2005 News Archive

William Rawlings, Jr.: Renaissance Man About Town

AUGUSTA, Georgia — Best known as the author of southern-based mystery thrillers, including The Lazard Legacy and The Rutherford Cipher, Dr. William Rawlings, Jr. is, truth be told, a modern-day renaissance man.

Born and raised in the "Center of the Universe," a.k.a. Sandersville, Georgia, Rawlings resides on property that has been in his family for more than 200 years.

After simultaneously earning his medical degree and a Master in Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Rawlings spent three years at Johns Hopkins before returning home to be a "country doc."

He has also spent more than a decade involved in medical research, specifically kaolin-related pneumoconiosis, scarring of the lungs due to long-term occupational inhalation of clay dust.

When he’s not practicing medicine and writing books, Rawlings is a world traveler. He has visited 50 countries and his favorite destinations are remote. He has been a guide and translator in Bolivia and trip doctor on numerous expeditions to the Amazon.

Rawlings is also a collector. In the 1980s, he acquired a lot of Outsider Art, but eventually he sold the collection and now amasses eclectic items of interest ranging from Oriental export porcelains to Hogarth prints.

Savvy businessman is another title Rawlings bears. He owns a couple of travel agencies, a self-storage facility, a flea market, a number of residential and commercial buildings, as well as undeveloped property and timberland.

Finally, as an active member of the community and state, Rawlings is Chairman of the Board of Governors for the Mercer University School of Medicine and President of the Sandersville Technical College Foundation Board. He also serves on the board of the First National Bank & Trust.

Harbor House, the Augusta-based publisher of Rawlings’ books, is "amazed at his versatility and energy," said associate editor Crystal Wiggins. "One has to wonder when he finds time to write."

Dr. Rawlings third novel, The Tate Revenge, is due for release in September 2005.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT JENNIFER REYNOLDS AT (706) 738-0354 OR JREYNOLDS@BELLSOUTH.NET.