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. Term of office is not set. Laureates are appointed by the Governor of South Carolina.
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History
The position was created by a joint resolution of the South Carolina General Assembly in 1934. 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.
Responsibilities
The position was not given any clear, specific duties. The honorarium of the position was only $ 1,200 by 1984. However, this honorarium was cut by Governor Mark Sanford in 2003 when Wentworth agreed to serve without the pay.
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.
The following is a list of official South Carolina poets laureate.