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By Marimar McNaughton
BONEY DYNASTY
Nowhere else in America from the 1940s through the 1960s was there an architectural
firm comprised of a father and three sons — Leslie N. Boney Sr., Leslie N. Boney Jr.,
William Boney and Charles Boney — except in Wilmington, North Carolina.
The youngest, Charlie Boney, now 88, sat down at his Gillette Drive home
overlooking Cape Fear Country Club’s 13th tee, with his wife Betty Boney; son Charles
and nephew Paul, also architects, to talk about the early days of Boney Architecture,
the family’s legacy of designing public buildings, their favorite projects and how
their firm has evolved for three generations.
Opposite: Charles Boney Sr., seated, and standing from left, Paul Boney, Chris Boney and Charles Boney Jr. are pictured in
front of a portrait of architectural patriarch Leslie N. Boney Sr. Above: The walls of the Boney family’s formal dining room are
lettered with names of history’s foremost architects.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY ALLISON POTTER
www.wrightsvillebeachmagazine.com WBM