"The Constitution of South Carolina (April 16, 1868) gave voters the right to elect the Adjutant General. Previous Adjutants General were elected by the Legislature. As of March 5, 2015, the Adjutant General will be appointed by the Governor upon the advice and consent of the Senate. The term is not coterminous with the Governor.
 
The Adjutant General is head of the South Carolina Military Department, administering the affairs of the Army and Air National Guard, the Emergency Management Division, the State Guard, and the Youth ChalleNGe Academy. The Governor, by law, is the Commander-in-Chief. The Adjutant General holds the rank of Major General."

R. Van McCarty (2019 - Present)

Robert E. Livingston Jr. (2011-2019)

Stanhope S. Spears (1995-2011)

Trelawney Eston Marchant (1979-1995)

Robert L. McCrady (1971-1979)

Frank Douglas Pinckney (1959-1971)

James Cordie Dozier (1926-1959)

Robert E. Craig (1923-1926)

Rufus W. Grant (1921-1923)

William Woodbury Moore (1910-1921)

John C. Boyd (1907-1910)

John D. Frost (1903-1907)

Joseph W. Floyd (1899-1903)

John Gary Watts (1895-1898)

Hugh L. Farley (1890-1894)

Milledge Lipscomb Bonham (1885-1889)

Arthur Middleton Manigault (1880-1884)

Edwin Warren Moise (1876-1880)

Henry William Purvis (1872-1876)

Franklin (Israel) J. Moses Jr (1869-1871)

Albert Creswell Garlington (Dec 1862-1868)

Wilmot Gibbes De Saussure (Apr - Dec 1862)

States Rights Gist (1861-1862)

Richard Gill Mills Dunovant (1854-1860)

James Willis Cantey (1841-1853)

James Jones (1836-1840)

John Baylis Earle (1805-1835)

Laurence Manning (1792-1804) Collection of Yale University Art Gallery

Pierce Butler (1779-1791)


The Adjutants General of South Carolina
Name Years of Service
Pierce Butler 1779 – 1791
Laurence Manning (Died in office Dec. 20, 1804) 1792 – 1804
John Baylis Earle 1805 – 1835
James Jones 1836 – 1840
James Willis Cantey 1841 – 1853
Richard Gill Mills Dunovant (C.S.A., January 1861) 1854 – 1860
States Rights Gist (Made Brig. Gen. C.S.A., April 1862) 1861 – 1862
Wilmot Gibbes De Saussure (April 11, 1862) C.S.A. Apr – Dec 1862
Albert Creswell Garlington (Resigned C.S.A. commission May 11, 1862) Dec 1862 – 1868
Franklin (Israel) J. Moses Jr. 1869 – 1871 (Elected: see notes)
Henry William Purvis* 1872 – 1876
Edwin Warren Moise (Resigned Nov. 1, 1880; John Scoffing filled out unexpired term) 1876 – 1880
Arthur Middleton Manigault 1880 – 1884
Milledge Lipscomb Bonham Jr. 1885 – 1889
Hugh L. Farley 1890 – 1894
John Gary Watts 1895 – 1898
Joseph W. Floyd (Jan. 18, 1899-Jan. 20, 1903) 1898 – 1903
John D. Frost (Jan. 21, 1903-Jan. 14, 1907) 1903 – 1907
John C. Boyd (Jan. 15, 1907, died in office Dec. 18, 1910) 1907 – 1910
William Woodbury Moore (Dec. 24, 1910, died in office June 16, 1921) 1910 – 1921
Rufus W. Grant (July 1, 1921, filled the unexpired term of Gen. Moore, deceased.) 1921 – 1923
Robert E. Craig (Jan 21, 1923, died in office Jan. 15, 1926) 1923 – 1926
James Cordie Dozier** (Jan. 22, 1926-Jan. 19, 1959) 1926 – 1959
Francis Douglas Pinckney (Jan. 20, 1959-Jan. 19, 1971) 1959 – 1971
Robert Lane McCrady (Jan. 19, 1971-Jan. 9, 1979) 1971 – 1979
Trelawney Eston Merchant (Jan 10. 1979-Jan. 1995) 1979 – 1995
Stanhope S. Spears (Jan. 1995-Jan.11, 2011) 1995 – 2011
Robert E. Livingston, Jr. (Jan. 12, 2011-Jan. 16, 2019) 2011 – 2019
Roy Van McCarty (Jan. 17, 2019-Present) 2019 – Present
*First African American Adjutant General
**Medal of Honor Recipient
The Constitution of South Carolina (April 16, 1868) gave voters the right to elect the Adjutant General. Previous Adjutants General were elected by the Legislature. As of March 5, 2015, the Adjutant General will be appointed by the Governor upon the advice and consent of the Senate. The term is not coterminous with the Governor.
 
The Adjutant General is head of the South Carolina Military Department, administering the affairs of the Army and Air National Guard, the Emergency Management Division, the State Guard, and the Youth ChalleNGe Academy. The Governor, by law, is the Commander-in-Chief. The Adjutant General holds the rank of Major General.
1.  Pierce Butler (1779 – 1791)
 
            The son of a member of Irish Parliament, Pierce Butler served as a Major with the 22nd Regiment of Foot (Cheshire Regiment) and came to North America with his unit in 1758 to participate in the French and Indian War. He returned to Ireland in 1762 after being transferred to the 29th Foot. His regiment, serving in Nova Scotia at the time of the Stamp Act of 1765, was ordered to Boston to maintain the King’s peace in 1768. In 1771, a year after the Boston Massacre, Major Butler married Mary Middleton, the daughter of a wealthy South Carolina planter and colonial leader. When his unit received orders to return Great Britain in 1773, he sold his commission and left the Army. When war broke out between Great Britain and the colonies in 1775, Butler joined the American cause. His father-in-law served as the president of the First Continental Congress and his brother-in-law would sign the Declaration of Independence.  He was elected to the South Carolina Legislature in 1776.
            In 1779, Butler was appointed by the Governor of South Carolina, John Rutledge, to reorganize the state’s defenses and became the Adjutant General, a position that carried the rank of Brigadier General (though he preferred to be addressed as Major, his highest rank held in combat.) The reorganization came in response to the shift in British strategy after reaching a stalemate with Washington and the continentals in the northern and mid-Atlantic states. Hoping to rally the loyalists in the southern states, Britain adopted a southern strategy and began moving north from Georgia. Savannah was captured in 1778 and Charleston in 1780. During the next two years, Butler worked with former members of the militia and Continental Army, including Francis Marion and Thomas Sumter, to create a unified campaign in conjunction with the Southern Army led by Horatio Gates and later, Nathaniel Greene.
            After the Revolution, many of Butler’s plantations and ships were destroyed, and he had used his personal cash to contribute supplies to sustain American forces. The South Carolina Legislature asked him to represent the state at the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787. He served in the US Senate from 1989-1796 and was Adjutant General until 1790. Butler moved to Philadelphia to be closer to his daughter Sarah and died there in 1822 at the age of 77.
 
            https://history.army.mil/books/RevWar/ss/butler.htm
https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/founding-fathers-south-carolina
3. John Baylis Earle (1805 – 1835)
 
Born on the North Carolina side of the North Pacolet River, near Landrum, Spartanburg County, South Carolina on October 23, 1766. Moved to South Carolina and completed preparatory studies. Served as a drummer boy and soldier during the Revolutionary War, afterwards becoming owner of a plantation called, “Silver Glade.” In 1802 he was elected to the House of Representatives as a Democratic Republican and served one term (March 4, 1803-March 3, 1805.) He declined to be a candidate for reelection in 1804 and returned to operating Silver Glade. He remained interested in military affairs and became Adjutant and Inspector General of South Carolina for 16 years(?) through the War of 1812. He was a member of the nullification convention of 1832 and 1833. Died in Anderson County, South Carolina on February 3, 1836.
4. James Jones (1836-1840)
 Born October 3, 1805, Died October 19, 1865

A partner in textile mills at Graniteville and Vaucluse, he was chairman of commissioners to build the State House 1855-61. Jones also served as adjutant & inspector general 1836-41, chairman of the board of visitors of the Citadel and the Arsenal Academy 1842-65, and state quartermaster general 1863-65.
10. Franklin (Israel) J. Moses, Jr. (1869-1871)
 Born 1838, Died December 11, 1906
 
“Franklin J. Moses, Jr.(born Franklin Israel Moses, Jr.) was born in Sumter District, SC. He attended South Carolina College and went on to study law, winning admission to the South Carolina bar. He was appointed private secretary to SC Gov. Francis Wilkinson Pickens in 1860.During the American Civil War he was appointed an enrolling officer under the Confederate Conscription Act, holding the rank of Colonel. He edited the Sumter News from 1866 to 1867, and was elected a vestryman of the Sumter Episcopal Church in 1867. He was a delegate to the 1866 South Carolina Convention called to endorse President Andrew Johnson and was elected to the SC House of Representatives in 1867, at the same time serving as Adjutant and Inspector General of the state's armed forces and as a Trustee of the State University. Although surrounded by charges that he misappropriated state funds and accepted bribes and committed indiscretions in his private life, he was elected Governor in the fall of 1872. South Carolina's credit during his gubernatorial term reached an alarming state of insecurity, which the legislature--called into session by Gov. Moses--resolved by simply annulling nearly $6 million worth of recent bonds, forcing bond holders to accept 6 percent interest. After a second state Taxpayers' Convention met in 1874and asked Congress for relief, Gov. Moses was indicted but escaped trial by winning a legal ruling that he could not be prosecuted while in office. He was not re-nominated for a second term and was denied a seat as Circuit Judge by his gubernatorial successor despite having been elected to the position by the state legislature. He later succumbed to drug addiction and was convicted several times of petty fraud and theft but was pardoned.”
https://www.carolana.com/SC/Governors/fjmosesjr.html
12. Edwin Warren Moise (1876-1880)
 Born May 21, 1832, Died December 8, 1902
 
“Lawyer, soldier, adjutant general. The descendant of a Sephardic Jewish family from Alsace and the French Caribbean, Moise was born on May 21, 1832, in Charleston, the son of Abraham Moise and Caroline Moses. He was a member of Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim, Charleston’s oldest synagogue, and was educated in local schools. As a young adult, Moise was employed as a clerk. On September 20, 1854, he married Esther Lyon of Petersburg, Virginia. The following year Moise went to work for his uncle Raphael J. Moses, a successful attorney and plantation owner in Columbus, Georgia. Moise ran his uncle’s flour mill, kept his books, and read the law.
 
Moise opposed secession and publicly argued against it. Nevertheless, when the Civil War came he volunteered for Confederate service. In May 1862 he organized a cavalry company in Columbus. Called the Moise Rangers, it was one of only a few companies named for Jewish Confederates. Moise was named captain of the Rangers that became Company A of Claiborne’s Seventh Confederate Cavalry. The Seventh served in the southeastern corner of Virginia and in North Carolina. Moise saw a great deal of action in late 1864 and early 1865, including foraging expeditions, the defense of Petersburg during the Bermuda Hundred campaign, the “Great Beefsteak Raid” under General Wade Hampton, and the Battle of Bentonville. He surrendered with Hampton at Greensboro, North Carolina.
 
After the war, Moise returned to Sumter. He went into law, politics, farming, and journalism. During Reconstruction, Moise was a conservative Democrat and a bitter opponent of the Reconstruction government. In 1876 he enthusiastically supported Wade Hampton, his former commander, for governor and ran for adjutant general on Hampton’s ticket, winning that race. Moise was also a commander of the Red Shirts, an armed volunteer organization that supported Hampton.
 
After being elected adjutant general, Moise commanded the militia in an evenhanded manner. Like Hampton, Moise was a moderate on racial issues. He invited black South Carolinians to join the militia. He served two terms as adjutant general, from 1876 to 1880. An opponent of Benjamin R. Tillman, Moise was defeated in an 1892 race for Congress.
 
In 1902, at the memorial service for Hampton in Sumter, Moise gave the oration. He died on December 12, 1902, and was buried in Sumter.”
http://www.scencyclopedia.org/sce/entries/moise-edwin-warren/
13. Arthur Middleton Manigault (1880-1884)
 Born October 26, 1824; Died August 17, 1886
 
“Brigadier General Arthur Middleton Manigault was born at Charleston in 1824.  He was a great-grandson of Gabriel Manigault, a native of Charleston, and a famous merchant who was treasurer of the province in 1738; after the declaration of independence advanced $220,000 from his private fortune for war purposes, and in 1779, with his grandson Joseph, served as a private soldier in the defense of Charleston.
 
General Manigault entered business life at Charleston in youth.  In 1846 he went to the Mexican war as first lieutenant of a company of the Palmetto regiment, and served in the army of General Scott from Vera Cruz to the City of Mexico.  Returning to Charleston he was in the commission business until 1856, and then was engaged in rice planting until the beginning of the Confederate war, when he raised a company of volunteers.
 
He served as inspector-general on the staff of General Beauregard during the period including the reduction of Fort Sumter, after which he was elected colonel of the Tenth South Carolina regiment.  Under Gen. R. E. Lee he commanded the First military district of South Carolina, with headquarters at Georgetown.
 
After the battle of Shiloh he and his regiment were transferred to the army in Mississippi under General Bragg, forming part of the brigade composed of the Tenth and Nineteenth South Carolina and three Alabama regiments, commanded by General Withers until the latter was given division command, afterward by Patton Anderson and later by Colonel Manigault.
 
He was in brigade command from the summer of 1862, and participated in the occupation of Corinth during the siege, and the operations of the army in Tennessee and Kentucky.  In
April, 1863, he was promoted to brigadier-general.
 
At the battle of Stone's River his brigade under his gallant leadership was distinguished in the assaults upon the Federal line, and at Chickamauga again was conspicuous in the attacks upon the position held by George H. Thomas.  In both these battles the brigade suffered severely in the loss of officers and men, but the remnant fought through the Atlanta campaign of 1864 among the bravest of the heroes of that memorable struggle, from Dalton to Ezra church.
 
He subsequently participated in the operations under General Hood, until he fell severely wounded in the disastrous battle of Franklin, Tenn.
 
After the conclusion of hostilities he engaged in rice planting in South Carolina.  In 1880 he was elected adjutant-general of the State, was continued in this office, and was about to be re-elected when he died from the effects of his wound received at Franklin, August 16, 1886.”
 
Source:  Confederate Military History, vol. VI, p. 414
http://civilwardata.com/active/hdsquery.dll?SoldierHistory?C&810910
14. Milledge Lipscomb Bonham Jr. (1885-1889)
Born October 16, 1854; Died June 23, 1943
23. James Cordie Dozier (1926-1959)

World War I Medal of Honor recipient James C. Dozier was sworn into office on January 26, 1926 as The Adjutant General of South Carolina following the unexpected death of Robert E. Craig during a National Guard Association of the U.S. conference in St. Augustine, Fla. He is credited for rebuilding the S.C. National Guard between the world wars and great depression. He is also responsible for saving Camp Jackson (later Fort Jackson) following World War I by accepting custody of the facility from the War Department shortly after being sworn in and expanding it throughout the Great Depression leading up to World War II. He also grew the S.C. National Guard's budget from $118,812.00 (1926), to $6,230,159.62 (1959). He was successful in providing work for the unemployed, as well as providing work space for his fellow Guardsmen, when he persuaded the Works Progress Administration to build 38 new armories. On January 19, 1959, Maj. Gen. Dozier retired from the S.C. National Guard as the longest serving Adjutant General (TAG) in the history of S.C. During his 33 years as TAG, Dozier became known throughout the country as "Mr. National Guard."
24. Francis Douglas Pinckney (1959-1971)
Born March 11, 1900, Died June 9, 1974
25. Robert Lane McCrady (1971-1979)

The namesake of the S.C. Army National Guard's McCrady Training Center, Maj. Gen. McCrady served two terms as The Adjutant General of S.C. from January 19, 1971 - January 9, 1979. He was instrumental in growing the Guard's training center at Fort Jackson throughout his career. McCrady enlisted in the S.C. Army National Guard as a private on Apr. 14, 1937, and received his commission as a second lieutenant of Coast Artillery in January, 1941. He was called to active duty with the 197th Automatic Weapons Battalion a month later. Two and a half of his five years of active duty in World War II were spent on the island of Newfoundland and in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater.  His last active duty assignment was Division Artillery S-2 with the 98th Infantry Division in Japan.
Upon returning to the South Carolina National Guard after World War II, McCrady was assigned as the Commander of the 122nd Engineer Battalion where he served for 13 years. In 1957, he was appointed Commandant of South Carolina’s State Officer Candidate School, where he served, in addition to his other military duties, until 1968. In 1960, he was assigned as the G-1 of the 51st Infantry Division  while being appointed as Staff Assistant to the Division Commander on a full-time basis. He was promoted to Colonel in 1962 and assigned as Chief of Staff of the 51st Command Headquarters. After a short tour as the State Maintenance Officer in 1967, he served as Executive Assistant for Army to the State Adjutant General until he was appointed as Assistant Adjutant General of South Carolina on January 20, 1967. He was promoted to brigadier general on September 26, 1969 and was elected to a four-year term as the Adjutant General on November 3, 1970. On June 4, 1971, he was promoted and federally recognized as major general, and was reelected to a second four year term as Adjutant General in November, 1974.
A graduate of the University of South Carolina, Maj. Gen. McCrady’s military education included: Coast Artillery Antiaircraft Artillery Refresher course, 1941; Field Artillery Officer Basic Course, 1945; Engineer Officers Associate Advanced Course, 1951; Command and General Staff College, Associate Course, 1960; Combat Division Refresher Courses, 1960-1967; Graduate Refresher Course, 1963; and Senior Officer Civil Disturbance Orientation Course, 1968. Maj. Gen McCrady died on March 10, 1980.
26. Trelawney Eston Marchant, Jr. (1979-1995)

Major General T. Eston Marchant was born December 9, 1921, in Columbia, South Carolina. He graduated from Columbia High School, and later the University of South Carolina, earning a bachelor’s degree in business administration in 1942, and a law degree after his service in World War II.
Maj. Gen. Marchant enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in January, 1942. He was commissioned a second lieutenant, USMC Reserve in August 1942 and rose to the rank of captain, serving during World War II and participating in the Bougainville, New Georgia, Guam and Iwo Jima campaigns as a rifle platoon and rifle company commander, and Battalion S-2.
He was commissioned in the South Carolina Army National Guard in February 1947, as a second lieutenant, Infantry , and served as an aide to the commanding general, 51st Infantry Division. He was later assigned to division staff. During this period he was promoted to first lieutenant, captain and major, and, in 1961, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and assigned a division provost marshal.
Maj. Gen. Marchant was promoted to colonel in 1968, and became commandant of the Palmetto Military Academy, the South Carolina Army National Guard’s Officer Candidate School. He assumed command of the 2nd Brigade, 30th Infantry Division in June 1972, and was promoted to brigadier general in 1973, serving as assistant division commander, 30th Infantry Division and later as commander of Troop Command, South Carolina Army National Guard.
Maj. Gen. Marchant was elected adjutant general in the General Election in November 1978 and took office January 10, 1979. He was promoted to major general in May 1979 and served as Adjutant General until January, 1995.
In 1989 he coordinated and deployed over 7,000 Guardsmen over a one month period at the Governor’s request to assist the citizens of South Carolina after Hurricane Hugo. It was the largest State Active Duty deployment in South Carolina’s history.
Prior to becoming adjutant general, Maj. Gen. Marchant practiced law for 30 years in Columbia. He was elected to the University of South Carolina Board of Trustees in 1965, and was elected Chairman of the Board in 1970. He served continuously thereafter until 1978, when he was elected Adjutant General of South Carolina. The SC National Guard Headquarters and Complex in Columbia is named in his honor. Maj. Gen. Marchant passed away on July 19, 2006.
28. Robert E. Livingston, Jr. (2011-2019)

Maj. Gen. Robert E. Livingston, Jr., assumed the role as the Adjutant General of South Carolina at a ceremony in Columbia, South Carolina, Jan. 7, 2011. His military service began when he enlisted in the South Carolina Army National Guard in March, 1978. His military education started with his completion of the U.S. Army Infantry School in 1978, followed by Airborne School in 1979. He was commissioned through the Palmetto Military Academy, Officer Candidate School in 1980 as the Distinguished Honor Graduate.
Maj. Gen. Livingston commanded at all levels from company to combined joint task force. He commanded Task Force 218 in support of Operation Noble Eagle from June 2004 to January 2005. From May 2007 to April 2008, he commanded Combined Joint Task Force Phoenix (VI) in Afghanistan where he was responsible for the training, mentoring, and advising of the Afghan National Security Forces. His next assignment was Director of Strategic Plans and Policy (J5), National Guard Bureau, Arlington, Virginia. His last assignment before becoming Adjutant General was as Director, J5 Coalition Coordination Center, United States Central Command, MacDill Air Force Base, Florida where he was responsible for facilitating the exchange between the Command Staff for the United States Central Command and Military Senior National Representatives from over 60 countries, and providing deployment support for coalition countries.
Livingston’s numerous military awards and decorations included the Distinguished Service Medal, Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit with Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster, Bronze Star Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Medal, Combat Action Badge, Parachutist Badge, Colombian Air Force Cross of Aeronautical Merit, Grand Cross Category, Colombian Medalla Militar “Fe El La Causa”, Columbian Medalla Militar “Simona Duque De Alzate”, Frence Medaille De La Defension Nationale, French Medaille Commemorative Francaise, and the Emblem of Honor of the Romanian General Staff. His other recognitions included the Sergeant William Jasper Freedom Award and the Order of the Palmetto, which is the highest civilian honor in the state.
Maj. Gen. Livingston served from January 2011 to January 2019 as the last popularly elected Adjutant General in the nation. He retired in March, 2019 with more than 40 years of military service.
29. Roy Van McCarty (2019-Present)
 
Major General Van McCarty was appointed as the 29th Adjutant General of South Carolina by Governor Henry D. McMaster after the gubernatorial election in November, 2018. Maj. Gen. McCarty is the first appointed Adjutant General in South Carolina since 1868.
 
Prior to his appointment, Maj. Gen. McCarty served as Deputy Adjutant General of the South Carolina Military Department where he oversaw the administrative activities and daily operations of the organization. Additionally, he served as the Deputy Commander during Defense Support to Civilian Authorities (DSCA) missions. In his Federal capacity, he served as the Assistant Adjutant General, responsible for monitoring unit readiness, to include strength, equipment and training. A native of Andrews, South Carolina, McCarty attended The Citadel, graduating in 1982 with a United States Army Reserve commission in the Field Artillery and a Bachelor of Science degree. He completed the Federal Bureau of Investigations National Academy at Quantico, Virginia, serving 24 years in the Law Enforcement Division with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
 
During more than 36 years of service, Maj. Gen. McCarty has commanded units at every echelon, from Battery to Brigade. His previous command assignments include: Commander, Alpha Battery, 4th Battalion, 178th Field Artillery; Battalion Commander, 1st Battalion, 178th Field Artillery (Operation Iraqi Freedom); Regional Police Advisory Commander (Operation Enduring Freedom), 218th Enhanced Separate Brigade; Commander, 59th Troop Command; and Assistant Adjutant General – Army . His military education includes: the Field Artillery Officer Basic and Advanced courses, Combined Armys and Services Staff School, U.S. Army Senior Service College, CAPSTONE,  and the Advancing Army Strategic Education Program.
 
Maj. Gen. McCarty’s awards and decorations include: the Legion of Merit; Bronze Star with one bronze oak leaf cluster; Meritorious Service Medal with one bronze oak leaf cluster; Army Commendation Medal with four bronze oak leaf clusters; Army Achievement medal with one bronze oak leaf cluster; Army Reserve Components Achievement Medal with one silver oak leaf cluster and two bronze oak leaf clusters; National Defense Service medal with bronze star; Afghanistan Campaign Medal with bronze star; Iraq Campaign Medal with bronze star; Global War on Terrorism Service Medal; Humanitarian Service Medal; Armed Forces Reserve Medal with silver hour class device and M device (2nd award); Army Service Ribbon; Overseas Service Ribbon (2nd award); NATO Medal; SC Meritorious Service Medal; SC Active State Service Medal with one silver star; SC Achievement Ribbon; and SC Mobilization Ribbon.