Marcus McDonald’s roots run deep on both his sides of his family in Charleston, South Carolina.
He’s a descendant of the Boone Hall Plantation, where his ancestors in his father’s family were once held captive. They come from a line of Gullah Geechee people, the descendants of the West and Central Africans who were enslaved on the sea islands of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida.
The site is now called Boone Hall Plantation & Gardens, a historical site popular among tourists and known for its role as a Hollywood backdrop, featured in the film The Notebook and the miniseries North and South. It’s also a place where they sell fresh produce, maintain gardens, and recently hosted Fright Nights during Halloween before its discontinuation this year…