Rev. Dr. Samuel Booker Marshall

Celebration of Life services will be held on Friday, 11:00 am at the Lovely Hill Association Conference Center, 5905 W. Jim Bilton Blvd, St. George, SC. Lovely Hill Association Moderator, Rev. McKinley Ravenell will officiate. Burial will follow in the Hudsontown Cemetery. Wake services will be held Thursday, 6:00 – 8:00 pm at the Good Hope Baptist Church, 115 N. Metts St. St. George, SC.

The Reverend Doctor Samuel Booker Marshall was born on February 27, 1922, in Saint George, South Carolina to the late Reverend Jerry M. Marshall and Cinderella Davis Marshall.

He grew up in St. George and graduated from Voorhees High School in Denmark, South Carolina. He entered South Carolina State College and graduated in 1944 with a B.S. Degree in Agriculture. While at SCSC, he was the college soloist. During his senior year, he served as Principal of Ruffin High School in Ruffin, South Carolina. After further studies, he received a Master of Science in Education from South Carolina State College.

Upon his graduation, he became the Agricultural County Agent for Clemson University in Newberry County. It was the agricultural motto “a life of service is the one that counts,” that he would adopt and mold his life. While in Newberry, he became associated with Pratt’s Funeral Home. It was there, that he decided that funeral service would be one of his life’s callings.

In 1949, he and his father-in-law, the late Abraham Madison Shuler, formed the Shuler-Marshall Funeral Home in Holly Hill. He later became the sole proprietor of the business.

In 1972, the Shuler-Marshall Funeral Home moved to its present location. With his dedication to the profession and the nurturing of his wife, the funeral home became the pinnacle of professionalism in funeral service. They were joined in the business by their only daughter, Samuetta Marshall, who is also serving as Orangeburg County Coroner. We continue to strive to meet and exceed our motto of, “We Pledge Ourselves To A Service Of Efficiency, Solemnity and Dignity.”

During the fifties, he moved to New York where he studied professional singing. He later became a classical concert singer.

Later, he relocated to Pineville, SC and became Principal of Central, now Cross, High School. During his tenure, many initiatives, such as choir, band, brick masonry, electricity and carpentry, were instituted. He retired in 1972.

At an early age, he was called into the ministry, but resisted his calling.

In 1955, he answered his ministerial call, returned to South Carolina and became the pastor of the Second Providence Baptist Church, in Bowman, South Carolina in 1957. A year later, he became the pastor of his home church, the Good Hope Baptist Church in St. George. He retired as Pastor of both of these churches on his 90th birthday on February 27, 2012 after 50 plus years of dedicated service. He served as Pastor Emeritus at both churches.

After his retirement from the school system, he was elected to the Orangeburg County District Three School Board in 1973. He served as Chairman of the Board for thirty of his thirty-two years of service before retiring in 2005. Under his leadership, the school system was completely reorganized, restructured and consolidated to include new and rehabilitated facilities and new educational initiatives.

During the late 1940’s, he and several brothers of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. had the vision to form the Columbia Alumni Chapter. He was the sole surviving charter member.

He was a founding member of the Upper Dorchester Branch of the NAACP. A drum major for Civil Rights, he served as its first president for many years.

He served as a Trustee of Morris College in Sumter, South Carolina for eighteen years, and in 1984, he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Divinity Degree for his services rendered.

He has served on numerous civic initiatives to renovate, beautify and attract economic development for the Holly Hill area. He was also the co-founder of the Francis Folk Park in Holly Hill. He has shared generously his magnificent melodious baritone singing voice as a highlight of many civic programs and events.

In 1985, he became Moderator of the Lovely Hill Baptist Association. Under his leadership, the Lovely Hill Baptist Conference Center became a reality. Totally owned and operated by the Lovely Hill Baptist Association, the conference center has become a hub of activities for churches and organizations of the area. He served as Moderator Emeritus.

On May 31, 2012, a concurrent resolution was passed in the South Carolina General Assembly requesting that the Department of Transportation name the portion of South Carolina Highway 267 in Orangeburg County from its intersection with United States Highway 15 to its intersection with United States Highway 301 “Reverend Dr. Samuel Marshall Highway” and erect appropriate markers or signs that contain the words “Reverend Dr. Samuel Marshall Highway.”

He leaves to cherish loving memories: his loving devoted daughter, Orangeburg County Coroner Samuetta V. Marshall, of the home; a sister-in-law, Mrs. Olive Shuler Williams, a special devoted friend, nieces, nephews and a host of other relatives and friends.