Grady Leslie Patterson, Jr. (January 13, 1924 – December 7, 2009) was a

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

politician who served as the

South Carolina Treasurer The South Carolina Office of the State Treasurer is a government organization responsible for all state government funds. The current treasurer is Republican Curtis Loftis, who assumed office January 12, 2011. Responsibilities The South Carol ...

and a United States Air Force Lieutenant General. Born in

Calhoun Falls, South Carolina Calhoun Falls is a town in Abbeville County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 1,724 at the 2020 census, down from 2,004 at the 2010 census. The town derives its name from John E. Colhoun (or Calhoun), a United States Senator from ...

, Patterson graduated from University of South Carolina. He served in World War II in the

U.S. Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

, flying missions from

Iwo Jima Iwo Jima (, also ), known in Japan as , is one of the Japanese Volcano Islands and lies south of the Bonin Islands. Together with other islands, they form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The highest point of Iwo Jima is Mount Suribachi at high. ...

as a fighter pilot. In 1946, he became a member of the

South Carolina Air National Guard The South Carolina Air National Guard (SC ANG) is the aerial militia of the State of South Carolina, United States of America. It is, along with the South Carolina Army National Guard, an element of the South Carolina National Guard. As state ...

serving in the Korean War and the Berlin Airlift. He also served as Chief of Staff for the South Carolina Air National Guard and Assistant to the Commander of the

United States Air Force Logistics Command Air Materiel Command (AMC) was a United States Army Air Forces and United States Air Force command. Its headquarters was located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. In 1961, the command was redesignated the Air Force Logistics Comman ...

. When he retired in 1984, the South Carolina State Legislature promoted him from Major General to Lieutenant General. Patterson served as Assistant Attorney General under Dan McLeod in 1959 until he was first elected in 1966 as the State Treasurer after the death of Jefferson Bates. He was re-elected in 1970, 1974, 1978, 1982, 1986 and 1990, serving a total of 36 years. He was defeated by Republican

Richard Eckstrom Richard A. Eckstrom (born June 23, 1948) is an American politician from the state of South Carolina. A Republican, he served as the comptroller general of South Carolina from 2003 until his resignation in 2023. From 1995 to 1999, he served one te ...

in the

Republican Revolution The "Republican Revolution", "Revolution of '94", or "Gingrich Revolution" are political slogans that refer to the Republican Party (GOP) success in the 1994 U.S. mid-term elections, which resulted in a net gain of 54 seats in the House of ...

of 1994 but defeated Eckstrom in a rematch in 1998. He was re-elected in 2002 but in 2006, he was defeated by Republican Thomas Ravenel.

Notes

External links

Grady L. Patterson Papers
at South Carolina Political Collections, University of South Carolina People from Calhoun Falls, South Carolina University of South Carolina alumni State treasurers of South Carolina United States Air Force generals 1924 births 2009 deaths 20th-century American politicians {{USAF-bio-stub