Bridging Deep South Rivers

Horace King (1807-1885) built covered bridges over every large river in the Gulf South from Georgia through Alabama to eastern Mississippi. That King, who began life as a slave in Cheraw, South Carolina, received no formal training makes his story all the more remarkable. This is the first major biography of the gifted architect and engineer who used his skills to transcend the limits of slavery and segregation and become a successful entrepreneur and builder. John S. Lupold and Thomas L. French Jr. add considerably to our knowledge of a man whose accomplishments demand wider recognition. As a slave and then as a freedman, King built bridges, courthouses, warehouses, factories, and houses in the three-state area. The authors separate legend from facts as they carefully document King's life in the Chattahoochee Valley on the Georgia-Alabama border. We learn about King's freedom from slavery in 1846, his reluctant support of the Confederacy, and his two terms in the Alabama Reconstruction legislature. In addition, the biography reveals King's relationship with his fellow (white) contractors and investors, especially John Godwin, his master and business partner, and Robert Jemison Jr.