Nicholas Nichols Nixon was born in Wilmington, New Hanover County, North Carolina on July 24, 1800. A prominent plantation owner, Nixon was one of the forerunners in the commercial cultivation of peanuts and was one of the wealthiest men in the area. He and his wife had at least six children, all daughters who attended St. Mary's School in Raleigh. He died in Wilmington, New Hanover County, North Carolina on October 29, 1868.