He came to prominence after his association with Minerva, one of the main characters in John Berendt's 1994 true-crime book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.
Valerie Boles, of Gullah tongue,[3] was the inspiration for Minerva in the book, and was portrayed by Irma P. Hall in Clint Eastwood's 1997 film adaptation.
[4][5] Boles's husband, Percy Washington, was a root doctor known as Dr. Eagle,[6] who was renamed "Dr. Buzzard" in the film adaptation of the story.
Reportedly the son of a witch doctor who emigrated from West Africa, he began practising "root work" in the early 1900s.
"[7] He was a member of Saint Helena Island's Baptist Church, and donated funds to replace its sanctuary after a fire.