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Dennis Worthington (1843 – ?)

Was born October 6th, 1843, in Murfreesboro, Hertford county. Educated in North Carolina and Maryland.

Went into the war at first in 8th Regiment N. C. Troops, and afterwards assigned to the charge of signal and mounted scouts on the peninsula below Richmond. Was wounded there and captured May 6th, 1864, and held as hostage until March, 1865, and surrendered at Warrenton, N. C., after the fall of Appomattox.

Read law under Hon. J. J. Yates, and Martin, BakElr and Hinton, of Norfolk, Va., and received license to practice in the courts of Virginia in 1869. Now located at Williamston and practicing his profession under the law firm of Moore & Worthington.

Married Miss Julia. daughter of Col. S. J. Wheeler, of Bertie county, November 17th, 1871. Been Solicitor and Judge of the Inferior Court; was a member of the Legislature of 1881, at which session he was chairman of Committee on the Appointment of Justices of the Peace. He serves on committees: Judiciary, Fish Interests, and Enrolled Bills. He is Speaker pro tem. of the House of Representatives, chairman of the Joint Committee to Redistrict the State, chairman of Committee on Rules, chairman of Committee on Military Affairs, and member of The Code Committee. Mr. Worthington has taken a very prominent stand in this General Assembly, and is a leading and influential member. – Legislative Biographical Sketch Book, 1883.

Source: Dowd, Jerome. Sketches of Prominent Living North Carolinians. Raleigh, N.C.: Edwards & Broughton, printers and binders, 1888.  <http://books.google.com/books?id=Gj0TAAAAYAAJ>

Bio: Asa Biggs (1811-1878)

Asa Biggs Judge Asa Biggs was born in Williamston in the county of Martin on the 4th day of February, 1811. His father was the Rev. Joseph Biggs, of the Primitive Baptist Church, and his mother was Chloe Biggs, whose maiden name was Daniel. He received his license to practice law in the County Court in 1831. He was from the beginning of his career a Democrat, differing from other members of his family. His first public service was at the age of twenty-four in the Convention of 1835. He was a member of the House of Commons in 1840 and again in 1842, and hte State Senate in 184. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1845 and was again a candidate in 1847, but suffered defeat. The Legislature of 1854 elected him to the United States Senate where he served until 1858, when President Buchanan appointed him to fill the United States District Judgeship for North Carolina made vacant by the death of Judge Potter, which position he held until the civil war.

In 1851 Governor Reid appointed Judge Biggs with Hons. B.F. Moore and R.M. Saunders to revise and compile the Statues of North Carolina, the result of which was the “Revised Code” of 1854. He resigned from the Convention of 1861 to accept the Confederate District Judgeship. After the war terminated he did not again enter public life. In 1870 he formed a partnership for the practice of law with Hon. W.H. Smith. He had large business interests in Norfolk, Virginia, where he later removed and died there on March 6, 1878. In religion he was a Primitive Baptist. Judge Biggs believed that any State had the right, when sufficient cause existed, to withdraw from the Union by the same method which it entered, and by such a proceeding the citizens were absolved from further allegience to the United States. He advocated the plan of constructing a railroad from Beaufort to the mountains at the expense of the State. Asa Biggs is buried in Elmwood Cemetery in Norfolk, Virginia.

Source: McCormick, John Gilchrist, and Kemp P. Battle. Personnel of the Convention of 1861. Chapel Hill, N.C.: University Press, 1900.

Births, Marriages & Deaths

To order photocopies of birth, marriage and death records, visit the website of  the Martin County Registrar of Deeds.

Births

Marriages

Deaths

Individual Death Notices

The following death notices/obits have been submitted directly to the Martin County NCGenWeb site and/or appeared in the “old” version of the blog.

Peele Cemetery Listing (Bear Grass Community)

Location: In Bear Grass on Green Acre Road (1117) behind Tommy Peele home.  A 70ft x 86ft cemetery.

  • Peele, Jesse Lawrence — March 22, 1883 – March 22, 1952
  • Peele, Benjamin F., son of Jesse B. and Martha G. Peele — Sept 18, 1877 – Apr 16 1969
  • Peele, Oscar H., son of Jesse B. and Martha G. Peele — 1888 – 1975
  • Roebuck, William R. — Apr 11, 1880 – Sep 4, 1954
  • Roebuck, Dora Corey, wife of William R. Roebuck.  Feb 22, 1881 – May 2, 1944
  • Harrison, John — Feb 18, 1832 – May 3, 1911
  • Wynn, William — Nov 25, 1830 – Sept 19, 1890
  • Peal, Jesse Biggs – Jan 4, 1833 – Sept 12, 1918
  • Godwin, Martha J., wife of Jesse B. Peal — Apr 22, 1856 – May 17, 1939
  • Taylor, Henry S. — Jul 23, 1879 – Jan 14, 1898
  • Taylor, J.T. — Dec 28, 1844 – Nov 23, 1895
  • Taylor, Alonzo F. — Jul 31, 1872 – Jan 23, 1934
  • Taylor, Susie Rodgerson, wife of Alonzo F. Taylor — Jan 3, 1870 – Mar 14, 1943
  • Taylor, Pennina, wife of J.T. Taylor — Aug 21, 1848 – Mar 18, 1910
  • Laster, Willam J. — Sep 17, 1843 – Sep 10, 1895
  • Laster, Mary Ann — Oct 10, 1853 – Mar 20, 1937
  • Lassitter, Joseph H. — Jul 30, 1860 – Jan 1, 1938
  • Lassitter, Mary F. — Aug 10, 1873 – Oct 18, 1939
  • Peal, Sarah Frances Howell, wife of W.D. Peal — Feb 10, 1841 0 Oct 16, 1895
  • Peal, W.D. (William Daniel) — May 15, 1843 – Jun 12, 1914
  • Wells, Miranda Simpson, wife of George T. Wells — Sep 30, 1884 – Jul 16, 1916
  • Bailey, R.C. — Feb 12, 1870 — Mar 28, 1926
  • Bailey, Ella Viola, wife of R.C. Bailey — Aug 26, 1877 – Oct 19, 1917
  • Bailey, Cushing B. — Jun 10, 1914 — Jul 1, 1947
  • Bailey, John W. — Nov 7, 1867 – Jun 18, 1931
  • Bailey, Mirtie Simpson, his wife — Dec 19, 1879 — Apr 16, 1937
  • Harrison, Jesse Walters — Dec 10, 1872 — Dec 20, 1875
  • Harrison, David — d. 1878, age 2 yrs
  • Roberson, Margaret
  • Peal, Carrie, child of Jesse Peal
  • Peal, Charlie, child of Jesse Peal

Cemetery also includes several unmarked graves.

Source: Martin County Genealogical Society. Cemetery Records of Martin County. Williamston, N.C. (P.O. Box 121, Williamston 27891): The Society], 1990s

Korean Conflict Casualties, 1950-1957

The following deaths of military personnel from Martin County are from the Korean Conflict Casualty File, 1/1/1950 – 2/7/1957.  These are from the National Archives & Records Administration, Record Group M330.  The entire database is freely searchable online at the National Archives website.

Click on the Service Number to view the full record.

Branch Name Service No. Date Died/Reported Dead Birth Year Race
Army BULLOCK, Johnnie R. 14327734 9/1/1950 1931 Caucasian
Army ELLIS, James H. 14229555 1/15/1951 1928 Caucasian
Army GARRETT, John H. 14248852 4/30/1951 1930 Caucasian
Army ROBERSON, Harry P. 14342076 2/14/1951 1928 Caucasian
Army STRICKLAND, Woolard 14339269 11/26/1950 1929 Caucasian

Contributed by Taneya Y. Koonce – December 2010