Charles James McDonald “McDonald” FURMAN^[1]

1872 - 1904  (32 years)

• Name	Charles James McDonald “McDonald” FURMAN  [2, 3, 4, 5]
  Birth	1863/2	Privateer, Sumter County, South Carolina/Cornhill Plantation   [6, 7]
  Gender	Male
  HIST	Brent Burgin Director of Archives Native American Studies Center University of South Carolina Lancaster 119 S Main St. Lancaster, SC 29720 803-313-7063 wbburgin@sc.edu Mrs. Bessie Raffield Dunlap and the Bethel Presbytery Mission School on the Catawba Indian Reservation: The Origins of Catawba Literacy Catawba Reservation School (early 1900s) “Convert him in all ways but color into a white man, and, in fact the Indian would be exterminated, but humanely, and as beneficiary of the greatest gift at the command of the white man – his own civilization.” Characterization of Carlisle Indian School Founder R.H. Pratt’s philosophy by historian Robert H. Utley, 1979 ABSTRACT: In the latter half of the nineteenth century, the United States developed a new policy regarding Indians. Instead of extermination, assimilation was the new approach for dealing with a now subjugated people. Indian boarding schools were constructed and a new endeavor begun. The following are the words of R.H. Pratt, founder of Carlisle Indian Industrial School: “A great general has said that the only good Indian is a dead one, and that high sanctions of his destruction has been an enormous factor in promoting Indian massacres. In a sense, I agree with the sentiment, but only in this: that all the Indian there is in the race should be dead. Kill the Indian in him, and save the man.” (1892 Convention Lecture) Assimilation would now be achieved through the education of Native American youth. In South Carolina, during the era of “separate but equal education” there were eighteen Native American schools. The story of these schools and their students has never been told. As a third race in a two-race society, these groups fought not to be classed as African-Americans and to maintain their unique identities. One of the earliest Native American educational endeavors in South Carolina took place on the Catawba Indian Reservation. The Bethel Presbytery Mission School opened in 1897 and closed in 1905. Yet is was here that the seeds of learning were planted and a lasting educational effort begun. Plans for the school began in the 1890s, when noted South Carolina scholar and Sumter resident McDonald Furman visited the reservation and began to write letters and petition the legislature for an Indian school. The Catawbas had recently converted to Mormonism and the locals were outraged. Catawba chief Samuel Taylor blue gave an eyewitness account: “I remember a mob crowd come in here [the Reservation] one night about dark. They shot one of the Elders took the other elder which was about forty years old. They took him out of the Reservation, took his clothes off…whipped him, then poured whiskey in him. Then they choked him, one of the men in the crowd begged for them to turn him loose. They made the elder promise he would leave the reservation.” (D.S. Brown 1966) The Presbyterian church became interested in the Catawba and decided education would lead them back to true Christianity. A former Dalzell resident, Mrs. Rebecca Raffield Dunlap was selected as the first teacher. Her sentiments were typical of R.H. Pratt’s. In a letter to McDonald Furman she protested against the Mormon missionaries and the “curious influence” they seem to have over “the poor ignorant Indian…who is so easily lead astray.” (R.E. Dunlap letters, 1897). During her eight year tenure, Mrs. Dunlap made incredible strides and did much for the Catawba. She also became a divisive force and warred constantly against the Mormons and “their pernicious doctrine.” In 1905, after a long and bitter struggle sensationalized by the local media, Ms. Bessie Dunlap was forced to leave the reservation. 'Indian' schools are topic at Genealogical Society's meeting • • Share Share Print Create a hardcopy of this page Font Size: Default font size Larger font size Bethel Presbytery Mission School located on the Catawba Indian Reservation will be the topic at Monday's meeting of the Sumter County Genealogical Society. FROM STAFF REPORTS The Sumter County Genealogical Society will meet at 7:30 p.m. on Monday at Swan Lake Presbyterian Church, 912 Haynsworth St. Brent Burgin, who serves as the director of the Native American Studies Archive at the University of South Carolina Lancaster, will be the speaker. His topic will be Bethel Presbytery Mission School located on the Catawba Indian Reservation. Former Dalzell resident Rebecca Raffield Dunlap was the first teacher. The Bethel Presbytery Mission School was established in the late 19th century following the adoption of a new policy regarding Native Americans. Boarding schools were established in an attempt to assimilate American Indians rather than exterminate them. The new philosophy was expressed by R.H. Pratt, founder of Carlisle Indian Industrial School, in 1894: "A great general has said that the only good Indian is a dead one and that high sanctions of his destruction has been an enormous factor in promoting Indian massacres. In a sense, I agree with the sentiment, but only in this: that all the Indian there is in the race should be dead. Kill the Indian in him, and save the man." In his talk, Burgin will look at some of the 18 Indian schools established in South Carolina, with a focus on the Bethel Presbytery Mission School on the Catawba Indian Reservation, and their status as supposedly "separate but equal" schools. Plans for the Bethel school began in the 1890s when noted South Carolina scholar and Sumter resident McDonald Furman visited the reservation and began to write letters and petition the Legislature for an Indian school. The Catawbas had recently converted to Mormonism, and the locals were outraged, and the Presbyterians decided to bring them back to what they believed was "true Christianity." As the school's first teacher, Dalzell native Rebecca Raffield Dunlap played a big part in the mission, which Burgin will address during the Sept. 16 meeting. After a long, successful, yet unrewarding career in hotel operations and sales, Burgin went back to college. In a seven-year period, he received a bachelor of arts degree, a master of library and information science degree and a certificate of graduate study with an archives and records management concentration, all from the University of South Carolina. He is the director of the Native American Studies Archive at USC Lancaster, processing South Carolina's largest grouping of Native American materials. Burgin is also developing a University Archives for USC Lancaster, now in its 54th year of operation. He serves as membership officer for the South Carolina Archival Association and is an active member of the Katawba Valley Land Trust, Lancaster County Historical Society and the Archaeological Society of South Carolina. In 2010, the Native American Studies Archive at USC Lancaster received a National Award from the American Folklore Association for creating "digital collections of Native American ethnographic materials that support academic teaching, community history and folk heritage." Burgin is also an avid hiker and kayaker and when not in the archive is often on the water or in the woods. The Sumter County Genealogical Society meets monthly from September through May. Visitors are welcome and encouraged to attend. Admission is free to the public, and refreshments will be served following the presentation. Readers can call the Society's Research Center for additional information at (803) 774-3901. Posted in Local news, News on Thursday, September 12, 2013  [3, 4]
  _UID	155C6F97E70548298B777D0C540A6D315BF9
  Death	1904	Cornhill Plantation   [8]
  Person ID	I1682	Singleton and Related Families
  Last Modified	14 Dec 2020

  
  

  Father	Dr. John Howard FURMAN, I,   b. 19 Mar 1824, Coosahatchie, South Carolina d. 6 May 1902, Cornhill Plantation (Age 78 years)
  Mother	Susan Emma MILLER,   b. 14 Jun 1832   d. 7 May 1892 (Age 59 years)
  Marriage	8 May 1853	Corn Hill Plantation, Sumter County, SC   [9]
  _UID	A04BAFA789C44A7A9D95C9FBDF9EC94DDB45
  _UID	A04BAFA789C44A7A9D95C9FBDF9EC94DDB45
  Family ID	F692	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Sources

  [S28408] . [S6] Jenkins Gedcom File E-mail - tjjenkins4@juno.com. [S19927] . [S19928] ‘Indian’ schools are topic at Genealogical Society’s meeting. [S19929] . [S496] page 14. [S1513] 1880 Sumter County Census. [S11] Hugh Charles Haynsworth, (Osteen Publishing Company, Sumter, SC), page 132. [S496] .