Architecture of the Last Colony with Mark C. McDonald

Architecture of the Last Colony with Mark C. McDonald

Edited By Mark C. McDonald

Architecture of the Last Colony surveys the most important extant buildings in the state of Georgia, focusing on structures that showcase successful historic preservation practices and techniques. Richly illustrated with full-color, large-format photographs of these structures along with descriptions of their architectural significance, this book tells the story of how Georgia’s built environment reflects its growth from 1733 to the present. While numerous books about Georgia architecture feature buildings that have been lost to demolition, this volume focuses on extant structures that readers can visit and observe for themselves.

The buildings range in style from the folk-art structures of St. EOM’s Pasaquan and Howard Finster’s Paradise Gardens to the suburban Craftsman bungalows of Leila Ross Wilburn to the lavish antebellum mansions of Savannah and Athens, Georgia. Noted architectural photographers, including Brian Brown, Diane Kirkland, James Lockhart, Charlie Miller, and John Tatum, provide the companion photographs.

The six chapters in the book, written by architectural historians with subject-matter expertise, including Carl I. Gable, Carmie Jones McDonald, Mark C. McDonald, Joseph Smith, Spencer Tunnell, and Robin B. Williams, are organized chronologically and by architectural style, covering the earliest buildings in Georgia up through significant contemporary structures of the twentieth century. These buildings tell a diverse story that shows how nationally significant architects and Native Americans, pioneer, female, and African American architects have all contributed to Georgia’s built environment.

About the Author

Mark C. McDonald retired in the fall of 2023 after 15 years as president and CEO of the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation and a 37-year career in historic preservation.

Under McDonald’s leadership, the Georgia Trust doubled the number of properties protected by its Revolving Fund and Easements programs, successfully completed a $2.3 million capital campaign for the restoration of its headquarters, Rhodes Hall, and its grounds, established the country’s first green certification program for historic buildings and residences, and strengthened its financial position.

McDonald has been named four times to Georgia Trend magazine’s list of “Notable Georgians,” and in 2022, was included in the publication’s “Georgia 500: the State’s Most Influential Leaders” listing. He served as chairman of the Partners Network of the National Trust for Historic Preservation and on the organization’s Board of Trustees and Board of Advisors. He currently serves as chairman of the Georgia Women of Achievement’s Selection Committee, a post he has held since 2011, and on the board of trustees of the Ossabaw Island Foundation.

In addition to the Trust, McDonald served as executive director for three preservation organizations in the Southeast, including the Historic Salisbury Foundation in North Carolina from 1986-1990, the Mobile Historic Development Commission in Mobile, Alabama from 1990-1998, and Historic Savannah Foundation from 1998-2008, and was recognized by the American Institute of Architects with a Citation of Excellence for his 10 years of service in Savannah.

McDonald holds a Bachelor of Arts degree with a double major in history and English from Emory University and a law degree from the University of Georgia School of Law. He currently resides in Ansley Park with his wife Carmie, an Episcopal Priest, and their dog Ramsey. He has 3 adult sons, Will, Charles, and Francis, and 2 granddaughters, Blair and Birdie.