Hawkins-Davison Houses, Frederica, St. Simons Island, Georgia

This is a meticulous archaeological and historical study of two colonial-era houses on St. Simons Island, Georgia. The Hawkins-Davison houses represent the physical remnants of Frederica, an 18th century British outpost that once stood as a vital military and commercial center along the Georgia coast. Charles H. Fairbanks, drawing on archaeological excavations and historical records, reconstructs the lives of the settlers who built these homes, the community that flourished briefly there, and the forces that led to its decline. The text walks through the excavation process itself, revealing what the soil surrendered: artifacts, foundations, fragments of daily life that speak across two centuries. Frederica's story is one of colonial ambition, war, and eventual abandonment, and Fairbanks uses these two houses as a lens to examine the broader fate of British Georgia. This is primary source material for anyone serious about American colonial history, southern archaeology, or the material culture of the colonial South.