In this section find South Carolinians who served in leadership roles that helped shape policies and bring change.
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This monument honoring Benjamin Ryan Tillman was dedicated May 1, 1940. Ben Tillman served as governor of South Carolina from 1890 to 1894, and as United States senator from 1895 to 1918. Tillman...
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Governor Donald Stuart Russell prepares to extend his hand to the Rev. J. Herbert Nelson, an Orangeburg civil rights activist, in the receiving line at the governor's mansion. The Rev. I. DeQuincey...
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Governor Robert McNair responded to student demonstrations to desegregate the All-Star Bowling Alley by sending additional law enforcement: National Guardsmen, State Law Enforcement Division (SLED)...
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John Carl West, Sr. served as the 109th Governor of South Carolina from 1971 to 1975. From 1977 to 1981, he was the U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia. Governor West died on March 21, 2004.
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Senator Strom Thurmond was with the 1st Army all through the war in Europe. They encountered Buchenwald near Leipzig, and he recalls "never having seen the like of what I saw there." He relays that...
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Governors Robert McNair, Dick Riley, and James Beasley talk about Gov. McNair's role in integration. CREDIT: The Big Picture, ETV, 2007
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A short biography of American Revolution militia leader and U.S. Congressman, General Thomas Sumter highlighting his military contributions during the War of Independence and his subsequent service as...
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5-minute biography of statesman Thomas Pinckney. Through the use of interviews and historical illustrations, the documentary tells the story of this signer of the United States Constitution, military...
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A short biography of the life of Civil War leader and Governor, General Wade Hampton. Through the use of available archival materials, scholar interviews, and historical illustrations this program...
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Born in Charleston, South Carolina, William Henry Drayton (1742-1779) was a planter, lawyer, and politician during the Revolutionary War. He is credited with co-designing with Arthur Middleton the...