Thursday, May 21, 2009

New Exhibit at St. Simons Lighthouse -- "Eugenia Price: A Life Celebrated"

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, GEORGIA – Bet you didn't know Eugenia Price was a huge fan of the Atlanta Braves.

That's just one of many new things visitors will soon learn at the keeper's dwelling at the St. Simons Island Lighthouse. The Lighthouse Museum will open a new exhibit based on the beloved writer's life and works, June 15 in the keeper's dwelling.

Entitled "Eugenia Price: A Life Celebrated," the exhibit discusses Price's research techniques and sources, drawing parallels between the characters she created for her novels, and their historical basis in the real world.


Museum goers who are familiar with James Gould – designer and keeper of St. Simons Island's first lighthouse – will enrich their understanding of him through his characterization in Price's novel, Lighthouse. Fans of Price's novels will expand their knowledge of Gould and the historical setting through the museum's permanent exhibits, including his portrait and depictions of the first lighthouse.


Visitors will visualize Price's writing process through the centerpiece of the exhibit: her desk, complete with manuscripts, photos, letters and a typewriter, among other objects. Price's many other activities took place and will be recreated in this work space, including her work as an inspirational writer and broadcaster.


They'll also see a homemade tomahawk, given to her by a reader who knew Price was an avid Atlanta Braves fan.


Longtime readers and regular museum visitors alike will find new angles for exploration of the Golden Isles' history and the writings of one of its most beloved authors.


The exhibit will continue through the summer in connection with a series of speakers, book discussions and other activities related to Eugenia Price and her career. The exhibit is sponsored by the Coastal Georgia Historical Society and is made possible through donations from the Eugenia Price Estate and the Eugenia Price-Joyce Blackburn Foundation, Inc.


Saint Simons Island Lighthouse Summer Hours Begin June 15. Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, Wednesdays 9:00 am to 9:00 pm, and Sundays 1:30 pm to 5:00 pm. Admission is $6.00 for adults (over 12 years of age) and $3.00 for children (6-12 years of age). Children ages five and under are Free. For information, call 912-638-4666 or visit them online.

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Biography:
Eugenia Price, 1916-1996


Perhaps more than any other modern writer, Eugenia Price has defined the stories of the old South. Her 14 novels, including the St. Simons Trilogy, the Florida Trilogy, and the Georgia Trilogy, are filled with characters from the Georgia and Florida coasts in the 1800s.


Ms. Price’s meticulously researched books set the standard for historical fiction of the period, offering a rare insight into the everyday routines and concerns of Americans in the 19th century South. As well-known as her novels are her 26 volumes of inspirational non-fiction.


Ms. Price touched readers with her insights and perceptions on life, faith and service in such works as The Burden is Light and God Speaks to Women Today. In all, Ms. Price sold more than 20 million books world-wide during her lifetime.


Eugenia Price was born in Charleston, West Virginia, in 1916. After completing her studies at Northwestern University, she began writing and producing for radio, then television. The publication of her first book, Discoveries, in 1952, launched her career as an author.


In 1960, while on a promotional tour for her non-fiction books, Ms. Price discovered St. Simons Island, Georgia. Stories of long-ago Island families inspired her first novel, Beloved Invader, and her writing took a new direction. Ms. Price built a home, named “The Dodge,” on St. Simons Island and lived there until her death from a heart ailment on May 28, 1996. She is buried at Christ Church on her beloved Island.


Eugenia Price Books
(In Order of Publication)
Discoveries
The Burden Is Light

Never A Dull Moment

Early I Will Seek Thee

Share My Pleasant Stones

Woman to Woman

What Is God Like?

Beloved World

A Woman’s Choice

Find Out For Yourself

God Speaks To Women Today

The Beloved Invader (Novel)

The Wider Place

Make Love Your Aim

Just As I Am

Learning to Live From the Gospels

New Moon Rising (Novel)

The Unique World of Women

Learning to Live from the Acts

Lighthouse (Novel)

Don Juan McQueen (Novel)

Maria (Novel)

St. Simons Memoir

Leave Yourself Alone

Margaret’s Story (Novel)

Diary of a Novel

No Pat Answers

Getting Through the Night

What Really Matters

Another Day

At Home on St. Simons

Savannah (Novel)

To See Your Face Again (Novel)

Before the Darkness Falls (Novel)

Stranger in Savannah (Novel)

Bright Captivity (Novel)

Inside One Author’s Heart

Where Shadows Go (Novel)

Beauty From Ashes (Novel)

The Waiting Time (Novel)