, but they do have the Martin County Heritage Book and a book titled Martin County During the Civil War by Dr. James H. McCallum.

I added a link to the WorldCat record for the civil war book to the Military page. In doing some quick online searching, I also discovered that the Perkins Library at Duke University has the diary of Docton Warren Bagley.   The description is as follows:

Diary, 1861-1864, of D. W. Bagley (1801-1878), treasurer of the Martin County Volunteer Company of the Confederate Army, giving detailed accounts of military events in eastern North Carolina and the activities of the company. One section contains clippings related to the Civil War. Also included are thirty-seven pages of records, 1856-1860, of the Roanoke Steamboat Company.

Further information about the contents of his bible can be found at Google Books in An Annual Publication of Historical Papers.  The bible was apparently given to the Trinity College Historical Society by his daughter, Helen Clements in 1896.

I also learned that Docton is part of the same Bagley family to with Ensign Worth Bagley belonged – I first came across Worth while indexing the Kinston Free Press paper of Lenoir County.

Asa Biggs

This is a picture of Asa Biggs, former US Senator born in Williamston, Martin County, in 1811.  I’ve added a Biographical Profiles page and started with some information about him.  Since Asa was quite famous, there is a lot of inforamtion about him already online.

One item of note for anyone researching the family, the NC State Archives has some of the family bible records.  Accessioned to the collection in 2005, they described it as such:

Biggs. Some Bible and Cemetery Records of the Asa Biggs Family: Booklet 1. Bible Records, by Edwin R. MacKethan, III. Bible records of the Joseph and Chloe Daniel Biggs family, 1766-2001, with particular reference to the family of Senator Asa Biggs [Martin County]; 1 spiral-bound book.