John Barnwell was a soldier and public official from South Carolina

South Carolina

South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

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He was the son of Nathaniel Barnwell and Mary Gibbes. During the American Revolution

American Revolution

The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...

, he served in the South Carolina Provincial Congress (1775–1776) and the first South Carolina General Assembly

South Carolina General Assembly

The South Carolina General Assembly, also called the South Carolina Legislature, is the state legislature of the U.S. state of South Carolina. The legislature is bicameral and consists of the lower South Carolina House of Representatives and the upper South Carolina Senate. Altogether, the General...

 (1776). As a major in the South Carolina militia during the American Revolutionary War

American Revolutionary War

The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...

, he was captured at Charlestown in 1780 and was later released in a prisoner exchange. He was appointed a general in the South Carolina militia after the war.

He frequently served in the South Carolina Senate

South Carolina Senate

The South Carolina Senate is the upper house of the South Carolina General Assembly, the lower house being the South Carolina House of Representatives...

 from 1778 until his death. He was elected to the Confederation Congress in 1784 but did not attend. He was a member of the state convention to ratify the United States Constitution

United States Constitution

The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government with the states, citizens, and all people within the United States.The first three...

 in 1788. In 1795, he was elected to the 4th United States Congress

4th United States Congress

-House of Representatives:- Senate :* President: John Adams * President pro tempore:** Henry Tazewell , first elected December 7, 1795** Samuel Livermore , first elected May 6, 1796** William Bingham , first elected February 16, 1797...

 but declined to serve.

Barnwell County, South Carolina

Barnwell County, South Carolina

-History:The Barnwell District was created in 1798 from the southwestern portion of the Orangeburg District, along the Savannah River...

, is named for him, or possibly his brother Robert Barnwell

Robert Barnwell

Robert Gibbes Barnwell was a South Carolina revolutionary and statesman who was a delegate to the Confederation Congress and a United States Congressman....

 or his grandfather John Barnwell

John Barnwell (colonist)

John Barnwell was a native of Ireland who emigrated to the Province of South Carolina in 1701. He led an army against the Tuscarora in 1711–1712. Later he served the colony as an official in talks with England in forming the government...

. Other relatives include Robert Woodward Barnwell

Robert Woodward Barnwell

Robert Woodward Barnwell was an American planter, lawyer, and educator from South Carolina who served as a Senator in both the United States Senate and that of the Confederate States of America.-Biography:...

 and Senator Robert Barnwell Rhett.