George Nixon Briggs (1796 - 1861)

Born 12 Apr 1796 in Adams, Berkshire, Massachusetts, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Harriet (Hall) Briggs — married 28 May 1818 in Lanesborough, Berkshire, Massachusetts, United States

Died 12 Sep 1861 at age 65 in Pittsfield, Berkshire, Massachusetts, United States

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Preceded by 18th Governor Marcus Morton

George N. Briggs 19th Governor of Massachusetts 1844—1851

Succeeded by 20th Governor George S. Boutwell

Biography

George Briggs is Notable.

George Nixon Briggs was born in Adams, Berkshire County, Massachusetts, on 13 April 1796. He was the son of Allen Briggs, a blacksmith originally from Cranston, Rhode Island, and Nancy Brown, of Huguenot descent. He was the eleventh of their twelve children.^[1]

Timeline:^[2] Elected Office(s): Representative; Biography: a Representative from Massachusetts;

• 1796: born in Adams, Mass., April 12, 1796; when seven years of age moved with his parents to Manchester, Vt., and, two years later, to White Creek, N.Y.; attended the public schools; moved to Lanesboro, Mass.,
• 1814: in 1814; apprenticed to the hatter's trade; studied law;
• 1818: was admitted to the bar in 1818 and commenced practice in Lanesboro;
• 1824: register of deeds for Berkshire County 1824-1831;
• 1824: elected town clerk in 1824;
• 1826: appointed chairman of the board of commissioners of highways in 1826;
• 1831-1843: elected as an Anti-Jacksonian to the Twenty-second and Twenty-third Congresses and as a Whig to the Twenty-fourth through Twenty-seventh Congresses (March 4, 1831-March 3, 1843);
• 1839: chairman, Committee on Public Expenditures (Twenty-sixth Congress),
• 1841: Committee on the Post Office and Post Roads (Twenty-seventh Congress);
• 1842: was not a candidate for renomination in 1842;
• 1843: moved to Pittsfield in 1843;
• 1841-1851: Governor of Massachusetts 1844-1851;
• 1851: resumed the practice of law in Pittsfield;
• 1853: member of the State constitutional convention in 1853;
• 1853-1858: judge of the court of common pleas 1853-1858;
• 1861: appointed in 1861 as a member of a commission to adjust differences between the United States and New Granada;
• 1861: accidentally killed in Pittsfield, Berkshire County, Mass., on September 11, 1861; interment in the Pittsfield Cemetery.

George married Harriet Hall on 28 May 1818 in Lanesborough, Massachusetts, United States.^[3]

In the 1850 census George (age 54), Governor, was in Pittsfield, Berkshire, Massachusetts, United States.^[4]

Name	Sex	Age	Occupation	Birth Place
George N Briggs	M	54	Governor	Massachusetts
Harriet H Briggs	F	55		Massachusetts
Henry L Briggs	M	26	Lawyer	Massachusetts
Mary E Briggs	F	22		Massachusetts
George M Briggs	M	0		Massachusetts
Frephenia H Newell	F	81		Massachusetts
Elizabeth Costellow	F	21		Ireland
Olivia A Mosse	F	14		Nova Scotia
John Blaney	M	35	Laborer	Ireland

George, son of Allan Briggs & Nancy Brown, died (age 65) on 10 September 1861 in Pittsfield, Berkshire, Massachusetts, United States.^[5]

The circumstances attending the death of ex-Gov. Briggs are these: On Wednesday, Sept. 4th, while in the act of taking down his coat to assist a person in distress, a loaded gun fell and discharged its contents into his face, the charge passing under one jaw and a portion of it through the other side. On Thursday morning, Sept.12th, at 9 o'clock A.M., on the eighth day after the sad accident, he died.^[6]

George was mentioned on a memorial in Pittsfield Cemetery, Pittsfield, Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States with a death date of 11 September 1861.^[7]

George's estate passed probate on 1 October 1861.^[8]

I George N Briggs of Pittsfield in the County of Berkshire & Commonwealth of Massachusetts grateful to God for life, health & reason & for something to leave to my family, do make the following last will & testament

First, It is my direction that my funeral charges & debts be paid-

Second, I give to my loving wife Harriet Hall Briggs who gave me her hand & her heart when I was young & poor & without consideration in the world & whose fidelity and affection to me have been unceasing, three thousand dollars absolutely, and I further give & bequeath to her the use of all the rest & residue of my property real & personal during her life to be used and occupied in such manner as may best promote her happiness.

Third, In token of my great respect for the just and equitable provisions of the statutes of distributions of my native commonwealth & of my confidence in & impartial love for my dear children, I leave the further disposition of my property to the law & to them.

Fourth, I appoint my sons Geo P Briggs and Henry S Briggs & my son in law Charles H Bigalow Executors of this my last will & testament.

In testimony whereof I hereunto set my hand & seal & publish & declare this to be my last will and testament in presence of the witnesses named below this twelfth day of May AD 1856.

Sources

1. ↑ George N. Briggs on Wikipedia
2. ↑ "Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774-2005"
   United States. Congress. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774-2005. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 2005
   Ancestry Record 1064 #1212 (accessed 11 January 2023)
   Name: George Nixon Briggs; Birth Date: 12 Apr 1796; Residence Place: Massachusetts, USA;
3. ↑ Marriage: "Massachusetts, U.S., Town and Vital Records, 1620-1988"
   Town and City Clerks of Massachusetts. Massachusetts Vital and Town Records. Provo, UT: Holbrook Research Institute (Jay and Delene Holbrook)
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 2495 #7070125 (accessed 11 January 2023)
   George M Briggs marriage to Harriet Hall on 28 May 1818 in Lanesborough, Massachusetts, USA.
4. ↑ 1850 Census: "1850 United States Federal Census"
   The National Archives in Washington D.C.; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census; Record Group Number: 29; Series Number: M432; Residence Date: 1850; Home in 1850: Pittsfield, Berkshire, Massachusetts; Roll: 305; Page: 263a; Line Number: 3
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 8054 #9921093 (accessed 11 January 2023)
   George N Briggs (54), Governor, in Pittsfield, Berkshire, Massachusetts, USA. Born in Massachusetts.
5. ↑ Death: "Massachusetts State Vital Records, 1841-1920"
   citing FHL microfilm: 960178; Record number: 62;
   FamilySearch Record: N7PD-6F6 (accessed 11 January 2023)
   FamilySearch Image: S3HY-DRL3-LKJ Image number 65
   George N Briggs death 10 Sep 1861 (age 65), son of Allan Briggs & Nancy Brown, in Pittsfield, Berkshire, Massachusetts, United States.
6. ↑ NEHGR: New England Historical and Genealogical Register. United States: New England Historic-Genealogical Society, 1862. Volume 16, Page 89-90 https://www.google.com/books/edition/New_England_Historical_and_Genealogical/ALIUAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=PA89&printsec=frontcover&dq=briggs
7. ↑ Memorial: Find a Grave (has image)
   Find A Grave: Memorial #6423297 (accessed 11 January 2023)
   Memorial page for George Nixon Briggs Famous memorial (12 Apr 1796-11 Sep 1861), citing Pittsfield Cemetery, Pittsfield, Berkshire County, Massachusetts, USA; Maintained by Find a Grave.
8. ↑ Probate: "Massachusetts, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1635-1991"
   Probate Records, 1761-1917; Author: Massachusetts. Probate Court (Berkshire County); Probate Place: Berkshire, Massachusetts
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 9069 #572181 (accessed 11 January 2023)
   George N Briggs probate on1 Oct 1861.

• National Governors Association https://www.nga.org/governor/george-nixon-briggs/
• Appletons' Cyclopedia of American Biography; Volume: Vol. I
  Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 61360 #2575 (accessed 11 January 2023)
  Name: George Nixon Briggs; Birth Date: 13 Apr 1796; Birth Place: Adams, Massachusetts; Death Date: 12 Sep 1861; Death Place: Pittsfield, Mass; Occupation: Governor of Massachusetts.
• "U.S., College Student Lists, 1763-1924"
  College Student Lists. Worcester, Massachusetts: American Antiquarian Society
  Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 2207 #151197 (accessed 11 January 2023)
  Name: Georgius Nixon Briggs; Publication Year: 1860; Publication State: Massachusetts; School Name: Amherst College.
• Great in goodness : a memoir of George N. Briggs, Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, from 1844-1851 by Richards, William C. (William Carey), 1818-1892', 1866, pp 6, archive.org (accessed 11 January 2023)
• United State House of Representatives https://history.house.gov/People/Listing/B/BRIGGS,-George-Nixon-(B000830)/