Dr. Benjamin James Sanders, Jr.

Dr. Benjamin James Sanders, Jr.. The first born son and seventh child of Benjamin and Elsie Goodman Sanders was born in Allendale, S.C. near Appleton in Barnwell County. The son of a farmer with no school in his community, he attended a one-room one-teacher school that housed grades one through five. He later entered Hardin Academy which was six miles away and walked twelve miles daily to school, unless the horse was free. Determined to get an education, he entered S.C. State as a preparatory student and later received B.S. degrees from S.C. State College and Pennsylvania state and a masters degree from S.C. State College. His love for music extended from S.C. State College to the Morrison Glee Club at Oberlin College, Oberlin, Ohio., 1928 - Taught the sciences for seventeen years at Brewer Normal School, which was operated by the American Missionary Association. , 1945 - Appointed principal for Brewer High School, a position held until retiring in 1969. , 1967 - Paved the way for enrollment of the first black student at Lander College. , Under his leadership, Brewer grew from a total of seven teachers to a faculty of sixty-four and from an enrollment of less than four hundred to an accredited school of sixteen hundred., Lander college conferred upon him the Doctor of Humanities Degree in 1979. He was elected to the Greenwood Hall of Fame in 1981. He was a 33 degree mason, a member of Trinity United Methodist Church and a trustee of Greenwood Museum. He was married to the former Lucille Percival., Dr. Benjamin J. Sanders was a pillar of this community and he left a legacy of service to mankind.