Charles Pinckney - 1789-1792, 1796-1798, 1806-1808

Biographical Overview

• Born: October 26, 1757 in Charleston, South Carolina
  
• Died: October 29, 1824
  
• Buried: St. Philip's Episcopal Church cemetery in Charleston, South Carolina
  
• Religion: Episcopalian
  
• Political Party: Democratic-Republican
  

Education

• Studied law privately - admitted to the bar in 1779
  
• Doctor of Laws, Princeton University - an honorary degree
  

Occupations

• Lieutenant, South Carolina Militia
• Lawyer
• Planter

Major Events and Accomplishments, 1st Term, 1789–1792

• December 1, 1789 – Public records were moved from Charleston to Columbia
  
• January 1790 – South Carolina ratified the Bill of Rights
  
• 1790 – A new state constitution set the term served by a governor to two years, stated that a governor could not serve consecutive terms, and required that a governor be ineligible for reelection for four years following the end of a term
  
• 1790 – Some sources divide Governor Pinckney's time in office from 1789-1792 into two terms, one before the 1790 Constitution and one after the 1790 Constitution, thus by some sources' Pinckney actually served a total of four terms
  
• February 19, 1791 – The General Assembly passed legislation abolishing the right of primogeniture or the exclusive right of inheritance belonging to the eldest son
  

Major Events and Accomplishments, 2nd Term, 1796–1798

• 1796 – Dr. John de la Howe willed his estate in Abbeville to the Agricultural Society of South Carolina for the purpose of establishing an agricultural school for poor children, operating today as the John de la Howe School
  
• 1796 – Thomas Jefferson barely defeated former Governor Thomas Pinckney in the election for the vice presidency of the United States
  

Major Events and Accomplishments, 3rd Term, 1806–1808

Other Government Positions

• South Carolina House of Representatives, 1779-1784, 1786-1789, 1792-1796, 1805, 1806, 1810-1814
  
• US Continental Congress, 1784-1787
  
• US Constitutional Convention, 1787
  
• South Carolina Constitutional Convention, 1788, 1790
  
• US Senate, 1798-1801
  
• US Minister to Spain, 1801-1805
  
• US House of Representatives, 1819-1821
  

Other Accomplishments, Honors, Distinctions

• 1780-1781 – Pinckney was held as a prisoner of war by the British
  
• 1787 – Pinckney was the second youngest delegate to the United States Constitutional Convention
  
• Snee Farm Plantation, Pinckney's home, exists today as the Charles Pinckney National Historic Site
  

Election Results, 1st Term

• On January 21, 1789, the South Carolina General Assembly elected Pinckney for governor by secret ballot.
  

Election Results, 2nd Term

• On December 8, 1796, the South Carolina General Assembly again elected Pinckney for governor by secret ballot
  

Election Results, 3rd Term

• On December 9, 1806, Pinckney was elected to a third term by the South Carolina General Assembly by secret ballot
  

Web Resources

• Biographical information - US Congress
  
• Biographical sketch - National Archives and Records Administration
  
• Biographical sketch - lexrex.com