The student societies of the Radical University: the Clariosophic before 1873

Page from the minutes of the Clariosophic Society
The text reads "Beginning of the new organization A.D. 1873 negros"
From South Caroliniana Library

This blogpost will explore the activities of the University of South Carolina student literary society the Clariosophic during Reconstruction.  During the 19th century, literary societies played an important role in student life at many US universities.  In the Antebellum, USC was home to two such societies: the Clariosophic and the Euphradian.  Both were founded shortly after the university itself, in 1806.  Essentially all students joined one of the societies.

Typically, each society met once a week. At the weekly meeting, one member would recite a preselected famous speech. Then two other members would debate a topic of a political or historical nature. Examples of debate topics are "Ought immigration to be encouraged in a country?" and "Was the field of eloquence among the ancients superior to that among the moderns?" Then students would vote to determine who won the debate. The meetings were run in a formal manner, so students could also propose motions, say to admit new members or invite outside speakers. For each meeting, meeting minutes were recorded.

Participation in the literary societies was an important part of a student's education. The public speaking skills and the social connections they developed were especially valuable for the students who would go on to work in politics, the aspiration of many.

After the Civil War, the societies continued, albeit in a diminished state. Around 1868, when state Republicans began gaining political control, students, faculty, and alumni became increasing concerned with how the university would be impacted by the political changes sweeping the region.  A cause of particular concern was the possibility that African American students would be admitted.

The concerns about African American students began to materialize in April 1869. That month the state legislature passed an act forbidding the University of South Carolina from making any distinction on account of "race, color or creed" when making admission decisions.  

The month after the anti-discrimination act passed, the Euphradian Society responded by creating the Lambda Delta Epsilon committee. The committee was charged with "keep[ing] negroes from becoming members," safeguarding the constitution, and selling the furniture of the society. By Summer 1873, the society members had removed the constitution and other documents from campus for safekeeping. The society's library was given to the Clariosophic. 

The Euphradian continued meeting until May 31, 1873. At that meeting, Charles J. Babbitt was elected president. However, in fall, he joined the Clariosophic, and the Euphradian ceased to exist until after Reconstruction.

In contrast, the Clariosophic Society remained in existence for the duration of Reconstruction.  It is unclear how the society reacted to the 1869 non-discrimination act. The month the act was passed, the Clariosophic charged a committee with soliciting advice from honorary society members in case the society was dissolved at the end of term (in June).  The timing suggests that this was done in response to the non-discrimination act, although the act isn't directly referenced in Clariosophic records. In any case, the committee suggested that soliciting advice would be harmful to the institution and no further action was taken.

It is also unclear how exactly the Clariosophic Society reacted to the university enrollment of African Americans. What is clear is that this was a tumultuous time for the society. Conflict appears to have broken out between society members during Summer 1873. At the May 31 meeting, John Peyre Thomas moved that the society's Vice President Nicholas A. Patterson be required to resign.  The motion carried and Patterson resigned. At the meeting, John W. Veronee also submitted his resignation.

The decision to expel Nicholas angered a number of society members.  At the next recorded meeting, held on June 7, society member John A. Faber resigned in protest against Patterson's treatment.  

More members seem to have resigned over the course of summer and fall.  By the start of fall term (in October), the society's President and Secretary had left and their positions were taking over by Charles and Francis Cummings respectively.  

The last recorded meeting of the society was an extra meeting held on October 13, 1873.  This was about a week after the first African American student enrolled. John Faber and several other former society members, namely John's brother William, Nathaniel Barnwell, Oliver Harris, and Frank Green, were temporarily readmitted to the society, presumably so that they could participate in the meeting. 

The October meeting was very active. Over 10 motions were carried. Several of the motions appear to have been made to administratively facilitate the transition in society membership. For example, one motion created a committee consisting of William Faber and Charles Cummings that was charged with investigating the society's loose papers and destroying everything that was "of no value."  

The main focus of the meeting appears to have been the May decision to remove Nicholas Patterson.  The meeting minutes conclude with a lengthy written protest against the decision.

Frustratingly, the protest is silent on the motivation behind Nicholas's removal  The document focuses entirely on procedural issues. Specifically, it states: (1) the charges against him were unclear, (2) he was denied a hearing, (3) the removal was done hastily, and (4) the removal was ill-considered in that the issue was not first sent to a committee before being brought to the floor.  

Conceivably, Nicholas could have been removed from the society for misconduct, say defacing society property or violating parliamentary procedure (two issues that occasionally caused disputes at meetings).  However, both the timing and the background of meeting participants suggest that politics played a major role.  

Nicholas and many of his supporters came from well-established conservative South Carolina families that were opposed to Reconstruction. Nicholas's father had been a wealthy planter before the Civil War.  His grandfather was a U.S. Senator and one of the largest slaveowners in Barnwell County.

Of the three students who signed the letter of protest, one (Oliver B. Evans) was a Confederate veteran.  The other two signers were the brothers John and William Faber.  They had grown up in Germany, but their father was from Charleston.  He had been USC's professor of foreign languages but was dismissed shortly before the admission of African Americans (on October 3) by the Board of Trustees.

Another son of a USC professor who was present was Nathaniel Barnwell. Nathaniel's father was Professor Robert W. Barnwell.  Professor Barnwell was a former planter who had served as the president of USC in the 1830s.  He was also active in politics, serving both as a U.S. congressman and as a Confederate senator. Nathaniel himself had served in the Confederate army.

After the war, Professor Barnwell returned to USC. There he held the professorship in history and politics and was university chairman (a position similar to university president). During this time, he was an unreconstructed conservative.  One of his former students recalled that he often lectured on state sovereignty and insisted on spelling "nation" with a lowercase "n."  Professor Barnwell was dismissed from the university at the same time as Professor Faber, about a week before the admission of African American students.

Three members stood apart from the other students: the brothers Charles, Olin, and Francis Cummings. They had been admitted into the Clariosophic in November, 1872.  The brothers were the sons of Professor Cummings.  While they had spent most of their lives in North and South Carolina, their parents were from the Northeast. Their father had supported the Confederacy during the Civil War, but by 1873, he had become closely allied with the Reconstruction government.  For example, he testified to Congress on KKK outrages in Spartanburg.

In October, 1873, not only were the Cummings brother among the few Clariosophic member who had not resigned, but they were taking over more and more responsibilities within the society.  The next year they would be the only Clariosophic members who had remained in the society.  

The fact that the controversy surrounding Nicholas Patterson's resignation took place in the midst of political conflict between the USC faculty and trustees and culminated in the departure of all society members except for members closely tied to the Reconstruction government suggests the controversy was of a  political nature.  However, all evidence is circumstantial.  

While the details of society's activities in Fall, 1873 are obscure, it is clear that, by the end of 1873, the Clariosophic had become transformed.  The page in the society minute book after the October meeting states this bluntly: "Beginning of the new organization: Negros."   We will explore what this new organization did in the next blogpost.

Page from the member record of the Clariosophic Society
Text reads "These pages were used in the time of '76 by the negros"
From South Caroliniana Library

The students of the Radical University: Erastus V. Cannon

Erastus V. Cannon
From findagrave.com

Erastus Vanlieu Cannon (b. September 18, 1856; d. November 23, 1893)
South Carolina.  White.
Occupation: assistant postmaster,
Father's occupation: farmer.

Erastus V. Cannon was born in South Carolina to Sarah and Simpson Cannon.  Simpson was a wealthy farmer in Spartanburg County, South Carolina.  The family had deep roots in region.  The Cannons were descended from the Revolutionary War heros Colonel John Thomas Sr and John Thomas Jr.  John Sr was a member of the first Provincial Congress of South Carolina, and both father and son served in the Spartan Regiment (made up of soldiers from Union and Spartanburg counties). John Jr. commanded the regiment at the Battle of the Cowpens.  

Erastus was admitted to the University of South Carolina as a scholarship student in fall 1875.  He was a college student on the modern studies track, but the 1877 university closure prevented him from completing his degree.

After the university closure, Erastus returned to Spartanburg.  Around 1880, he was working as in the Spartanburg, as assistant postmaster and as a clerk.

Erastus died in 1893 and was buried in Oakland Cemetery in Spartanburg.

Sources

1). 1860; Census Place: Northern Division, Spartanburg, South Carolina; Page: 218

2). 1870; Census Place: Spartanburg, Spartanburg, South Carolina; Roll: M593_1508; Page: 581B

3). 1880; Census Place: Spartanburg, Spartanburg, South Carolina; Roll: 1240; Page: 6C

4). Application of "John Richardson Cannon",  June 11, 1968.  Sons of the American Revolution Membership Applications, 1889-1970. Louisville, Kentucky: National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution. Microfilm, 508 rolls

5). By United States. Department of the Interior, Official Register of the United States...Volume 2.  U.S. Government Printing Office.  1879.

6). By United States. Department of the Interior, Official Register of the United States...Volume 2.  U.S. Government Printing Office.  1881.

7). By United States. Department of the Interior, Official Register of the United States...Volume 2.  U.S. Government Printing Office.  1883.

8). By United States. Department of the Interior, Official Register of the United States...Volume 2.  U.S. Government Printing Office.  1884.

9) 12) Yorkville Enquirer [York, SC]. October 13, 1875. p. 2.

The students of the Radical University: David F. Arthur

David Franklin Arthur (b. Abt. 1858; d. 1939)
South Carolina.  White.
Occupation: farmer, sawmill worker.
Father's occupation: farmer.

David F. Arthur was born in South Carolina to John H. and Susanna Arthur.  David grew up on the family farm in Lexington County, South Carolina.  The year before the Civil War started (in 1860), the family farm was comprised of 190 acres of land.

During the Civil War, David's father John served in the Confederate army from August 1863 to February 1864.  He was a private in 2nd South Carolina State Troop, a local defense force created in summer 1863. The father returned to the family farm after the war.

David registered as a student at the University of South Carolina at some point between February 1874 and January 1876.  He was a college student following the modern studies track, but the university closed before he completed his degree.

David returned to the family farm after the university closure.  By 1900, he had moved to Moultrie in Southwest Georgia and was working in a sawmill. By 1930, he was living Lakeland, Florida and living with his son.  David died in Lakeland in 1939.

Sources
1). State of Florida. Florida Death Index, 1877-1998. Florida: Florida Department of Health, Office of Vital Records, 1998.

2). 1930; Census Place: Lakeland, Polk, Florida; Page: 3A; Enumeration District: 0023

3). United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Twelfth Census of the United States, 1900. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1900

4). 1880; Census Place: Platt Springs, Lexington, South Carolina; Roll: 1234; Page: 473D

5). 1870; Census Place: Lexington, South Carolina; Roll: M593_1502; Page: 435A

6). 1860; Census Place: Vicinity of Beaver Pond, Lexington, South Carolina; Page: 359

7). 1860; Census Place: Beaver Pond, Lexington, South Carolina; Archive Collection Number: AD262; Roll: 4; Page: 59; Line: 6; Schedule Type: Agriculture

8). Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the State of South Carolina.  Record Group 109.  Roll: 0169.

The students of the Radical University: James G. Varn

James Gilder Varn Jr. (b. Abt. 1855, December 28, 1883)
South Carolina.  White
Occupation: postmaster. 
Father's occupation: farmer

James Varn was born around 1855 in what is now Varnville, South Carolina to Louisa and Isaac Varn.  By 1860, the family was running a farm in Barnwell County, South Carolina near Midway.  The father owned 550 acres of land, valued at roughly $4400 (roughly $135,000 in 2020).

James registered as a student at the university on November 21, 1874.  He enrolled as a college student following the modern studies track.  The university closed before he completed his degree.

After the university closure, James moved to Barnwell.  In the early 1880s, he was working as the Barnwell postmaster.

James died on December 28, 1883.  He is buried in Restland Cemetery in Barnwell.

Sources
1). 1860; Census Place: Barnwell, South Carolina; Page: 350; Family History Library Film: 805213.

2). 1880; Census Place: Three Mile, Barnwell, South Carolina; Roll: 1220; Page: 376B

2). "Application for Certificate of Birth: Edgar William Varn".  Submitted August 4, 1943.  South Carolina, Delayed Birth Records, 1766-1900 and City of Charleston, South Carolina, Birth Records, 1877-1901.  

The students of the Radical University: Joseph E. Wallace

J. E. Wallace
From The Christian Educator

Joseph Edward Wallace (b. October 21, 1858, June 31, 1928)
Toronto, Canada.  Born free.  Mulatto.
Occupation: clerk, insurance agent, professor.
Father's occupation: brick-layer.

J. E. Wallace was born in Toronto, Canada to Martha Catherine and Andrew Madison Wallace.  The parents were free persons of color from South Carolina.  As such, they were banned from returning to  South Carolina by state law, but the law evidently was not strictly enforced as Wallace and his mother had moved to Columbia by 1860.  They were later joined by Wallace's father.  Wallace's parents lived in Columbia for most of their lives, and the father worked as a brick-layer.

Wallace was educated in the public schools of Toronto.  At some point between February 1875 and January 1876, he enrolled as a student at the University of South Carolina.  He was a college student on the classical studies track, but the 1877 university closure prevented him from completing his degree.  A biographical sketch of Wallace states that he completed his college education at Claflin University, although the present author has been unable to confirm this in Claflin records.

From 1881 to 1885, Wallace lived in Columbia and worked as chief clerk for prominent South Carolina lawyer Samuel W. Melton, who had taught at the U of SC law school while Wallace was a student.  Melton had also been state attorney general during Reconstruction but resigned from the position in 1878.  From 1879 to 1884, while Wallace was working for him, Melton ran a law partnership with W. A. Clark.  Around this time (specifically from 1881 to 1885), Melton held an appointment from President Garfield as United States district attorney of South Carolina.

Most of Wallace's career was spent in education.  He taught school and was principal of the Howard Graded School from 1886 to 1900.  The Howard School was a highly regarded public school in Columbia and the only high school open to African Americans in the state until the 1910s.  He also served as the president of the Colored State Teachers Association from 1900-07.  The positions of both principal of the Howard School and president of the Teachers Association were positions previously held by Wallace's former classmate William M. Dart.

Wallace moved to Orangeburg to teach at the Colored State College (now South Carolina State University) in 1899.  The university had opened 3 years earlier, and he replaced a professor who had been dismissed after getting into a dispute with the College President.  At State College, he held the title of Professor of English and Pedagogy and taught ancient and English classics and literature.

In 1903, Wallace resigned from Colored State College to take a position at the college's neighbor Claflin University.  There Wallace held the title of Professor of English Language and Literature.  He was also the manager of Claflin University Quartet and superintendent of University Sunday school.

Wallace left Claflin to become the President of Bennett College in Greensboro, NC.  He served as College President from 1913-1915.  He remained in Greensboro after retiring.  Summarizing Wallace's achievements in an article on former U of SC students, U of SC alumnus C. C. Scott wrote that Wallace was "deservedly the most conspicuous colored educator in the state."

In addition to his teaching, Wallace worked in insurance during summers.  He was a general field agent for North Carolina Mutual Provident Association (a black-owned insurance company).  He continued working in insurance after his retirement from Bennett College.

Wallace died on June 31, 1928 in Greensboro.  His is buried in Maplewood Cemetery in Greensboro, North Carolina. 

Sources

1). 1860; Census Place: Columbia, Richland, South Carolina; Page: 50.

2). Orangeburg, South Carolina, City Directory, 1907.

2). Columbia, South Carolina, City Directory, 1891.

3). "When Negroes Attended the State University", May 8, 1911. State (published as The State).  Page 9.

4). 1910; Census Place: Orangeburg Ward 5, Orangeburg, South Carolina; Roll: T624_1469; Page: 18B.

5). 1920; Census Place: Greensboro Ward 3, Guilford, North Carolina; Roll: T625_1302; Page: 11A.

6). North Carolina State Archives; Raleigh, North Carolina; North Carolina Death Certificates.

7). Hine, William C. South Carolina State University: A Black Land-Grant College in Jim Crow America. Columbia, South Carolina: University of South Carolina Press, 2018.

8). "Change of Administration at Bennett College." The Christian Educator. August, 1913.  pp. 6-7.

The students of the Radical University: James E. Asbury

James Edward Asbury (b. 1852, November 26, 1937)
South Carolina.  Black.  
Occupation: physician, real estate agent, teacher. 

The first historical record mentioning James Asbury is the Janurary 1876 University of South Carolina catalogue.  His is listed as a freshman from from Pendelton, South Carolina following the modern studies track.  The university closed before he finished his degree.

After the university closure, Ashbury moved to Garvin, South Carolina (near Pendelton) and worked as a school teacher.  He left for Tennessee in 1881 to attend Meharry Medical College.  He attended the college from 1881 to 1883, studying alongside former U of SC students Zebulon W. McMorris, J. J. Durham and Nathaniel Middleton.

James received his M.D. from Meharry in 1883 and then moved to Atlanta to work as a physician.   He last appears in the Atlanta City Directory in 1902, and by 1907 he had moved to Los Angeles, California.  In Los Angeles, he initially continued his work as a physician but then began working as a real estate agent.

James died on November 26, 1937.  He is buried in Evergreen Cemetery in Los Angeles.

Source

1). 1880; Census Place: Garvin, Anderson, South Carolina; Roll: 1219; Page: 177B

2). Beckford, Rhoades Beckford.  Biographical Dictionary of American Physicians of African Ancestry, 1800-1920.  Africana Homestead Legacy Publishing, Cherry Hill, New Jersey.  2011.

3). 1920; Census Place: Los Angeles Assembly District 73, Los Angeles, California; Roll: T625_114; Page: 12A

4). 1930; Census Place: Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California; Page: 18A

5). Atlanta, Georgia, City Directory, 1902

6). California State Library; Sacramento, California; Great Register of Voters, 1908.

The students of the Radical University: Seymour E. Smith

Seymore Elijah Smith (b. November 25, 1854, d. October 10, 1919)
South Carolina. Black.
Occupation: deputy collector of port, lawyer, farm laborer, railway postal clerk, teacher.

Father's occupation: Farmer

Seymore (alternatively spelled as Seymour) E. Smith was born in Edgefield County, South Carolina to Henry Smith and Mariah A. Smith.  By 1870, the family was living in Aiken County (a county formed from parts of Edgefield and other counties) and were working as farmers.  

Seymore registered as a student at the University of South Carolina at some point between February 1874 and January 1876.  He was a college student following the modern studies track.  The university closed before he completed his degree.

After the university closure, Seymore returned to Aiken.  By 1880, he was working as a teacher.  However, he began to study law and was admired to the South Carolina bar in 1888.  In Aiken, he was involved in seven criminal cases between 1888 and 1904.

Seymore became involved in a discrimination suit in the 1890s.  On September 13, 1890, Seymore's wife Rebecca was in Graniteville (a small town in Aiken County) and tried to take a train to the town of Aiken.  When she tried to purchase a ticket, the ticket agent refused and ordered her to purchase the ticket in a different room.  After Rebecca refused to leave, the agent forcibly removed her.

The complaint that was filed alleged that Rebecca had been in the room reserved for female passengers and was asked to move to the room for male passengers.  However, at trial, the agent testified that the rooms were for white and black passengers respectively.

In an unusual coincidence, the defendant in the suit was former South Carolina Governor Daniel H. Chamberlain.  Chamberlain had been the Governor of South Carolina when Seymore was a student. By 1889, he had left government and become receiver of the railroad company, after the company had experienced a long period of financial difficulty.  

Rebecca's complaint played out in the legal system over the course of three years.   A trial was first held in the Aiken county common pleas circuit court.  The jury found for the railroad company.  Seymour and Rebecca filed an appeal with the state Supreme Court, but the court upheld the decision.

Seymore was also active in Republication politics. He twice ran, in 1888 and in 1890, for U.S. House Representative for the 2nd district, the district that included Aiken County.  Both times he ran against the Democratic incumbent George D. Tillman, the brother of well-known South Carolina politician Ben Tillman.  Both times Seymore lost the election by a significant margin, by 1,405 votes to 10,704 in 1888 and by 1,671 votes to 9,956 in 1890.  The next election Tillman ran unopposed.

Seymore also provided legal aid to candidates for congress.  The first Republican to run for the 2st district after Seymore's defeat was Benjamin P. Chatfield, a white carpetbagger from Connecticut.  Chatfield ran in 1896 and in 1898, both times against the Democratic incumbent W. Jasper Talbert.  Chatfield lost the elections by even larger margins than Seymore had (635 votes against 7,999 for Talbert in 1898). 

Chatfield was running for office during an especially difficult time for Republican candidates.  The state constitution had been revised in 1895, largely for the purpose of disenfranchising African American voters.  After his second electoral loss, Chatfield tried to contest the election results.  He argued that voting laws created by the new constitution violated the Fourteenth amendment.  In contesting the election, Chatfield was aided helped by a group of lawyers that included Seymore.  They were unsuccessful, and Talbert remained in office until 1903.

While working in law, Seymour also held a series of federal appointments.  During the 1880s and early 1890s, he worked for the railway mail service.  

Around 1899, he moved to Charleston to work as a deputy collector at the Port of Charleston.  The deputy collectors worked under the Collector of the Port.  When Seymour started his position, the position of Collector was held by John R. Tolbert, a scalawag.

Tolbert was a controversial figure within the state. The year before Seymour began working at the port (in 1898), Tolbert and several other family members were wounded at an Election Day riot in Phoenix, South Carolina (near Greenwood).  

Tolbert's management of the Charleston custom house came under scrutiny in 1900.  That year U.S. treasury agents and state dispensary constables found a large amount of contraband alcohol stored in the custom house.  This was a violation of customs regulations and state dispensary law.  The discovery put Tolbert's appointment in jeopardy, and Seymour traveled to Washington D.C. to advocate that Tolbert and a deputy collector be allowed to retain their positions.  However, Seymour was unsuccessful, and Tolbert was dismissed.  Seymour was allowed to keep his position.

Tolbert was replaced by Robert M. Wallace.  Like Tolbert, Wallace was a scalawag, but he was held in higher regard by state Democrats.  Wallace only held the position for a short time as he was replaced by Seymour's former classmate William D. Crum in late 1902. Crum's appointment is described in greater detail in his blogpost.

Seymore died in Charleston on October 10, 1919.  The cause of death was given as arteriosclerosis and cerebral hemorrhage. He is buried in Pine Lawn Cemetery in Edgefield.

Sources
1). 1880; Census Place: Gregg, Aiken, South Carolina; Roll: 1218; Page: 47D

2). Official Register of the United States, Containing a List of the Officers and Employees in the Civil, Military, and Naval Service Together with a List of Vessels Belonging to the United States, Volume 2.  1895.

2). Official Register of the United States, Containing a List of the Officers and Employees in the Civil, Military, and Naval Service Together with a List of Vessels Belonging to the United States, Volume 1.  1905.

3). Charleston, South Carolina, City Directory, 1919

4). Burke, W. L.  All for Civil Rights : African American Lawyers in South Carolina, 1868-1968, University of Georgia Press, Athens. 2017

5). "Political Notes and Gossip."  Yorkville enquirer, February 6, 1889, p. 2.

6). "Our Washington Letter."  Edgefield advertiser, February 9, 1898, p. 2.

7). "Wrangling Office Hunters."  The watchman and southron, March 2, 1898, p. 3

8). "Republican State Convention"  The watchman and southron, March 28, 1900, p. 8

9). "Will try his old pull"  The Manning times, April 18, 1900, p. 4.

9). "Seymour Smith Goes to Try His Old Pull. Negro Republican Will Endeavor to Save Collector." The State, April 12, 1900

10). 1900; Census Place: Aiken, Aiken, South Carolina; Page: 7; Enumeration District: 0022

11). 1870; Census Place: Spring Grove, Edgefield, South Carolina; Roll: M593_1495; Page: 475A

12). "The news in brief"  The advocate, March 23, 1911, p. 5.

13).  a ghastly assemblage sept 30, 1892

13)  "The final figures"  The Abbeville press and banner, December 2, 1896, p. 11.

14). The Southeaster Reporter. Vol.17.  St Paul, West Publishing Co. (1893).  pp . 371-377.

15). 1900; Census Place: Aiken, Aiken, South Carolina; Page: 7; Enumeration District: 0022; FHL microfilm: 1241515

16).  "John R. Tolbert and Contraband Whiskey."  The watchman and southron, April 11, 1900, p. 2.

17).  "John R. Tolbert Dismissed."  Keowee courier, April 26, 1900, p. 1.

The Professors of the Radical University: John Lynch

John Lynch
From findagrave

John Hugh Lynch (b. January 8, 1818; d. October 20, 1881) 

South Carolina.  White. 

Education: Medical College of South Carolina (M.D.)

Occupation: physician, teacher.

John Lynch was born in 1818 aboard a ship crossing the Atlantic Ocean.  His parents Conlaw Peter and Eleanor MacMahon Nelson Lynch were immigrating to America from Ireland.  They lived in Georgetown, South Carolina for a brief time. However, they soon moved to Cheraw and remained there for most of their lives.

John's father Conlaw worked as a carpenter and millwright. Conlaw and his family were Catholic, unusual in largely Protestant South Carolina.  The Lynches saw great success in America.  John and his siblings were among the most prominent Catholics in the state.  John's brother Patrick served as bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charleston.  His sister Sister Baptista (née Ellen) was the Mother Superior of the Ursuline Convent and Academy in Columbia.

John became a well-known physician.  He attended Cheraw Academy and then studied under a local physician, Dr. Hopton.  He continued his education at the Medical College of South Carolina (now Medical University) in Charleston.  He graduated from the college in March 1840.

After completing his medical training, he moved to Stanley County, North Carolina and worked as a physician.  He stayed there for two years and then returned to Cheraw. 

John lived in Cheraw for the next 14 years.  In Cheraw, he continued to work as a physician.  Maintaining his medical practice was a struggle.  A major difficulty for John was his religion. Many residents were Protestant and were uncomfortable being treated by a physician who did not share their faith.  

John's professional difficulties were compounded by some unsuccessful attempts to speculate in real estate. Ultimately, he found himself in significant financial debt.  In 1849, John considered moving to Charleston as the city's larger Catholic population would provide greater professional opportunities.  However, he ended up staying in Cheraw until 1856 when he moved to Columbia.

In Columbia, John continued to work as a physician. He remained in the city after the Civil War broke out in 1861.  John had a considerable stake in the outcome of the war as he was slave-owner.  John had owned slaves since at least 1850, and by the time war broke out, he enslaved 28 people. Although he later taught at a racially integrated USC, John evidently felt no qualms with the practice of slavery during the antebellum. He casually discussed the subject with his brother Patrick in correspondence. When he first moved to Columbia, he sold a young enslaved women to make payment on his first home, and he reported this to his brother without expressing any concern for the woman.

John's brother Patrick was active in the Confederate government.  In 1864, Confederate President Jefferson Davis appointed Patrick as the delegate to the Holy See.  In that capacity, Patrick traveled to Rome and tried to get the Pope to recognize the Confederacy although without success.

John himself played only a minor role in the Confederacy.  He did not serve in the military and only joined the government during the last year of the year.  That year South Carolina Governor Andrew Magrath appointed him state surgeon general.

In February 1865, the war came to John and his family.  On February 17 of that year, the city of Columbia was surrendered to Union forces led by General William T. Sherman.  Around the time Sherman entered the city, Sister Baptista sent the general a letter asking him to protect her convent from the Union troops.  She appealed to him on both religious and personal grounds. Year earlier, she explained, she had taught Sherman's daughter Maria while working in Ohio.  Sherman responded by sending her a letter saying that the convent was safe as he had no plans to destroy private property.

Despite Sherman's assurance, much of the city – including the convent – was destroyed that night.  The circumstances remain contested.  Fire broke out, but sources disagree as how the fires were started.  John's daughter Ellen provided testimony to Congress in 1928 about the events of the 17th.  She recalled that, during the day, one of Sherman's officers told her father that the city of Columbia was doomed.  After nightfall, she observed Union soldiers with torches, setting buildings on fire. She was certain that those soldiers were responsible for the destruction of the convent.

Although near the convent, John's own home was not destroyed.  However, John and his family were concerned the fires would spread to their house and fled.  The family, along with the nuns and students of the convent, spent the night at the nearby St Peter's Catholic church.

The morning after the convent was destroyed, General Sherman rode past St. Peter's Church and was met by Sister Baptista.  Sherman expressed his regret at the destruction of the convent and granted the Sister use of a mansion, the Hampton-Preston House. 

Despite the destruction his soldiers caused, Sister Baptista praised Sherman later in life.  For example, in an 1872 personal letter, she described Sherman as “a splendid General and . . . a magnanimous enemy who cheerfully and promptly raises a fallen foe."  

John remained in Columbia after the war.  He continued to work as a physician.  He also played a minor role in local government. In March 1868, he was part of a delegation that represented his district at the Democratic State Convention.  He was also nominated as a Democratic candidate for city alderman, but he declined to run for the position.

John began working at the University of South Carolina in 1869.  In September of that year, he was offered the position of Demonstrator of Anatomy.  He declined the position, but the next month he was offered the position of Professor of Physiology and Material Medicia.  He accepted the professorship.

John's professorship was in the medical school.  The medical school was relatively new, having been created around 1867.   At the time of John's hire, five professors taught in the school, although three of them, Maximilian LaBorde, John LeConte, and his brother Joseph, also taught in the academic school (similar to a College of Arts and Sciences).  John took over the duties of the two professors who had joint duties: John LeConte and Maximilian LaBorde. He took over the physiology courses from Professor LeConte and the material medicia courses from Professor LaBorde. Around the time John was hired, LeConte left the university for California.  LaBorde remained at the university and taught English until his death in 1873.

In addition to his teaching and medical work, John seems to have been actively engaged with scientific research.  In 1871, the science magazine Scientific American published a letter by him on steam boiler explosions.  In the letter, he argued that boiler explosions were widely believed to be caused by mechanical failure, but they are, in fact, often caused by chemical reactions.  

Shortly after John began teaching, the university underwent a major transition.  During the early 1870s, the Republican-controlled Board of Trustees came into conflict with the largely Democratic faculty.  The outcome of this conflict was that faculty began to be replaced by people more sympathetic to Reconstruction.  

The turning point came on October 7, 1873.  On that day, the first African American, the politician Henry E. Hayne, enrolled at the university's medical school.  This was a major controversy that resulted in the departure of several professors.  The departures left John as the only member of the 1869 faculty who remained employed at the university.

John's employment is anomalous.  He was alone among the faculty in being well-regarded by White Democrats.  For example, in his history of Reconstruction in South Carolina, John S. Reynolds largely regards the Reconstruction professors with contempt.  However, he writes that John was a "gentleman enjoying the respect of the people and a physician in good standing."

The disruption surrounding the admission of African American students had major negative consequences for the medical school.  John was the sole professor employed in the school until the university's closure in 1877.  He struggled to attract and retain students.  An October 1874 report only listed four students attending the medical school, and none of them received their degree.

Around 1877, the year University of South Carolina closed, John began working for the state government. He served as physician for the state penitentiary.  At the time, the superintendent of the penitentiary was T. W. Parmele, the father of UofSC student Charles R. Parmele.  

In December 1877, John was also appointed as state Surgeon General by the newly elected Governor Wade Hampton.  He retained this position until his death in 1881. John died of Bright's disease on October 20. He'd long been sick from the disease, but his symptoms worsened in October, and he was bed-ridden the week before this death.

John Lynch is buried at the cemetery of St. Peter's Church in Columbia.

Grave of John Lynch
Photo courtesy of author

Sources

1).  Atkinson, William B.  The Physicians and Surgeons of the United States. Charles Robson, Philadelphia (1878) p. 578.

2). 1850; Census Place: Chesterfield, Chesterfield, South Carolina; Roll: 851; Page: 101b

3). 1860; Census Place: Columbia, Richland, South Carolina; Page: 19

4). 1870; Census Place: Columbia, Richland, South Carolina; Roll: M593_1507; Page: 128B;

5). 1880; Census Place: Columbia, Richland, South Carolina; Roll: 1238; Page: 287D

6). Curran, Robert Emmett. The Church and Confederacy: The Lynches of South Carolina.  University of South Carolina Press, Columbia, SC (2019).

7). Reynolds, John S. Reconstruction in South Carolina, 1865-1877.  State Company, Columbia SC (1905).

8).  Heisser, David C. R. and White, Stephen J., Sr.  Patrick N. Lynch, 1817-1882: Third Catholic Bishop of Charleston.  The University of South Carolina Press (2015).

9). "Delegates  to the State Convention." The Daily Phoenix, March 31, 1868, p. 2.

10). "Mr. Editor."  The Daily Phoenix, May 23, 1868, p. 3.

10) "Military Notes." The news and herald [Winnsboro, SC]., December 11, 1877, p. 1.

10) The watchman and southron. [Sumter, SC], October 25, 1881, p. 3.

11). Lynch, John. "Boiler Explosions." Scientific American 25, no. 13 (1871): 196. 

12). Senate Documents, 71st Congress, 2d Session: Miscellaneous, Vol.2.  Government Printing Office. Washington 1930).  p. 8994.

13). Reports and Resolutions of South Carolina to the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina at the Regular Session of 1878.  Calvo & Patton, State Printers.  Columbia, SC (1878).  pp. 521-522.