 Nash moved to Hillsborough in 1807, and was elected to the North Carolina General Assembly, serving from 1813 to 1817.He was a judge of Superior Court from 1818 to 1824 and again from 1836 until his election as an associate judge of the state's Supreme Court in 1844.When Justice Thomas Ruffin resigned in 1852 he was raised to Chief Justice and held that post until his death.