South Carolina Governors – John Gary Evans, 1894-1897

Biographical Overview

• Born: October 15, 1863 in Cokesbury, South Carolina
  
• Died: June 27, 1942 in Spartanburg, South Carolina
  
• Buried: Willowbrook Cemetery in Edgefield, SC
  
• Religion: Episcopalian
  
• Political Party: Democrat
  

Education

• Union College, Schenectady, NY - withdrew 1880
  

Occupations

• Major, United States Army
• Lawyer

Major Events and Accomplishments, 1894–1897

• October 15, 1895 – Winthrop College opened in Rock Hill
  
• 1895 – Governor Evans presided over the South Carolina Constitutional Convention
  
• December 4, 1895 – The state constitutional convention adopted a new constitution that restricted the participation of blacks in the political process, outlawed interracial marriage, and legalized segregation of schools
  
• December 4, 1895 – The new constitution also changed the gubernatorial term schedule, limiting Governors to two terms of two years each and extending Evans' term by one month
  
• May 18, 1896 – The US Supreme Court's ruling in Plessy v. Ferguson upheld segregation and established the "separate but equal" doctrine
  
• Fall 1896 – The Colored Normal, Agricultural, and Industrial College opened in Orangeburg (now South Carolina State University)
  

Other Government Positions

• South Carolina House of Representatives, 1888-1892
  
• South Carolina Senate, 1892-1894
  

Other Accomplishments, Honors, Distinctions

• Evans assisted in the creation of civil government in Havana while a Major in the US Army during the Spanish-American War
  

Web Resources

• Biographical sketch - Marion County South Carolina Genealogy and History
  
• Listing of records available at SC Archives and History Center
  

Election Results