"W" is for Walker, George Edward (ca. 1827-1863)

"W" is for Walker, George Edward (ca. 1827-1863). Architect, engineer. Walker was among the first generation of architects to work professionally in South Carolina. He began practicing in Charleston about 1850. His design for the library at the College of Charleston garnered attention. His career took a sharp turn upward after he began serving as the superintending architect of the new customhouse in Charleston. In August 1854 Walker became the architect of the new State House in Columbia, but was dismissed after eight months because he lacked the administrative skills and political acumen to move the troubled project forward. Despite his ill-fated tenure with the new state capitol, George Edward Walker was a competent architect of smaller buildings and designed buildings for Newberry College and Trinity Episcopal Church in Abbeville and Christ Church in Columbia.