SC From A to Z

"S" is for South Carolina Medical Association. In 1814, members of the Medical Society of South Carolina—largely a Charleston organization—founded the South Carolina Medical Association (SCMA) in an effort to organize physicians across the state.

"S" is for South Carolina Manufacturers Alliance. The South Carolina Manufacturers Alliance (SCMA), a powerful networking, information, and lobbying group for the state’s manufacturing industries began as an organization for cotton mill owners in 1902. The association hired its first lobbyist in the late 1920s and became a visible and powerful voice for the textile industry. After World War II--under the leadership of John K. Cauthen-- the organization guided state leaders in helping to transform South Carolina’s agricultural economy into a more diversified, industrial one.

"S" is for South Carolina Lunatic Asylum/State Hospital. The South Carolina Lunatic Asylum, located in Columbia, opened in 1828. It is the third-oldest state mental institution in the United States. The original building, named after its architect, Robert Mills, is the nation’s oldest surviving state mental hospital structure and a National Historical Landmark. In 1896 the asylum was renamed the South Carolina State Hospital for the Insane caring for large numbers of patients deemed chronic and incurable. In 1913 the state built a separate facility for black patients outside Columbia.

"S" is for South Carolina Law Enforcement Division. The origins of the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) date back to 1947. Governor Strom Thurmond issued an executive order creating the organization with statewide authority. Thurmond’s actions came at the behest of sheriffs and police chiefs seeking a centralized agency fashioned after the FBI, whereby manpower, technical assistance, and expertise could be utilized. From its fledgling beginnings of fifteen employees, the agency has grown to more than 500 sworn and civilian employees.

"S" is for South Carolina Land Commission. The General Assembly established the South Carolina Land Commission in 1869. The commission’s goal was to purchase land for sale that would be sold to landless black Carolinians on favorable terms. The state thus embarked on a unique experiment, using its authority to assist freedmen in acquiring land. Perhaps as many as 1,400 African American families had been settled on commission lands by 1890. Most were unable to purchase their plots, but at least 960 received title to 45,000 acres. Whites acquired he remainder of the 73,000 acres.

"S" is for South Carolina Jockey Club. In 1758 a group of lowcountry gentlemen founded the South Carolina Jockey Club. By the early 1770s Race week became the most important time of the year for many South Carolinians. During the Revolutionary War, the club suspended activities. Although the club disbanded in 1788 and 1791, it was reestablished. At the turn of the nineteenth century, South Carolina Jockey Club ushered in what would be called the “golden age of racing.” The club’s annual races—usually held in January and February—served as the high point of the Charleston social season.

"S" is for South Carolina Inter-State and West Indian Exposition. Held in Charleston from December 1, 1901, to June 30, 1902, the West Indian Exposition followed world’s fairs in other southern cities. The Charleston Exposition Company raised funds through stock subscriptions, municipal bonds, and the state government. The goal of the exposition was to stimulate trade through the city’s harbor. Its proponents sought to position Charleston as the principal port of exchange between the United States and the Caribbean and Latin America.

"S" is for South Carolina Historical Society. Located in Charleston, the South Carolina Historical Society is the state’s oldest historical society and one of South Carolina’s largest private manuscript archives. Founded in 1855, the society’s mission is “to collect information respecting every portion of our State, to preserve it, and when deemed advisable to publish it.” To this end the organization’s founders established a noncirculating research library. In 1900 the society began publication of the South Carolina Historical Magazine.

"S" is for South Carolina Highway Patrol. Operating under the South Carolina Department of Public Safety, the South Carolina Highway Patrol is a law enforcement organization that concentrates on traffic violations. The State Highway Patrol was originally a field unit of the State Highway Department’s Motor Vehicle Division. The patrol began operation in 1930 equipped with uniforms, badges, guns, summons books, and motorcycles. In 1953 the patrol became a separate division of the department. The existence and duties of the patrol were contentious from its founding.

"S" is for South Carolina Good Roads Association. Formed in 1897, he South Carolina Good Roads Association (SCGRA) was a catalyst for change in transportation policy and construction in the late 1890s and the first four decades of the twentieth century. Good roads promoters included civil engineers, dealers in roads materials and equipment, and community and civic leaders. The SCGRA originally emphasized the construction and maintenance of quality sand-clay, stone, or macadam farm to market roads.

"S" is for South Carolina-Georgia Border. On June 29, 1977, an altercation between Georgia law enforcement officers and a South Carolina shrimp boat captain attracted national attention and rekindled a controversy that would not be resolved until 1990. A 1976 amendment to the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 allowed grants and loans to coastal states to offset damage expected from the production of offshore oil. This appeal for federal aid forced South Carolina and Georgia to settle a border dispute that had been simmering for two centuries. In 1990, the U.S.

"S" is for South-Carolina Gazette. The South-Carolina Gazette began publication in 1732 in Charleston, and continued with some interruptions for more than four decades. For almost its entire existence, the paper was published by the Timothy family. Lewis Timothy, a former employee of Benjamin Franklin, assumed control of the Gazette in 1734. When he died, his widow Elizabeth continued the enterprise until their son Peter was of age. The weekly had a typical mix of news items, advertisements, reprinted material from other publications, and literature.

"S" is for South Carolina Federation of Museums. Museum professionals who saw the need for museum staff and volunteers to work together to strengthen South Carolina’s museums founded the South Carolina Federation of Museums (SCFM) in 1971. SCFM is a nonprofit professional association that represents and promotes the state’s museums. The organization sponsors workshops and meetings that provide members with specialized skills and knowledge applicable to all areas of museum expertise.

"S" is for South Carolina Equal Suffrage League. The South Carolina Equal Suffrage League (SCESL) was formed by the Spartanburg New Era Club and other members of the white South Carolina Federation of Women’s Clubs in 1914. Hannah Hemphill Coleman was elected the first president of the organization—which was affiliated with the National American Woman Suffrage Association. By 1917, the membership of the SCESL had grown to twenty-five clubs and some three thousand members.

"S" is for South Carolina Electric & Gas Company. South Carolina Electric & Gas Company (SCE&G), primarily an energy firm, was formed by the merger of dozens of companies over the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The Broad River Power Company adopted the name South Carolina Electric & Gas Company in 1937. Five years later Lexington Power Company merged with SCE&G). SCE&G became fully independent in 1946 after briefly being held by the General Public Utilities Corporation.