McSweeney, Miles Benjamin | South Carolina Public Radio

“M” is for McSweeney, Miles Benjamin [1855-1909]. Governor. After serving as co-publisher of a newspaper in Ninety Six, McSweeney moved to Hampton and founded the Hampton County Guardian. He became an active member of the South Carolina Press Association and served as its president. An influential member of the Democratic Party in Hampton County, in 1894, he was elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives. Two years later he was elected lieutenant governor. He was reelected in 1898; following the death of Governor William H. Ellerbe, McSweeney became governor. With the support of U.S. Senator Benjamin Tillman, McSweeney was elected to a full term as governor in 1900. Constitutionally ineligible to serve another term, he left office in 1903 and returned to private life in Hampton. Miles Benjamin McSweeney remained active in Democratic Party politics, but never held another public office.