David Henry Lucas to peak on The Rice Kings Series

The Horry County Museum presents a lecture and book signing by David Henry Lucas on his series The Rice Kings on Saturday, May 4, at 1 p.m. The series chronicles the history of the Lucas family over 300 years, starting with Jonathan Lucas in 1754. Books will also be available to purchase after the program.

David Henry Lucas was born in Greensboro, North Carolina, and grew up in the small farming town of Bishopville. In the fall of 1965, Lucas attended the University of South Carolina on a football scholarship. He majored in International Studies and received a B.A. degree in January 1970. After a short period in the United States Marine Corp, he was given a medical discharge and returned to Columbia to pursue a career in business. He later moved to the Isle of Palms, working in development. Having written a book chronicling the history of his United States Supreme Court fight to protect private property rights in the 90’s, Lucas decided to embark on a new profession. In 2012, he began work on a memoir relating the story of his time as a student athlete at the University of South Carolina.

As a follow-up project, he has taken on the challenge of romanticizing the history of his forbears, starting in the year 1754. The first novel, The Rice Kings, Book One, The Beginning, chronicles the early life and training of Jonathan Lucas, a fourth great grandfather. The Rice Kings, Book Two. Charleston brings the story to America where Jonathan Lucas invented the rice mill. This invention allowed the South Carolina Lowcountry to become incredibly wealthy and produced a golden era for the region.

These two books are the first in a series of historical novels that are intended to relate the saga of the rise and fall of the Old South. Time permitting, the series will describe the aftermath of the War Between the States through the eyes of the people who experienced it. Finally, the story of the slow economic recovery of the South, beginning with the life of his grandfather, H. S. Lucas, born in 1888, and expanding the history of the Lucas Family throughout the 20th century.

The program is free to the public and will be held in the Museum’s McCown Auditorium located at 805 Main Street in Conway. For more information, call (843) 915-5320 or email hcg.museum@horrycountysc.gov.

View a full list of programs