Earthfast is the culmination of a lifetime of architectural practice and seven years of concentrated research. The journey began when archeologists at the American Museum of Natural History asked Richard to prepare architectural drawings of the Mission Santa Catalina de Guale on St. Catherines Island, GA. One discovery led to another. A big, black hole in American history was filled by reading dozens of obscure 16th and 17th century books, plus visiting many archaeological sites. Being Creek Indian, Richard was able to discern evidence from passages on Native Americans that were missed by earlier scholars. This is the first book to comprehensively examine the architecture and planning practices of the early French, Spanish and English colonies. It is unique. Richard Thornton is a professional Architect & City Planner with degrees from Georgia Tech and Georgie State University. He is the national Architecture columnist for the Examiner and appeared on the premier of the History Channel's America Unearthed.