Welcome to the
Samuel Bacot Chapter
Florence, SC
South Carolina Society
Daughters of the American Revolution
The DAR, founded in 1890 and headquartered in Washington, DC, is a volunteer
women's service organization dedicated to promoting patriotism, preserving
American history, and securing America's future through better education for children.
Any woman is eligible for membership who is no less than eighteen years of age
and can prove lineal, bloodline descent from an ancestor who aided in achieving
American independence.
The Samuel Bacot Chapter, NSDAR, was organized on January 18, 1908, and chartered on March 14, 1908.
The chapter was named in honor and memory of Samuel Bacot, who served as a lieutenant
under General Francis Marion. There were 12 charter members. The chapter presently
has 74 members who meet on the second Wednesday of each month, September through May.
Samuel Bacot, a brave revolutionary patriot, served as lst Lieutenant in General Francis
Marion's Brigade in 1782. He was a native of Christ Church Parish, having been born near
Goose Creek, SC, in 1745. Shortly after his marriage to Sarah Margaret Allston in 1769,
he left the Low Country and moved to what was then the backwoods of South Carolina,
to a point on the Wateree River near Camden where he resided during the thrilling days of the Revolution.
Samuel Bacot's most daring exploit during the struggle for independence has been handed down through generations.
In 1782, he, along with about thirty others considered dangerous to His Majesty's cause in the Province,
were imprisoned in Camden. In order to provide maximum security, the authorities decided to transfer
the group to Charles Town. On the journey to that place, the night was spent at a deserted log cabin,
where Bacot and his fellow prisoners perfected a plan of escape. After midnight, Bacot, the leader
of the plot, summoned the guard and requested a drink of brandy. When the drink was given to him,
he dashed it in the guard's face, and with his comrades, rushed through the door, overpowering the guards
and seizing their stacked weapons. In a compassionate gesture, the guards were freed, and the
former prisoners each made his way home.
The above Samuel Bacot history is adapted from that written and read by Horace Rudisill on May 9, 1973,
at the unveiling of a roadside marker to Samuel Bacot. The marker was sponsored jointly by the
Samuel Bacot Chapter, NSDAR, and the Darlington County Historical Commission.
We are located in Florence, South Carolina, and would love to
talk to you about becoming a member of the
Society. If you would like more information about the DAR,
including membership requirements,
please e-mail our chapter
regent:
