The following biographical sketch is by Mr. Wm. S. Elliott, of South Carolina, a grand nephew of Pinckney:
"In the diploma, by which the degree of Doctor of Laws was conferred upon him by the University of Princeton, New Jersey, it is expressly declared, that it 'is conferred on account of high acquirements, learning and ability, and particularly for his distinguished services in Congress and the Federal Convention.' From 1787 to 1789, he was traveling on the Continent and on his return, was elected Governor of the State. While Governor, he was a delegate to, and made president of the State Convention for forming the Constitution. In 1791 he was chosen a second time, and in 1796 a third time, Governor of the State; in 1798 a Senator in Congress, where he remained until 1801, when Mr. Jefferson appointed him Minister Plenipotentiary to Spain, with power to treat for the purchase of Louisiana and Florida. On his return in 1806, he was a fourth time honored with the position of Governor of the State, and he is the only citizen who has been so frequently elevated to the executive chair. From this period he retired from public life, until in 1818, when he was elected under great party excitement to the United States House of Representatives by Charleston District, and he here closed his political life with his speech in opposition to the Missouri Compromise.
"Family tradition and genealogical history are the very reverse of amber, which, itself a valuable substance, usually includes trifles; whereas, these trifles being in themselves very insignificant and trifling do, nevertheless, serve to perpetuate a great deal of what is rare and valuable in ancient manners, and to record many curious and minute facts, which could have been preserved and conveyed through no other medium.
"Charles Pinckney professed an exquisite appreciation of the beautiful in nature and in art. His collection of paintings, statuettes, medals, etc., rendered his house almost a museum. His fine library, occupying an entire suite of three large rooms—the floors and windows of which were kept richly carpeted and curtained, while the ceilings were decorated with classic representations—is supposed to have contained near twenty thousand of the rarest and choicest books, collected from every part of the Continent, and in every language spoken in the enlightened world."
Thomas Pinckney,
who settled in South Carolina in 1687,
was the father of
(2) (3)
William, Thomas.
Master in Chancery.
His Son,
Col. Chas. Pinckney.
His Son,
Governor Charles Pinckney.
His Son,
Hon. Henry L. Pinckney.
"A life of Charles Pinckney was prepared and in the possession of the Hon. Henry L. Pinckney for revision and addition; with it were his valuable papers. The fire of 1861, which desolated the city of Charleston, destroyed almost everything, and this, and the former essay, are compiled from many stray notes, mutilated manuscripts and a few papers, still in our possession.
"A very strange and melancholy feeling overtakes us as we search the remains of Charles Pinckney. Here is a man upon whom Heaven appears to have showered its gifts. Distinguished in ancestry, possessing fine intellect, vigorous health, and large fortune, with his political ambition fully gratified, of refined tastes and cultivation, linking his name successfully and eminently, with his day and his race, and yet, here are his memorials in a few tattered bits of paper, scarcely decipherable. His ashes are in the family burying ground. The spot is known. No stone, however, marks his final resting-place. His house in Charleston years ago, passed into the hands of the stranger, and has been torn down. The very earth has been removed, and now forms one of the fortifications of White Point Battery, erected during the late war for the defense of the city of Charleston. The library is broken and scattered. The picture of Lady Hamilton, and his own portrait, are the only two that we know of that remain of his once splendid gallery. The beautiful grounds of "Fee Farm" have disappeared, and the plough runs its furrows through the grove, and the grave-yard.". DeBow's Review, April 2, 1866.