Last week, I visited Savannah for a trip with the Kennesaw State University Journey Honors College. We stayed at a hotel on Bay Street and walked on foot across the entire historic district. During the trip, I visited all 24 of the city’s historic squares, including two destroyed in the 1930s.
While walking across the city, I saw many sites which I recognized from my personal collection of historic Georgia postcards, photographs, and slides. I decided to create an exhibit highlighting these places and place what they look like today alongside these vintage images.
The places in this exhibit are sorted in alphabetical order. All of the photos come from my collection. Most of the recent photographs are from May 2025, though the modern images featuring both the highlighted place and the postcard are from November 2023.
Barnard Street School
The Barnard Street School on Chatham Square was built in 1906, replacing an earlier 1847 building. It was Georgia’s first free public school. It was designed by Gottfried L. Norrman, who designed several historic hotels across Georgia, including the Windsor Hotel in Americus and the Armstrong Hotel in Rome. This building would be home to a school until 1956, and it afterward served as an administrative office. It became Pepe Hall of the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) in 1988.
Candler Hospital
The Warren Candler Hospital was founded in 1803 as the Savannah Poor House and Hospital Society. It was the first hospital in the state of Georgia. The building was used as a Union hospital during the Civil War. It changed names several times and was expanded significantly in 1876. In the 1930s, it became a Methodist Hospital and was renamed in honor of Bishop Warren Candler. Candler Hospital moved from this location in 1980, and it is now used by SCAD.
Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist
The cornerstone for the Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist was laid in 1873. The congregation dates back to the late 1700s and was initially made up of Haitian and French refugees. The building was completed in 1876, and the spires were added twenty years later.
In 1898, a devastating fire destroyed the interior, leaving only the exterior walls intact. It took just two years to rebuild. A few years later, in 1905, stained-glass windows made in Austria were installed, and the murals were added in 1912. Since then, the interior has been restored several times.
The church's exterior is currently undergoing restoration, so I could not take good close-up photographs. The interior, however, was the perfect location for photos.
Chippewa Square
The statue of James Oglethorpe in Chippewa Square was unveiled in 1910. The statue was designed by Daniel Chester French, and architect Henry Bacon designed the pedestal. Both men also worked on the Lincoln Memorial.
While the Oglethorpe Monument is the most impressive site in Chippewa Square, it is not what it is most famous for. The bench scenes of the film Forrest Gump were filmed at the square, and the original bench is now preserved at the Savannah History Museum.
Christ Church
Called the “Mother Church of Georgia,” Christ Church was the first church in the colony of Georgia. Among its notable rectors were John Wesley and George Whitefield. James Hamilton Couper designed the current building in 1838. Interestingly, the building has two bell towers, but they cannot be seen from the front. Christ Church has been on the same site since 1744.
City Hall
Savannah’s City Hall, located at the end of Bull Street, was built from 1904 to 1905. From 1799 until 1904, this was the site of the old Savannah City Exchange. It was designed by Hyman Witcover, who was the architect for many contemporary buildings across the city. Before the building’s construction, the city offices were in a building on Bay Street. The dome was originally covered in copper, and gold was added in 1987. This is similar to what happened at the Georgia State Capitol building in Atlanta.
City Market / Ellis Square
Ellis Square was one of Savannah's original squares and was set aside as the market. The building on the right would serve as the city market until 1954. That year, the building was demolished and replaced by a parking garage, which helped to start the historic preservation movement in Savannah. The garage was sunk underground and replaced by a park in 2005, restoring Ellis Square. Of Savannah’s twenty-four historic squares, twenty-two are still extant. Ellis Square and neighboring Franklin Square were both destroyed and have been restored as green space. Only Elbert and Liberty squares remain lost.
Forsyth Park
Construction on Forsyth Park began in 1841 and was the brainchild of William Brown Hodgson. It is named for John Forsyth, a former governor who died that year. Hodgson was an important scholar in Savannah and a prominent member of the Georgia Historical Society. Their offices—Hodgson Hall—adjoin the park. At the southern end of Forsyth Park are several large fields that were once military parade grounds.
Forysth Park Civil War Monument
The Civil War Memorial was erected in 1875 by the Savannah Ladies Memorial Association and modified slightly in 1879. Though it is now officially called the Civil War Memorial, it was designed as a monument to the Confederacy's soldiers. Two busts of Confederate officers, Col. Francis Bartow and Major General Lafayette McLaws, have been located next to the memorial since 1910.
Forsyth Park Fountain
The fountain in Forsyth Park is one of the most photographed sites in Savannah. It was installed in 1858 and created by the New York foundry of Janes, Beebe & Co. Their maker's mark can still be seen on the fountain today. The fountain was ordered from their catalog, and similar fountains can be found today across the globe.
Green-Meldrim House
The Green-Meldrim House was built in 1853 by architect John S. Norris in an elaborate Gothic Revival design. In 1864, just after the March to the Sea, General William T. Sherman used it as his headquarters. Its name comes from its original owner, Charles Green, and Judge Peter Meldrim, who bought the house in 1892.
Hotel De Soto
The original Hotel De Soto opened in 1890 and was designed by William G. Preston. Among its guests were four US presidents: McKinley, Taft, Hoover, and Wilson. The building was a popular subject of postcards, but by the 1960s, it began to fall into a period of decline. It was demolished in 1966 and replaced by a hotel of the same name in 1968. This 1960s hotel is still open to guests today.
Hotel Savannah / Manger Building
William Lee Stoddard designed the Hotel Savannah, and it opened in 1913. It features a vibrant, photogenic green and yellow tile design on the cornice of the building. In the 1970s, it became an office building and was renamed the Manger Building. After several years of vacancy, it is currently being renovated to become a hotel once again.
Independent Presbyterian Church
The Independent Presbyterian Church was founded by 1755, and was initially made up of the Scottish Highlanders who arrived with Oglethorpe. John Joachim Zubly, an important religious leader and politician before and during the Revolution, was the first minister. Their current building was built in 1891 and designed by Hotel De Soto architect William G. Preston. It replaced an earlier church that had been destroyed in an 1889 fire.
John Wesley Hotel
John Wesley briefly served as Savannah’s rector from 1735 to 1738, when he was forced to leave following a scandal. Despite this ignominious end, his status as the founder of the Methodist Church means his short stay is now commemorated across Savannah. The John Wesley Hotel on Reynolds Square – now the Planters Inn – was built in 1913.
Johnson Square - Greene Monument
Nathanael Greene was the leader of the Continental Army in the South for much of the American Revolution, though he never fought inside the state of Georgia. He did, however, live in Georgia at the time of his death in 1786. The cornerstone for the Greene Monument in Johnson Square was laid by the Marquis de Lafayette in 1825. The monument was completed in 1830, and Greene was reinterred below the monument in 1901.
Juliette Gordon Low House
The Juliette Gordon Low House is best known as the birthplace of the Girl Scouts' founder. The Gordon family owned the house from 1831 until 1953, when it was sold to the Girl Scouts of the USA. The home was built for future Associate Justice of the US Supreme Court James Moore Wayne in 1821. It is now a museum run by the Girl Scouts.
Lucas Theatre
The Lucas Theatre was designed by C. K. Howell and opened in 1921. It is named after its original owner, Arthur Lucas. A Wurlitzer organ was installed four years later and was restored in 2023. The Lucas would be open as a theatre until 1976. A nonprofit was formed to save the Lucas in 1987, and after years of work, it finally reopened in 2000.
Lutheran Church of the Ascension
One of the early groups to immigrate to Savannah was the Salzburgers, a group of German Protestant refugees. Their leader, John Martin Bolzius, founded the Lutheran Church of the Ascension in 1741. It has been on the same site since 1771, and the current building was built in the 1840s. It can be seen at the far right in the postcard above.
Madison Square - Jasper Monument
Sgt. William Jasper is believed to have been Irish, though even this is unclear. He enlisted in a South Carolina regiment in 1775, became famous at the Battle of Sullivan’s Island in 1776, and died during the Second Battle of Savannah in 1779. Parson Weems (best remembered for creating the story of Washington and the cherry tree) wrote about Sgt. Jasper and Sgt. John Newton, turning them into well-known heroes of the Revolution. Their popularity declined as Parson Weems’ books fell out of favor. This monument to Jasper was dedicated in 1888 and serves as a unique reminder of this forgotten figure.
Monterey Square - Pulaski Monument
Polish officer Casimir Pulaski died in the Second Battle of Savannah, and period accounts say he died and was buried at sea. In 1853, William Parker Bowen claimed he found Pulaski’s remains on the nearby Greenwich Plantation. The following year, the remains were brought to Savannah and reinterred in Monterey Square with appropriate ceremonies, and this large marker was erected over the site.
Historians, however, doubt that the remains beneath the monument are actually Casimir Pulaski's. I highly recommend reading the article below by James S. Pula from Georgia Historical Quarterly, which goes in depth into the controversy around Pulaski’s remains.
The Olde Pink House
The Olde Pink House was built as a residence by James Habersham Jr. in 1771, overlooking Reynolds Square. It was later turned into a bank, and then, since the 1920s, has been a tea room and restaurant. According to legend, when James Habersham was covering the exterior of the house with plaster, the red color of the bricks seeped in, creating a pink color. Habersham and successive owners painted over the pink plaster. When it was converted into a tea room, the home was painted its now distinctive shade of pink.
The Owens-Thomas House
The Owens-Thomas House, designed by William Jay, was built from 1816 to 1819 and is where Lafayette stayed when he visited Savannah in 1825. It has been operated as a museum since 1954. Behind the home, the original quarters for enslaved laborers can still be visited. They are some of the best-preserved slave quarters in Savannah and are now considered a critical part of the museum.
The Pirates' House
The Pirates’ House in Savannah has been serving visitors since 1753. The restaurant claims that one part of the building, the Herb House, dates to 1734 and is the oldest structure in Savannah. It is adjacent to the site of the Trustees Garden created by Oglethorpe in 1733. According to legend, Robert Louis Stevenson was inspired to write Treasure Island after a visit to the Pirates’ House. The Pirates’ House is still operating as a restaurant to this day.
St. John's Church
Located next door to the Green-Meldrim House and Madison Square, St. John’s Church was founded in 1841. The current building was built from 1850 to 1853, was designed by Calvin Otis, and is one of Georgia's first Gothic revival churches.
Note that, in the postcard on the left, the church is mistakenly labeled St. James.
Telfair Academy of Arts and Sciences
The Telfair Mansion was built in 1819 on the same site as the home of Georgia’s royal governors. It was built for Alexander Telfair. In 1875, his sister Mary gave the house to the Georgia Historical Society so it could become a museum, which opened in 1886. It is the South’s oldest public art museum. Since then, the Telfair Museums has expanded to include the Jepson Center across the street and the Owens-Thomas House.
Telfair Hospital for Females
Mary Telfair also left money in her will for a women’s hospital. It opened on the southern end of Forsyth Park in 1884 and was named the Telfair Hospital for Females. It is the oldest women’s hospital in the nation. While the Telfair Hospital has since moved, the original structure is now an apartment building for seniors.
Tomochichi Federal Building
The Tomochichi Federal Building was built from 1894 to 1899 and was expanded significantly in the 1930s. The first postcard above shows it before the expansion, while the second shows it afterwards. While it was originally both a post office and a courthouse, the USPS has not used the building since 1999. It was named after Yamacraw chief Tomochichi in 2005. Currently, it is undergoing major restoration and renovation, making it challenging to photograph adequately.
Wright Square - Tomochichi's Grave
Yamacraw chief Tomochichi was a close ally of James Oglethorpe and played a critical role in Georgia’s early success. When he died in 1739, he was given a full military burial in Percival (now Wright) Square. A decorative pyramid of stones was erected, which gradually disappeared over time. In 1883, a massive monument honoring railroad pioneer William Washington Gordon was placed on the exact same spot.
Interestingly, the effort to once again memorialize Tomochichi in Wright Square was started by Gordon’s daughter-in-law. In 1899, a commemorative boulder was placed nearby. The Tomochichi Courthouse overlooks the site.
Closing
I hope that you have enjoyed these photos from Savannah. I took countless more pictures of other sites, and over the next few months I plan to share more on my social media page, Peach State Past. You can follow the page at these links below.
You can also explore other similar digital exhibits I have created at the link below.
Thank you!
Created by Andrew J. Bramlett