"L" is for Lynch, Thomas, Sr. (ca. 1727-1776)

"L" is for Lynch, Thomas, Sr. (ca. 1727-1776). Legislator, delegate to the Continental Congress. A prominent planter, Lynch was active in public affairs. He was a member of the Commons House of Assembly from 1752 until 1775. From an early date he opposed British encroachment on colonial autonomy. He was a delegate to the Stamp Act Congress (1765) and a member of the Non-Importation Association (1769). As one of South Carolina’s best-known and most ardent patriots, Lynch became a great favorite of the Sons of Liberty. In 1774, he was elected to the First Continental Congress and re-elected to the Second. In both Congresses, he played an active role. While attending Congress in early 1776, Thomas Lynch, Sr., suffered a stroke that left him paralyzed and prevented him from signing the Declaration of Independence.