Singleton and Related Genealogy Pages
A history of many families.
1879 - 1911 (32 years)| Name | Thomas Sebastian SUMTER [2] | |
| Suffix | Jr | |
| Birth | 26 Sep 1879 | Stateburg, South Carolina  |
| Gender | Male | |
| HIST | Reflections by Sammy Way: Sumter inventors were creative and numerous Sumter's most successful inventor, C. T. Mason Jr., second from left, stands with U.S. Army aviators during World War I when Mason's magnetos were widely used on military aircraft. Mason inherited his father's inventive genius and, unlike his father, was able to enjoy greater recognition and monetary rewards from his talents. SUMTER ITEM FILE PHOTO Posted Saturday, June 14, 2025 6:00 am By SAMMY WAY Sumter Item archivist and historian Reflections revisits several of Sumter's inventors and their impact on the growth of our nation. The data and photos were taken from The Item archives. The writings of Dr. Anne King Gregorie and Cassie Nicholes were also consulted. An article written for The Item in 1950 stated, "A bicycle coaster brake, a jet pilot's 'G' suit, a typewriter's automatic shift, vacuum-packed fruits and vegetables and demagnetized watches all have the following in common: they were all invented or developed by Sumterites." Sumter has had several inventors, starting with the son of man the county is named after. Thomas Sumter Jr. invented a "writing press" in 1809 and was also working on a cotton press. His wife wrote to a friend, "Mr. Sumter will make a fortune with all his machines," a prophecy which never came to pass. Jeptha Dyson invented a device in 1848 which was helpful to the cotton industry, a device designed for cleaning the teeth of the main card cylinder. Before Dyson's invention was patented, the cylinder had to be stopped at least four times daily for cleaning. Unfortunately for Dyson, who was the operator of a cotton factory in Fulton, English manufacturers pirated the design, and he never received any profit for his invention. Maj. Joseph S. Bossard produced a machine that is to agriculture what the Swiss army knife is to cutlery. In 1853, he developed a machine that could gin cotton, grind corn and pound the husks from rice. It could be powered by animal, steam or water. One horsepower was needed to conduct one of the processes; all three at once required five horsepower. More careful than Dyson, Maj. Bossard made sure to get English as well as American patents. Sumter inventors included Harmon Moise, a man with the unlikely professional combination of being both a lawyer and a surveyor. He was also a tinkerer, and he produced one of those little devices that are invaluable yet seldomly considered. Moise invented the bicycle coaster brake; he sold the invention for $500. Later, Moise developed an automatic shift for typewriters. Herbert Bell, a Sumter native, developed the clothing that jet pilots wear to protect them from the increased force of gravity experienced at high speeds. His most successful invention was a valveless, automatic vacuum sewer-flushing tank, which he experimented with in Sumter and sold to the city. By far, the most notable among Sumter inventors were a father-and-son duo, the Masons. Charles T. Mason moved to Sumter in 1850 from Darlington District when he was 21 years old. He opened a jewelry store and lit it with a gaslight system he and his neighbor A. Hauser invented. The gas was generated from any kind of grease by a "gasometer" for which Mason and Hauser obtained a patent. Incidentally, Hauser, working by himself, also developed a vacuum process for taking the air out of cans, revolutionizing the preservation of fruits and vegetables. During the 1860s, Mason was superintendent of the Confederate Telegraph Service and manufactured all new equipment for the Confederacy from his shops in Sumter. In 1869, Mason patented an electric alarm for banks and later developed an electric motor. He also discovered a way to demagnetize watches; he later sold the process to Waltham Watch Co. of Massachusetts. His son, who inherited the Mason innovation bug, became more famous than his father and made more money, also. Charles T. Mason Jr. first gained recognition for his mechanical ability when he was 14 years old; he built a complete working model of a locomotive-type steam engine. He received the silver medal at the 1869 Fair of the Agricultural and Mechanical Society of South Carolina. After an apprenticeship in the North, Mason returned to Sumter to put together what was considered to be the finest machine shop south of Philadelphia. With the funds from his invention of a prosthesis, he constructed a building in which he perfected and produced an invention known as a magneto for use in gasoline engines. Mason proved himself ahead of his time by inventing a cotton-picking machine which would, he said, harvest 4,000 bales of cotton a day. At the time, however, a surplus of labor for picking cotton existed in the South; with no viable market, Mason abandoned the idea to manufacture the machine which operated on the same plan as modern cotton harvesters. Subsequently, Mason began manufacturing telephones and founded the Sumter Telephone Manufacturing Co. which established a worldwide trade. The plant employed over 400 male and female employees. He hired both Black and white men, to whom he paid the same salary. [1] | |
| _UID | 0EDA9652BAAE440ABF3F55B67FF03DCB0686 | |
| Death | 13 Oct 1911 | Charleston, South Carolina |
| Burial | Church of the Holy Cross Graveyard, Stateburg, S. C. |
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| Person ID | I9048 | Singleton and Related Families |
| Last Modified | 17 Jun 2025 | |
| Father | Thomas Sebastian SUMTER, Sr., b. 16 Apr 1852, “Home House” Stateburg, South Carolina d. 13 Feb 1934, Sumter County, South Carolina (Age 81 years) | |
| Mother | Catherine Waties REES, b. 12 Feb 1854, Stateburg, Sumter District, South Carolina d. 16 Jan 1929 (Age 74 years) | |
| Marriage | 3 Feb 1876 [2, 3] | |
| _UID | 2327AE9357084F70BF0887B053BDC4B83373 | |
| _UID | 2327AE9357084F70BF0887B053BDC4B83373 | |
| Family ID | F2566 | Group Sheet | Family Chart |
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