From 1895 -1897, I have been unable to locate any
information about the Partisan Monument.
In 1897, we find a change about the monument and to whom the monument
will pay tribute.
1897 May 24 The State
The SCDAR requested that The State publish a
correspondence designed to get the residents of Columbia behind the effort of a
monument to Marion. The editorial states
that Mrs. T. C. Robertson had been instructed to write General Butler, serving
in the U.S. Senate, inquiring about Congress appropriating funds for the
statue. In his return letter, he stated
that if the people of Columbia would show their support that there was hope to
receive the appropriation when Congress return from its holiday break. His letter was printed in full and stated
that through his efforts a bill had been passed through the Senate twice in two
different sessions. The first bill
appropriated $50,000 and was reduced to $40,000 in committee; however, the
second bill reduced the appropriation to $10,000. He was unable to find a Representative to
take up the bill in the House nor was he able to get the residents of Columbia
to show interest. The appropriation was
contingent upon the city furnishing a lot or the legislature setting aside a
space on the State House grounds. He
commended the SCDAR for taking up the cause and pledged his cooperation to aid
in this matter.
The bill which was passed on 1892, May 23 is as follows:
Be it
enacted by the senate and house of representatives of the United States of
America in congress assembled, that the sum of $50,000, or as much thereof as
may be necessary, be, and is hereby, appropriated, out of money in the treasury
not otherwise appropriated, for the erection of an equestrian stature of
General Francis Marion, within the limits of the city of Columbia, S.C. and for
the proper preparation, grading, and inclosing of the lot and foundation upon
which said statue shall be erected, which sum shall be expended under the
direction of the secretary of way, or such officers as he may designate:
Provided, that the money hereby appropriated shall be drawn from time to time
only as may be required during the progress of the work, and upon the
requisition of the secretary of war: And
provided further, that no part of the money hereby appropriated shall be so
expended until a suitable lot of land in said city of Columbia, for the
erection of said statue, shall be conveyed, with all the right, title, and
interest therein of the owner thereof, to the United States, and the deed duly
recorded, and the city of Columbia shall have provided for public use an open
highway or other satisfactory means of access thereto.
Sec.
2. That this act shall be in force from
its passage.
In its beginnings the SCDAR was the Columbia
Chapter; therefore, we see the chapter began meeting about the statue. Also, we see that there was simultaneous interest
in a monument to Emily Geiger. I will be
providing information about this at a later time.
1897 May 26 The State
The Columbia Chapter was to meet 1897 May 26 at 6:00 P.M.
at the home of Mrs. H. W. Richardson.
During the meeting, the annual election of officers would take place
along with a discussion of Gen. Marion’s statue and also the monument they
propose erecting to Emily Geiger.
The SCDAR has become thoroughly interested in both of the
monuments. It was felt that if the SCDAR
was behind them that support for the monument would be received from all over
the state of South Carolina.
1897 Nov 10 The State
An announcement concerning a meeting of the SCDAR was
placed. This announcement was in
reference to the state conference or convention of the SCDAR which was held during Fair Week
at the home of Malvina Waring. Delegates
from chapters across the state were expected and several may have come from
adjoining states. Every member of the
DAR whether from SC or not was urged to attend.
The principal object was to discuss and adopt plans for the erection of
monuments to the memory of General Marion and Emily Geiger, “two of the most
noted figures in South Carolina’s revolutionary history.”
As a result of the aforementioned article, an editorial
was written by James Henry Rice, Jr. admonishing the SCDAR for not recognizing
Pickens and Sumter along with Marion.
Here is his letter.
1897 Nov 10 The State
A Contemplated Injustice
To the Editor of The State:
The announcement is made in the columns of this morning’s
paper that a meeting of the Daughters of the American Revolution will be held
this afternoon, the principal object of which is “to discuss and adopt plans
looking to the erection of monuments to the memory of General Marion and Emily
Geiger.”
Now, this object is both precipitate and unjust, inasmuch
as such action would discriminate against Sumter and Pickens, who deserve
monuments as richly as Marion.
In regard to Emily Geiger, I have nothing to say, having
myself revived the almost forgotten story of her gallant ride some fifteen
years ago in an up-country paper.
But I do assert that Pickens, Marion, and Sumter must be
grouped together and treated alike.
Judge Johnson in his life of Greene so states the case and the facts of
history bear him out. Pickens really
deserved more and go less than any of the three. But a just patriotism will accord the palm to
their united strength and will not stoop to a small discrimination. Each was a patriot, a soldier and did gallant
service for the suffering State. Each
operated in a different region and each did all that duty required of him. Marion certainly has not prominence over
Sumter and Pickens.
I have no leisure to go into details, but merely ask that
the Daughters of the American Revolution themselves give the subject
dispassionate and careful investigation.
They will see, I am sure, that they are about to be unwittingly
committed to an act of unjust discrimination unworthy of their order.
The article that spurned his admonishment was simply giving the agenda for the meeting. If he would have waited before writing his editorial, he
would have read the following day that the SCDAR decided not to erect a monument
just to Marion. A resolution was passed
that said the following.
1897 Nov 11 The State
Resolved first, That the South Carolina D.A.R. to
memorialize our representatives in the congress of the United States and
request them to lay a petition before congress to appropriate a suitable sum
for the purpose of rearing in the city of Columbia a fitting monument to our
partisan leaders of the Revolution of 1776, Marion, the “Swamp Fox,” Sumter,
the “Game Cock” and Andrew Pickens, whose name even to our own day has been
associated with all the best deeds of the State.
Resolved, second, That we invite all of the women of the
State, and especially of those counties which bear the honored names of Marion,
Sumter and Pickens to join with us and give us their hearty sympathy and active
cooperation.
The article continued by stating that the petition
brought before Congress by General M.C. Butler to the memory of Gen. Francis
Marion had died and the Columbia Chapter had decided to petition congress to
appropriate a sum for a monument to the “three guardsmen – Sumter, Marion and
Pickens.” The passing of this
resolution was followed by the reading of her essay “The Partisan Generals of
South Carolina” by Mrs. Robertson of the Rebecca Motte Chapter. Sara Richardson then shared project’s origin
and the amount of work that had been done for the monument.
A committee was appointed for what would become known as
The Partisan Monument.
Needless to say, the Daughters took exception to the article "A
Contemplated Injustice" and responded as follows.
1897 Nov 16 The State
FOR ALL THREE.
The Monuments to This State’s Revolutionary Heroes.
To the editor of The State:
A few days since an article came out in The State headed
“A Contemplated Injustice” and signed James Henry Rice, Jr., in which the
writer declared that the DAR intended doing a great injustice to the memory of
Generals Sumter and Pickens by erecting a monument to Gen. Marion alone,
ignoring our other two great partisan generals.
Had Mr. Rice informed himself more fully before writing
he would have found out that no such “injustice” was contemplated, but that, on
the contrary, the DAR had a convention here mainly for the purpose of drafting
a memorial for a monument to the three partisan generals. A committee was appointed to attend to the
matter at the next meeting of congress and the DAR have a confident hope that
this patriotic movement will be successfully carried through.
Secretary
Columbia Chapter D.A.R.
1898 Feb 26 The State
The SCDAR delegation in attendance at Continental
Congress did more than just attend the NSDAR activities. While in Washington, D.C., Mrs. Nash and Mrs.
Jones of Charleston, Mrs. Robertson and Mrs. Waring of Columbia, Mrs. Nicholls
of Spartanburg, and Mrs. White of Fort Mill made an effort to have the U.S. Congress
appropriate funds for monuments to Marion, Sumter, and Pickens. It mentions that fact that Butler had twice
gotten the bill passed through the Senate but was unable to get the bill passed
by the House.
It would be another four years before mention of the
monument would be found. Based on what
would come in the history of the NSDAR, I would imagine it was a direct result of realizing that the U.S.
Congress was not going to follow through to complete the process of passing the
twice passed bill from the Senate in the House of Representatives. At this point, if the SCDAR wanted to make
this monument come to fruition, they would have to completely take over and
champion its cause. It would not be easy
and other pertinent items would prolong its progress, but the SCDAR never wavered
to see it come to pass.
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