S. S. DeWitt

Who was S. S. DeWitt?

Sturgis Sprague DeWitt, known primarily as S.S. DeWitt was a farmer and businessman from Newellton and St. Joseph in Tensas Parish in northeastern Louisiana who served as a conservative Democratic member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1964–1972.

In 1963, DeWitt unseated 20-year Representative J.C. Seaman of Waterproof in southern Tensas Parish. He had run unsuccessfully against Seaman in the 1959 primary. In his first term from 1964–1968, DeWitt represented only Tensas Parish, but in his second term, he was paired with Lantz Womack of Winnsboro, the seat of Franklin Parish, in a combined district including Franklin, Tensas, and Madison parishes. DeWitt was hence the last person to have represented a district which included only Tensas Parish, the least populous of Louisiana's sixty-four parishes. Prior to 1968, all Louisiana parishes had a minimum of one member in the 105-member state House regardless of population. DeWitt lost a bid for a third term in the 1971 primary, and Womack was elected in a redistricted single-member district. After his legislative service, DeWitt switched his affiliation to the Republican Party.