William Henry Drayton
1742=1779.
William Henry Drayton was born at “Drayton Hall,” on the Ashley River, South Carolina, and was sent in 1753 to England to be educated. He went in the care of Chief-Justice Charles Pinckney, who was taking his two sons, Charles Cotesworth and Thomas, for the same purpose. He returned home in 1764, studied law, and in 1771 was appointed by the king privy-councillor for South Carolina. He espoused, however, the cause of the Revolution, with ardor, and was chosen president of the Council of Safety and of the Provincial Congress. As Chief-Justice of the State, he declared that the king “had abdicated the government and had no more authority over the people of South Carolina.” He also dealt with the Indians and exercised a wholesome influence over them in behalf of the State.
He left in manuscript valuable state papers and a narrative of the early part of the Revolution, which his son, Governor John Drayton, edited and published, and from which the extract is taken. His style is clear, simple, and flowing.