SUSANNAH SMITH ELLIOTT CHAPTER, NSDAR, ORGANIZING HISTORY
In the autumn of 2001, a few Summerville ladies who were already members of National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution in other chapters felt that there was sufficient interest to organize a Summerville chapter, so they initiated a plan to create what would become the Susannah Smith Elliott Chapter, NSDAR.

Brenda Sutton, Chapter Organizing Regent, and Marilyn Altman, State Organizing Secretary, began the work to make the chapter a reality. They conducted monthly planning meetings for a year, spreading the word that a new chapter was in the making. When the chapter was organized the following year on August 17, 2002, it had the largest number of chapter members of any DAR organization in the state of South Carolina. There were 47 charter members with 60 percent of them being new to the DAR.  

The chapter was confirmed by National Society of Daughters of the American Revolution on October 5, 2002, and was named the Susannah Smith Elliott Chapter, NSDAR. This name was chosen because Mrs. Elliott was a Patriot who lived in Dorchester County. (Read more about Susannah Smith Elliott here.)

The chapter flags were a small tabletop set consisting of the United States flag, the South Carolina state flag, and the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution flag. Presented to Chapter Regent Sutton at the chapter organizing meeting on August 17, 2002 by the Fort Sullivan Chapter, the flags are in the possession of each successive chapter regent and are present at all chapter meetings. A larger 3-foot by 5-foot South Carolina state flag which was flown over the state capitol building in Columbia, South Carolina, on May 23, 2002, was presented to the chapter by South Carolina Representative Annette D. Young on behalf of the South Carolina House of Representatives. This flag is also maintained by the chapter regent.

At the organizing meeting on August 17, 2002, Chapter Regent Brenda Sutton was presented the chapter gavel by South Carolina DAR State Regent Henrietta Rosson Morton and the chapter regent’s pin by South Carolina DAR State Treasurer Bonnie Scales Glasgow. They, too, are maintained and in the possession of the regent during her term of office and passed on to the next elected regent.