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SOUTH CAROLINA HALL OF FAME
Teacher Guide
Thomas Pinckney
South Carolina Social Studies Standards
Thomas Pinckney
The American Revolution (all 3)
Topic include: Eliza Lucas & Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, Patriot, Revolutionary War,
Continental Army, Horatio Gates, Battle of Camden, General Assembly, Governor of SC, George
Washington, Diplomat, Pinckney Treaty, US Congress, War of 1812, Creek Indians
Standard 8-2:. The student will demonstrate an understanding of the causes of the American
Revolution and the beginnings of the new nation, with an emphasis on South Carolina's role
in the development of that nation.
8-2.4 - Compare the perspectives of different groups of South Carolinians during the American
Revolution, including Patriots, Tories/Loyalists, women, enslaved and free Africans, and Native
Americans.
8-2.5 - Summarize the role of South Carolinians in the course of the American Revolution,
including the use of partisan warfare and the battles of Charleston, Camden, Cowpens, Kings
Mountain, and Eutaw Springs.
8-2.6 - Explain the role of South Carolinians in the establishment of their new state government
and the national government after the American Revolution.
Standard 8-3: The student will demonstrate an understanding of South Carolina's role in the
development of the new national government.
8-3.4 - Analyze the position of South Carolina on the issues that divided the nation in the early
1800s, including the assumption of state debts, the creation of a national bank, the protective
tariff and the role of the United States in the European conflict between France and England
and in the War of 1812.
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S.C. Hall of Fame Biography
Thomas Pinckney
Thomas Pinckney was born on October 23, 1750, in Charleston, S.C. , the
son of Indigo entrepreneur Eliza Lucas Pinckney and the younger brother
of Charles Cotesworth Pinckney. At age 3, his family moved to Great
Britain where he was educated at Westminster School and Christ Church,
Oxford as well as in France. In 1774, on the verge of the American
Revolution, he returned to Charleston an ardent patriot.
He was commissioned as a captain in the 1st South Carolina Regiment of the Continental Army
in 1775 and was involved in multiple skirmishes and battles. He became an aide-de-camp to
General Horatio Gates, and was captured by the British at the Battle of Camden in 1780.
After recovering from his wounds, he was
eventually released in a prisoner exchange and
later went in to battle again this time under
the command of Lafayette in several
campaigns in the colony of Virginia.
After the war, Pinckney took up the family’s
lucrative business running plantations
throughout the region and eventually, like
most of his family, dedicated his life to politics.
He became the 36th Governor of South
Carolina from 1787 to 1789, and presided over
the state convention that ratified the new U.S.
Constitution, that his cousin Charles and
brother Charles Cotesworth helped to draft.
In 1791, he served in the South Carolina House
of Representatives. He was appointed by
President George Washington to be the U.S.
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minister (ambassador) to Great Britain in 1792. Pinckney also served as Envoy Extraordinary to
Spain. He arranged the Treaty of San Lorenzo, also known as Pinckney's Treaty, with Spain in
1795.
His success as a diplomat garnered him a nomination by the Federalist
Party in the presidential election of 1796, as the running mate Presidential
candidate John Adams. Although Adams won the presidential election, it
was actually his opponent Thomas Jefferson who became vice-president
as the office at the time was determined to be the 2nd place winner of the
presidential race due to the lack of an established electoral college.
In November 1797, Pinckney was elected to the United States House of
representatives and served till 1801.
Upon the onset of the War of 1812, Pinckney served as a major general in the United States
Army for the duration of the conflict.
Thomas Pinckney died in Charleston, SC on November 2, 1828 and is buried in St. Phillips
churchyard.
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Credits
South Carolina Social Studies Standard Correlations were provided by Lisa Ray
The purpose of the South Carolina Hall of Fame is to recognize and honor both contemporary
and past citizens who have made outstanding contributions to South Carolina's heritage and
progress.
Funding for Knowitall.org was provided by the S. C. General Assembly through the K-12
Technology Initiative.
Visit scetv.org/education for more educational resources.
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