"Our Heritage"
Mt. Olive Tribune
By Claude Moore

Ten years ago I wrote in this column about Governor Curtis H. Brogden, but since that time I have had inquiries about him and have come to know some of his family and have decided to write more about him.

Mrs. Charlotte Carrere wrote an article about him in the Wayne Heritage Book and Charles B. Britt wrote an article in the Centennial issue of the Goldsboro News-Argus. Governor Brogden has been played in a low key since he joined the Republican Party during Reconstruction and too, he has been overshadowed by the fame of Governor Charles B. Aycock.

Curtis Hooks Brogden was born on a farm in southwest Wayne on December 6, 1816. He was the son of Pierce Brogden, a soldier of the War of 1812, and a grandson of Thomas Brogden, a soldier of the American Revolution. The Brogden’s were of English descent and came to old Dobbs County during the colonial period.

Young Curtis Brogden had an excellent mind and came under the influence of fine teachers in the common schools of his home community. He developed the habit of reading widely and was considered self educated. When he was 28 years old he enlisted in the state militia and was soon made captain of the company.

In 1838 young Brogden was elected to the lower house of the Legislature from Wayne County as a Democrat. He was known far and wide as an outstanding orator and soon learned the art of politics. In 1852 he was elected to represent Wayne County in the North Carolina Senate and served until 1855. He was nicknamed "The Eloquent Plowboy of Wayne." During the 1840’s he studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1845, but he actually never practiced law.

In 1856, Brogden was elected State Comptroller and served from January 1, 1857 to January 1, 1867. During the War Between the States he served the Confederate cause but in 1867, he joined the Republican Party, which at that time was made up of Carpet-baggers, Freedmen and Scalawags. He was elected to represent Wayne County in the Constitutional Convention in 1868, and in 1868, he was elected to the North Carolina Senate. In the same year he was a Presidential Elector on the Grant ticket and presided over the Electoral College. Brogden’s ex-Confederate friends were shocked at his change of parties.

Charles G. Britt in his article says, "in the Senate he supported his fellow Republicans in their policies, but he had no personal share in the corruption which disgraced the General Assembly and ruined the State." In the impeachment of Governor W. W. Holden, he voted to acquit him.

In 1872, Brogden was elected Lieutenant Governor on the ticket with Tod R. Caldwell, and both were elected. In 1874, Governor Caldwell died and Brogden became the first Governor from Wayne County. Governor Brogden was a member of the Board of Trustees of the University of North Carolina, from 1869-1872 and from 1874 to 1877. During his term of office, Governor Brogden supported public education, the University of North Carolina and internal improvements. He encouraged the investment of Northern Capital in North Carolina.

In 1876, Gov. Brogden represented North Carolina at the Independence Exposition in Philadelphia. In the same year, he was elected to the 40th U.S. Congress. He again served in the North Carolina Legislature from 1886-1889. Gov. Brogden then retired to his farm in Wayne County. He never married, but he left many relatives in Wayne County. He died on January 5, 1901.