South Carolina Poet Laureate
The South Carolina Poet Laureate is the poet laureate for the US state of South Carolina. The position is currently held by Marjory Heath Wentworth.[1] Term of office is not set.[2] Laureates are appointed by the Governor of South Carolina.
History
The position was created by a joint resolution of the South Carolina General Assembly in 1934.[2] The term of office is not officially set, but generally it has been a life-time appointment. Governor Richard Wilson Riley changed this some during his term of office, limiting the laureateship to one-year terms.[3]
Responsibilities
The position was not given any clear, specific duties. The honorarium of the position was only $ 1,200 by 1984.[4] However, this honorarium was cut by Governor Mark Sanford in 2003 when Wentworth agreed to serve without the pay.[5]
List of poets laureate
Prior to the official creation of the position in 1934, William Gilmore Simms had been often recognized as South Carolina's poet laureate.[6][7]
The following is a list of official South Carolina poets laureate.[8]
- Archibald Rutledge (1934–1973; appointed by Ibra Charles Blackwood)
- Helen von Kolnitz Hyer (1974–1983; appointed by John C. West)
- Ennis Rees (1984–1985; appointed by Richard Wilson Riley)
- Grace Beacham Freeman (1985–1986; appointed by Richard Wilson Riley)
- Bennie Lee Sinclair (1986–2000; appointed by Richard Wilson Riley)
- Marjory Heath Wentworth (2003–present; appointed by Mark Sanford)
See also
References
- ↑ "Poet Laureate". State of South Carolina. Retrieved December 8, 2012.
- 1 2 "South Carolina". U.S. State Poets Laureate. Library of Congress. Retrieved December 8, 2012.
- ↑ "Greenville native tapped as state's poet laureate". The Rock Hill Herald. AP. September 16, 1986. Retrieved December 20, 2012.
- ↑ "Wanted: Poet Extraordinaire To Fill S.C. Laureate Post". The Charleston News & Courier. AP. January 2, 1984. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
- ↑ Stanton, David (June 18, 2003). "Gov. Sanford releases budget vetoes". WIS TV channel 10. Retrieved December 20, 2012.
- ↑ "Simms, William Gilmore (1806-1870) (Two items from William Gilmore Simms) Decimalized". The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. Retrieved December 20, 2012.
- ↑ Elkins, J. "William Gilmore Simms". Lawyers and Poetry. J. Elkins. Retrieved December 20, 2012.
- ↑ "Poet Laureate". South Carolina Arts Commission. Retrieved December 8, 2012.