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"I" is for Indian Affairs Commission

South Carolina From A to Z
SC Public Radio

"I" is for Indian Affairs Commission. The Lords Proprietors established the first Indian Affairs Commission in 1680 with the expectation that it would help promote peace between the local Indians and the settlers. During the colonial period—up to 1763 when the British government assumed control over Indian affairs in all colonies—the commission continued to function. However, it appears that the royal governor wielded most of the authority. After the Revolutionary War, control over Indian affairs passed to the United State government. South Carolina, as did many states, had an agent that made an annual report to the General Assembly and the governor. During the 1990s there were several unsuccessful attempts to create a new state commission. In 2000 an unofficial South Carolina Indian Affairs Commission was established as a nonprofit organization.

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Dr. Walter Edgar has two programs on South Carolina Public Radio: Walter Edgar's Journal, and South Carolina from A to Z. Dr. Edgar received his B.A. degree from Davidson College in 1965 and his Ph.D. from the University of South Carolina in 1969. After two years in the army (including a tour of duty in Vietnam), he returned to USC as a post-doctoral fellow of the National Archives, assigned to the Papers of Henry Laurens.