‘Tal would render justice to everyone that came before him, with wisdom and good, old fashioned common sense,’ Chief Judge of Cumberland County Superior Court Jim Ammons says. ‘He would temper that justice with mercy, as he knew that everyone who appeared before him was eventually going back out into the community to continue their lives. He wanted to make a difference in their lives. He wanted them to have better lives.’
by Bill Kirby Jr. July 20, 2024 July 20, 2024
Talmage Baggett Jr.
Talmage Baggett Jr. was what all of us should aspire to be in life.
Nothing pretentious about this country boy who was something of an everyman in Cumberland County — from his days as a land surveyor, lawyer, county commissioner and a district court judge, where Talmage Baggett Jr. ruled with a firm but fair gavel.
“He was just one of those good people in this community,” says Charles McLaurin, the mayor of Eastover, where Talmage Baggett Jr. was proud to call home.
From Eastover and the downtown courthouse, they came Thursday to Highland Presbyterian Church to remember and celebrate Talmage Baggett Jr.’s life.
“No doubt, Tal was blessed,” the Rev. Chip Stapleton would tell us. “In who he was and how he lived his life. He knew he was blessed. When someone came to Tal, he listened and lifted their burden. There were always people looking to him for help, and he never wanted to say no. Tal saw things that needed to be done. He saw people who needed help, and he got things done. Tal shared his love by sharing his blessings.”
Talmage Baggett Jr. grew up the oldest of three children born to Talmage and Ursula Baggett, who lived in the white, frame house with black shutters near Rhodes Pond along Sherrill Baggett Road in rural Godwin, about six miles from the Harnett County line.
Tal Baggett Jr. had a love for the land, his mama’s turnips and collard greens and her Silver Queen corn. He admired his father and was crazy about his mother. His parents saw that Tal Baggett Jr. and his younger sisters would know their Lord and savior at Godwin Presbyterian Church.
He was graduated from old Central High School and headed to Appalachian State University, and later became a land surveyor before finding a fascination with the law and pursuing a legal degree from Campbell University’s Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law.
“He studied every night in law school,” the preacher said.
And law school is where he met the love of his life, and took Kaye Duncan for his wife on May 5, 1990, at this Haymount Hill church with the towering steeple, and where Baggett once was an elder and Sunday school teacher.
‘You could depend on him’
“Our paths seemed to constantly cross,” Lee Warren, a former Cumberland County commissioner and retired Cumberland County register of deeds, told those Thursday who filled almost every church pew. “Tal and I worked together as county commissioners. Tal’s goal was to treat everyone with dignity and respect.”
Baggett served on the Cumberland Board of County Commissioners from 1998 until 2006 before being elected in 2007 to the 12th Judicial District for Cumberland County, where he served until his retirement in 2018. He was board chairman in 2003.
As a commissioner, Baggett worked for building new county schools, improving economic development, advocating for farmers and the agricultural community, military veterans and always believing in water and sewer quality.
“He did the best he could do for people,” says Kenneth Edge, a county commissioner from 2000 to 2009. “He was a true friend to everybody. You could count on Tal. You could depend on him.”
While former commissioner Billy Horne never served with Baggett, he often worked with Baggett when serving as the longtime Stedman mayor.
“We were good friends, and we always respected each other,” Horne says. “He tried to help friends, neighbors and the county.”
‘Justice with mercy’
Jim Ammons is chief judge of Cumberland County Superior Court. He would remember Baggett’s legal and judicial career.
“Tal had a good job, was making a good living and was happy,” Ammons would tell those who filled the sanctuary. “But he wanted more out of life. He wanted to help people. He had a desire to represent and counsel people who were in trouble. People who were going through the toughest times in their lives. As a young district attorney in the mid ‘80s, I tried many cases with Tal. He was always prepared, knowledgeable, and as most of you can imagine, very, very passionate about his clients and their cases.
“After being appointed to the district court bench, I had many occasions to have Tal appear before me. As you all know, Tal could best be described as a true southern gentleman lawyer. With that shock of graying, and later white hair, that big, bushy mustache, those big bright eyes, and that what some may call devilish smile, he became over his career a striking fixture in our legal community. He loved wearing that Ben Matlock seersucker lawyer suit, just like his mentor Snead High.
“But Tal was more than a fixture in the legal community,” Ammons said. “Tal was a fixture in Cumberland County politics, civic life, charities, the Bar and in his church. He helped thousands of people in his career as a county commissioner, as a judge and as a lawyer.”
As a judge, Ammons said, Baggett presided with a unique style.
“He required that people show respect for the court, and themselves,” Ammons said. “No hats in his courtroom. Shirttails had to be tucked in and pants worn all the way up around the waist. Tal would render justice to everyone that came before him, with wisdom and good, old fashioned common sense. He would temper that justice with mercy, as he knew that everyone who appeared before him was eventually going back out into the community to continue their lives. He wanted to make a difference in their lives. He wanted them to have better lives.”
And surely better lives, Lee Warren would remind us, about Baggett’s long membership in the Fayetteville Kiwanis Club.
“Whenever he saw a need that would benefit children,” Warren said, “you found Tal’s fingerprints.”
‘Across the river’
After leaving the district court bench in 2018, Talmage Baggett found joy at his home along Middle Road in his beloved Eastover, and surely taking pride that daughter Marianna would follow in a father’s footsteps as a lawyer.
“He guided her,” Kaye Baggett was saying Friday. “She would call and talk about cases. He was so proud of her being an attorney.”
A proud father for sure.
“You were the one who made me a Dad,” he once said. “It has been the best experience of my whole life!”
He loved life “across the river,” those woodcarving evenings with Charles McLaurin and Eastover friends, the smell of a freshly cut lawn and long weekends with his wife at their Lake Waccamaw summer retreat.
“Saturday, he and Kaye were at Lake Waccamaw,” Jim Ammons would tell us. “They got in his old Mercedes, rolled down all the windows, and then just drove around the lake. They were doing what Tal called, ‘just piddling.’ And then, the fragility of life reared its head, and Tal was gone. Gone too soon.”
Epilogue
Talmage Sherrill Baggett Jr. died July 13.
Many lawyers dressed in their seersucker suits and dresses were among the hundreds Thursday from Wilmington, Raleigh and Charlotte to join with Eastover residents in remembering the life and times of the southern gentleman lawyer.
“Kind words and faces of friends eases the grief,” Kaye Baggett says. “He was everyman. Tal could talk to the governor to the bum on U.S. 301. It was one of the things I absolutely adored about him. He gave a lot of gifts to Cumberland County, but the county gave a lot of gifts to us by turning out Thursday. It was a healing day for us.”
So, off you go good southern gentleman lawyer and judge, and how fortunate for all of us Talmage S. Baggett Jr., of such heart and soul and care and concern for others, passed our way.
Bill Kirby Jr. can be reached at billkirby49@gmail.com or 910-624-1961.
We’re in our third year of CityView Today, and so many of you have been with us from day one in our efforts to bring the news of the city, county, community and Cape Fear region each day. We’re here with a purpose — to deliver the news that matters to you. To sustain CityView Today’s reporting, we cannot do it without you, and hope you will become members of our team by giving your support. Click here to join.
Bill Kirby Jr. is a veteran journalist who spent 49 years as a newspaper editor, reporter and columnist covering Fayetteville, Cumberland County and the Cape Fear Region for The Fayetteville Observer. He most recently has written for CityView Magazine.
Bill,
Thank you for such a well-written tribute to Tal.
We are all better people because of his influence on us.
A big loss for our family and the community for sure.
