First off was Edward Rutledge who was the youngest member of congress at the age of twenty-six. Rutledge was an accomplished orator although he had a tendency to talk through his nose. His style, as observed by John Adams and others, was characterized by impetuousness, a rapid fire delivery, and frequent eye, head and body movements to punctuate his remarks. With the exception of Pennsylvania's John Dickinson, he was probably the most eloquent spokesmen on the negative side of the Lee Resolution, (Independance). Since their prudent counsels had failed, the four delegates from South Carolina decided that they would change their votes for the sake of humanity.
Thomas Heyward Jr. was born in 1746 in St. Luke’s Parish, now known as Jasper Co.. CS. He was elected to the Continental Congress in 1775 and signed the Declaration of Independance in 1776. Heyward Returned to South Carolina in 1778 to serve as a judge. In command of a militia force he was taken prisoner by British during the siege of Charleston. He continued to serve as a judge after the war , retiring from the bench in 1798. He is buried at Old House Plantation near Ridgeland, Jasper Co. S.C.
Thomas Lynch Jr. was the son of a gentleman of the same name, and was born the 5th of august in 1749 at Prince George’s Parish in the province of South Carolina, now known as Georgetown. Lynch became a company commander in the 1st South Carolina regiment in 1775 and was elected to the Continental Congress. He was taken ill at the end of 1779 when he and his wife decided to sail for respite to St. Eustatius in the West Indies. Their ship disappeared at sea in a storm and was never heard from again. Before the voyage Lynch had made a will stipulating that hrs of his female relatives must change their surname to Lynch in order to inherit the family estate, a rice plantation. The family estate, Hopsewee, still stands today.
Arthur Middleton was born June 26th 1742. He studied Law at the Middle Temple in London, England. He was keenly interested in Carolina politics, Middleton was a more radical thinker of his time than his father Henry Middleton. He was a leader in the American Party in South Carolina and one of the boldest members of the Council of Safety and its secret committee. In 1776 Arthur was elected to succeed his father in the Continental Congress and subsequently was a signer of the Decleration of Independance. Also, in 1776 he and William Drayton designed the Great Seal of South Carolina. Despite the time he spent in England, his attitude toward Loyalists was said to be ruthless. During the Revolutionary War, he served in the defence of Charleston and after the city fell in 1780 he was taken as a prisoner of war to St. Augustine, FL (along with Edward Rutledge and Thomas Heyward Jr.) until exchanged the following year in July. Arthur middleton died on January 1st, 1787 at the age of 44 and was buried in the family tomb in the Gardens of Middleton Place.