I want to thank Honorary State Regent Dianne Culbertson
for mentioning my project “Reflections of Our Treasured Past,” my blog, the 125th celebrations I organized, and the
Ceremonies of Remembrance in her State Regent’s report from this past
Continental Congress. As a result, we
have many new followers. To “catch
everyone up” as the saying goes, let me begin by letting you know where we are.
The SCDAR celebrated its 125th anniversary on
May 10, 2018. I wanted to do something
special on that day and came up with the idea of placing a white carnation tied
with a blue ribbon on the grave of every deceased state regent that had served
the SCDAR at a set time that day. In
addition, I wanted as many SCDAR members to participate in this as possible.
Having received permission from Dianne to proceed, I wrote
the script that everyone would begin reading at 3:00. I researched each state regent’s accomplishments
during their tenure and wrote summaries that were all about the same length in
order for the carnations to be placed on the respective graves at the same
minute of the day. I began locating the
graves of the deceased state regents and contacting the chapters. For some chapters, multiple members were
state regents; therefore, I contacted other chapters in the area to increase
the participation. For some regents,
their respective chapter was too far away to conduct the ceremony; therefore, I
contacted the chapter nearest to the grave.
Today’s blog post is one of those.
I also encourage you to read the post about Doris Dunn, located in the
archives, which shows God’s hand in this process. It was extraordinary and a cherished story
for me.
This was quite the undertaking to make happen, and for
awhile, I wasn’t sure it was going to become a reality for every deceased state
regent. You see, I had written all of
the summaries for the 31 regents only to have them disappear from my
computer. I had to rewrite all of them
while working to contact the chapters and answering questions. It became very hectic and very stressful
while working full time. I still don’t
know what happened to those summaries.
In addition, I had regents that I could not find a chapter willing to
participate. Whew! In the end, God provided.
Having interrupted the Ceremonies of Remembrance with the
wonderful rededications at the SC State House, it is time to continue with
these beautiful tributes to the remarkable women who led the SCDAR throughout
its 125 years. Frances Louise Hudson
Mayes is one of those remarkable women.
In speaking with one of her great-granddaughters, I learned just what a
remarkable woman she was. She did so
much for so many. She definitely had a
servant’s heart and worked tirelessly through the church and church missions to
bring a better life to and for others.
Is there any doubt that she would have been touched by the situation of
the children of the mountains and want to start a school for them to make a
difference in their lives? It is
unfortunate that this blog will not be able to truly convey her essence, her
heart, her love for others. I hope that you will, however, get a sense of it.
Frances
Louise Hudson Mayes
Mrs.
Francis James
State
Regent 1910-1914
#42688
Shared her vision for Tamassee at her
first state conference and started fund to build the school during her final
state conference
30 Nov 1859
16 Mar 1923
Aged 63
Mayesville Black
River Cemetery
Mayesville, Sumter
County, SC
Frances Louise Hudson
Mayes was elected State Regent at Greenwood, November 1909, serving from
1910-1914. The outstanding feature of her regency was the completion of the
monument to the Partisan Generals, known as the Partisan Monument, which stands
on the State House grounds. Anxious to
complete the project during her term of office, and fearing that the Daughters
could not raise the required sum and also carry on their state and national
work, she personally appeared before the Legislature and made a plea for
$2,000. So entirely did she captivate
the lawmakers that thirty minutes after her entry into the hall she had been
voted the amount asked. She presided over the dedicatory ceremonies in November
1913.
 |
| Senate Chamber, SC State House |
Mrs. Mayes organized
eight chapters and reported in one year a gain of 123 in state membership.
While interested in
all phases of patriotic work, her heart yearned toward the problem of education
for the mountain children, particularly those of South Carolina. It was from her that the SCDAR not only
caught the first vision of what has developed into our splendid Tamassee DAR
School, but at her final state conference, a committee to select a site was
appointed and funds for the school had been placed in the bank. Strong hands and willing hearts caught the
torch she had thrown, a site was chosen, and the work to begin Tamassee was
begun. Even though she was not in office
when Tamassee opened its doors, she did live to see Tamassee established. A
portrait of her was hung on the auditorium wall, presented with touching
ceremonies by her beloved chapter, Nathanael Greene.
 |
| Sumter's Home Chapter Regent Kathy Barrett |
Thank you to the Sumter's Home Chapter for Regent Kathy Barrett and Linda Hawkins for conducting the Ceremony of Remembrance for Mayes. Even though she was a member of the Nathanael Greene Chapter, she was buried in Mayesville located in Sumter County.
 |
| Sumter's Home Chapter member Linda Hawkins |
Thank
you, Louise Mayes, for your vision for Tamassee and your efforts that allowed for
Tamassee to be able open its doors to so many children. Even though Tamassee no longer serves “mountain”
children, the services the school provides are just as important today, if not
more so, than it was when it first started.
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