author
Hugh Blair Grigsby
1806–1881
A lively 19th-century Virginian man of letters, he moved easily between law, politics, journalism, and history. Best remembered for his deep interest in Virginia’s past, he later served as chancellor of the College of William & Mary.
1 Audiobook
Discourse of the Life and Character of the Hon. Littleton Waller Tazewell
by Hugh Blair Grigsby
About the author
Born in Norfolk, Virginia, in 1806, Hugh Blair Grigsby built an unusually varied career as a lawyer, journalist, politician, planter, and historian. He represented Norfolk in the Virginia House of Delegates and became known as a careful student of the state’s political and cultural history.
Later in life, he devoted much of his energy to historical writing and preservation. William & Mary’s library materials describe him as a major 19th-century Virginia historian, and he also served the college as a member of its Board of Visitors and then as chancellor from 1871 until his death in 1881.
Grigsby’s reputation rests on the way he helped record and interpret Virginia’s early public life. For readers interested in the voices that shaped Southern historical memory in the 1800s, his work offers a window into how Virginians of his era understood their own past.