The Bugg family arrived in Prince Edward County in the summer of 1869. Charles Bugg, along with his wife, Martha and their six children sailed first to New York, then on to Norfolk, Virginia, and finally to City Point, Virginia before traveling, via train, to Farmville. While initially, Charles Bugg had hopes of establishing himself as a farmer, he was counseled by his fellow Englishman, Dr. B.C. Peters, to go into business instead. Heeding this advice, Bugg was, for a time, the proprietor of the Randolph House Hotel and later established a grocery business with his son, Charles F. Bugg. Additionally, Charles Bugg served as Postmaster in Farmville from 1903 to 1907 and was a member of the Town Council from 1896 to 1900.

James Luckin Bugg was the youngest son of Charles and Martha Bugg. In 1906, he married Hessie St. Clair Woodruff, from Anniston, Alabama. Woodruff had come to Farmville in 1901 to attend [then] State Female Normal School, where her sister Mary St. Clair Woodruff was a member of the faculty and the principal of the Training School. In 1908, James Luckin Bugg was hired as cashier of the newly opened People’s National Bank in Farmville. Bugg would later become manager and finally President of the bank. James Luckin Bugg and Hessie St. Clair Bugg had two children, Mary St. Clair (Bugg) Holland and James Luckin Bugg, Jr. Mary St. Clair (Bugg) Holland graduated from State Teachers College in 1944. James Luckin Bugg, Jr. graduated from Hampden-Sydney College in 1941 and subsequently earned both his Master’s degree and Phd. from UVA. In 1963, Bugg, Jr. was named the 1st Chancellor of the University of Missouri-St. Louis and in 1969 became the 2nd President of Old Dominion University.

Provenance

This collection, which relates to the families of Charles Bugg and James Luckin Bugg, Sr., was donated to the Farmville-Prince Edward County Historical Society by Anne B. Payne, a descendant of the Bugg family, in October 2018.

Scope and Content

This collection, which dates from 1876 to 1957, consists of photographs, correspondence, ephemera, stock certificates, newspaper clippings, and four scrapbooks compiled by Hessie St. Clair Bugg.

Size

This collection consists of 8.16 linear feet contained in (4) archival flat boxes, (1) oversize folder, and (1) archival photograph binder.

Notes

There are no restrictions to access or use for research purposes.

View the full finding aid here: Bugg Family Collection, HS-007