| General Thomas Sumter (1734-1832)...fought with the Virginia militia during the Cherokee War (1760-61); 1776 Sumter was elected Lieutenant Colonel of State militia; 1781 Brigadier General of the South Carolina Militia. Sumter was nicknamed the "Gamecock" because of his strong resolve and aggressive fighting style. He served as a United States senator and congressman following the American Revolution. He died at age 98 in 1832 and in 1936 the Sumter National Forest was named in his honor. |