Buckingham Notables: Dr. George W. Bagby
Dr. George W. Bagby
Little known today, Dr. George W. Bagby (1828-1883) was once a celebrated man of letters as well as a very popular humorist and public speaker. He was born in Buckingham County on August 13, 1828 at his mother’s plantation, near the Cumberland County line. Virginia Young (Evans) Bagby was the“daughter of “fine, intellectual Buckingham stock” and young George would spend much of his youth in this vicinity. Rural life in Buckingham and Cumberland counties shaped his view of the world and informed his humor.
In addition to writing and speaking, Dr. Bagby served as Corresponding Secretary and Librarian of the Virginia Historical Society from 1859 to 1868 and as member of its Executive Committee from 1859 to 1870. Richmond novelist Ellen Glasgow commented on a volume of his collected work, “The vital warmth and humanity of the writing will give this book a permanent place in the life and literature of Virginia. Some books do not grow old with the years, and these essays seem as fresh to me nowadays as they did when I first read them.”
For more about Dr. Bagby’s life see the February 2012 issue of the Buckingham Beacon or follow this link to a PDF of my article:
slate river ramblings . . . . 
Dear reader:
I would suggest Bagby’s The Old Virginia Gentleman as a real classic on the topic of Southern History.
Harry Stuart Holman
I agree!