The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1896-06-23
ISAAC q. sroKIssIoK.
a Sketch OF His Life and Services
A Brave Soldier and Patriotic
Citizen.

ClttZcn. ~
The subject OF the following sketch
died at his home in Union ON Monday,
June 8, 1895. He vas much larger than
his W county, and was well known
and highly esteemed by hundreds of
people in all sections of the State. He
was generous, large hearted, full of
love for his neighbor, kind to every
one, q genial companion, q helpful
friend in time Of need, without bitter
ness to any one, with strong faith In
the people, a lover Of his country, his
church and his God. 1t gives us pleas
ure to publish the following sketch
prepared atthe request of The Spartan:
Col. Isaac G. McKissick was born In
Union county, in that section known
as pea Ridge" which he has since
made famous, on Nov. 20, 1925. He
sprung from the loins of a sturdy
Scotch-Irish ancestry, his ancestors
having lived near the border of Scot
land and Ireland. When he was seven
or eight years Of age his father died,
leaving a widow, five sons and one
daughter. Col. McKissick's early
childhood was spent on the farm and
his education was, of course, limited
days would number less than twelve
months, all told, and it has been often
told of him that his education was OBJ
tanned by studying at night. by the
light Of a pine knot, or lightwood, after
the days labors was " @ In fact, he
has often told the writer of this. that
1t was his custom, after getting his
supper, to steal away aud go behind
the old barn and study. Whatever ed
ucation he received was through his
own efforts. At the age of twenty-five
h Wno nlnnfnl Hnlnrly ~ III, N,,r ~
Union district over one of the most in
huential men in that section, who was,
II the writer Ia not mistaken, Mr.. VIM.
j. keenan,. His election at that age
was a high compliment to his native
ability and worth. When the time
came orr him to take the oath of Office
and assume its duties, all the teams
n horses on his mothers plantation
were so busily engaged In gathering the
crop, that he walked from his mothers
home to Union court house, a distance
Of twelve miles. From thatetime until
the war began he held the office Of
clerk Of the court, and the records
show that his duties were we'll per-
formed and as Judge Wardlaw once
said he was the best clerk of the court
he had ever seen. vi
When secession was uppermost In the
minds Of the people of South Carolina,
Col. McKissick espoused the cause with
all b fervor Of his warm nature. He
made speeches throughout the upper
section of South Carolina and until his
dying day, believed in States rights.
During his term of Office as clerk Of
the court he was successively elected
lieutenant colonel and afterwards
brigadier general of State militia.
When the war came on he forsook his
b~omb-proof office, which he could have
easily held during the war, and organ
lied q company. This command was
known as the McKissick Rangers, and
Its ~lieutenants ere john w. Palmer,
long since dead, and Gillian IT. Jeter,
now living in Union county. The Nc
ktssick Rangers were sen to Charles
ton where there were other companies
in the Holcombe Legion under the
command, at that time, of Col. p. +.
Stevens, now bishop of the Episcopal
church. This command was named
after Governor Pickens' wife, Lucy
Holcombe. While serving on Gov
ernor Pickens' plantation, which was
then fortified, Governor P~ickens,'his
staff and Mrs. Pickens visited the
legion II presented it with q flag and
simply said: "Soldiers, this flag repre-
sents n dear to my heart, never let it
trail" The legion was afterwards
transferred to Virginia with head
quarters near Williamsburg. 1t was
at Williamsburg that the McKissick
hangers achieved. perhaps, their
short sketch necessarily precludes the
incidents Of that horCic charge led by
Col. Mckissick. Afterwards the Hoi-
combe Legion was disbanded or dis
organized and the McKissick Rangers
were transferred to the Seventh South
Carolina Cavalry, of which Alexander
@. Haskell was elected colonel and I.
O.. Mckissick lieutenant colonel. The
superb service of this command is
written in history. AT Old Oh rich
near Cold Harbor, while under the
command of Gen. M. G. Butler, the
Seventh South Carolina Cavalry fought
one of its hardest battles, in which
every field officer was killed and
wounded and in which many gallant
-" "s' their lives. Col. McKissick
rely wounded, and while being
.uhon H., IN the field lost his sword, a
fact he regretted always. He went
homo after lying in the hospital at
Richmond a long time, and while
Incorporating he was elected to the
Legislature where he served until his
wound was healed and he then re-
turned to the froG.. o..
hc was present dG tne surrender, al
though on furlough. He wanted to
fight his way out with some of Gary's
Brigade, but his soldiers would not al
low him to do so on account of his con-
dition. Returning homo stricken in
fortune, sore at heart aud desolate with
the knowledge that the cause was lost,
ne attempted to recOup as best he
could. He entered the law Office OF
Hon. a. w. Thompson in 1866 and was
admitted to the bar in q very largo
class, among whom was Judge Van
Wycke, of Brooklyn, N. Y, and Hon.
Robert Aldrich, of Barnwell, and many
other prominent men who have made
their impress on the history of their
country. In 1866 Col. McKissick and
Miss Sallie Foster, daughter of Col. b.
b. Foster, OF Glenn Spings. Spartan
burg county, were married. In 1870
Col. McKissick was nominated for Con-
gress by the Democrats and was elected
by o large majority, although his op-
ponent, A. S. Wallace, of York, was
counted In by the Republicans after a
long and tedious contest in Washing
ton. About this time a law partner.
ship was formed between him and Gen.
VIM. IL. Wallace, which lasted until
1877, when General Wallace was Gle.
waited to the bench. In 1876 Col. Nc.
Ktssick did valiant work>for the cause
OF Hampton and for the cause OF every
honest Carolinian. He worked night.
and day, making speeches everywhere.
| No man reiOiCed more than he did az