LET’S BUILD BRIDGES
If the descendants of the slave owner and of the enslaved at Drayton Hall can find a way forward, so can we. Drayton Hall Stories: A Place and Its People is the book that Charlie Drayton and Catherine Braxton (shown here) wanted. It connects us to history in very real ways. It is diverse yet unified. It informs and challenges. We hope that you will agree that these are critically important goals in today’s world that are worthy of your support.
(1) Click on Play to start then (2) click on lower right icon to enlarge. (3) Pause video at any time to enjoy the over 200 photos that create the scene. JS Bach’s “Goldberg Variations I” played by Jeremiah Jones, Lisztonian.com
DRAYTON HALL STORIES: A PLACE AND ITS PEOPLE
A new portrayal of this icon among America’s historic sites, this book is a mosaic of stories and photographs. It is the first of its kind. Rather than being written solely by historians or curators, it presents a range of viewpoints on this one place.
Over fifty fascinating interviews (click for list of interviewees) will feature site descendants (both White and Black), board members, donors, staff, and professionals in history, museum studies, preservation, education, tourism, and more. Each will give his or her perspective and, by doing so, will show how historic sites can enhance biracial understanding and be a positive force in today’s world.
Image-rich, the book will be published in the spring of 2022 by Evening Post Books, which specializes in high quality literary fiction and non-fiction. A portion of the net proceeds will benefit Drayton Hall.
THE MANY PEOPLE FEATURED IN “DRAYTON HALL STORIES”
FIRST ON FACEBOOK – STORY EXCERPTS
“I’ve Never Seen Such a Contrast”
Southern Edge Magazine
A Clubhouse or Golf Course or Two?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
George W. McDaniel, PhD, is the President of McDaniel Consulting, LLC, a strategy firm that helps organizations use history to build bridges within itself and to its broader constituents. For 25 years, he served as the Executive Director of Drayton Hall, a historic site in Charleston, SC. A native of Atlanta, he earned a BA from Sewanee, a MAT (history) from Brown University, and PhD (history) from Duke. Interspersed through those years were travels to many places — Europe, Africa, Vietnam — where he saw peace and war and learned by experience about cultural differences and commonalities. For 40 years, he built a career working in education and history museums, beginning with the Smithsonian Institution, and earning awards at the local, state, and national levels. Following the 2015 massacre at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, SC, he helped lead volunteer efforts with the church and other organizations to enhance racial conciliation and healing. During his last decade with Drayton Hall, he recorded oral interviews with a range of people, including site descendants (both White and Black), board members, donors, staff, and professionals in history, tourism, museum studies, and historic preservation. The resulting book, “Drayton Hall Stories: A Place and Its People,” presents a mosaic of stories and insights and is to be published in the spring of 2022. Reach him at gmcdaniel4444@gmail.com