Robert Barnwell
Robert Gibbes Barnwell | |
|---|---|
| President of the South Carolina Senate | |
| In office December 2, 1805 – December 19, 1805 | |
| Governor | Paul Hamilton |
| Preceded by | John Ward |
| Succeeded by | William Smith |
| Member of the South Carolina Senate from St. Helena's Parish | |
| In office November 26, 1804 – December 19, 1805 | |
| 10th Speaker of the South Carolina House of Representatives | |
| In office December 20, 1794 – December 16, 1797 | |
| Governor | Arnoldus Vanderhorst Charles Pinckney |
| Preceded by | Jacob Read |
| Succeeded by | William Johnson, Jr. |
| Member of the South Carolina House of Representatives from St. Helena's Parish | |
| In office November 24, 1794 – December 19, 1801 | |
| In office January 15, 1790 – December 20, 1791 | |
| In office January 1, 1787 – November 4, 1788 | |
| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from South Carolina's 2nd district | |
| In office March 4, 1791 – March 3, 1793 | |
| Preceded by | Aedanus Burke |
| Succeeded by | John Hunter |
| Delegate to the Congress of the Confederation from South Carolina | |
| In office November 3, 1788 – March 2, 1789 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | December 21, 1761 Beaufort, Province of South Carolina, British America |
| Died | October 24, 1814 (aged 52) Beaufort, South Carolina, U.S. |
| Political party | Pro-Administration |
| Profession | politician |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States of America |
| Branch/service | South Carolina Militia |
| Years of service | 1777–1782 |
| Rank | Lieutenant colonel |
| Battles/wars | American Revolutionary War |
Robert Gibbes Barnwell (December 21, 1761 – October 24, 1814) was a South Carolina slave owner, revolutionary and statesman who was a delegate to the Confederation Congress and a United States Congressman.
Barnwell was born in Beaufort in the Province of South Carolina. His education was by a private tutor after he had exhausted the resources of the Beaufort common school. But he interrupted this and entered the revolutionary war at the age of 16 as a private in the militia. In the maneuvering after the Battle of Stono Ferry, his company was camped on Johns Island in late June 1779. A British surprise attack at night cut them up badly in an action known as the Battle of Mathews' Plantation. The sixteen-year-old Barnwell was wounded so badly that they stripped his gear and left him for dead. He was found in the field by a slave and taken to his aunt (Mrs. Sarah Gibbes) on her nearby plantation. She and her daughter nursed him back to health.