S.C. Federal Court Judge Sol Blatt Jr., Dies at 94

The longest-serving federal judge in South Carolina history, Sol Blatt Jr., has died at age 94.

Robin Blume, the clerk of court for the District of South Carolina, confirmed that Blatt died at his Charleston home Wednesday evening.

Blatt was born in Barnwell County in 1921 and was the son of powerful state Rep. Solomon Blatt who served in the state House for 53 years, 33 of them as speaker.

Sol Blatt Jr. was appointed a federal judge in 1971 and took senior status in 1990. In 2006 he became the longest-serving federal judge in state history.

Blatt and his late wife Carolyn are survived by three children.

There will be a visitation Saturday afternoon at the federal courthouse in Charleston with a funeral the following day in Barnwell.