Isaiah DeQuincey Newman, a Darlington County native, was an esteemed clergyman and important civil rights leader. Educated in Williamsburg County public schools and Claflin College, he was ordained in the United Methodist Church (UMC) in 1931. In 1943, he helped organize the Orangeburg branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). On October 25, 1983, he became the first African-American since 1887 to serve in the state senate. He served with distinction on several senate committees, until his health forced him to resign; he died in Columbia, South Carolina, on October 21, 1985.
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