Old Savannah

Historic building fronts along the river wharf.
The street stones are old ballast stones from
the sailing ships.

We drove our car up to Savannah for a couple days, because we had heard that it was a beautiful city full of history.  We were not disappointed.  The city looks a lot like New Orleans’ French Quarter with the historic buildings surrounded by live oak trees dripping with Spanish moss.  But the architecture is definitely British, with the layout of the city one of the first “planned communities” with small parks every 3-4 blocks.  Savannah’s historic district is small enough that you can walk most of it, but its history is so enormous that you should take a narrated tour around the area.  Numerous tours are offered everywhere, and I was surprised at the number of tourists visiting the city.

The other side of the river-front buildings, all built
on a bluff.  Note the catwalks to the front doors.

The city was founded by James Oglethorpe in the early 1700’s as a place to put England’s debtors (English debtor prisons were already full), as well as an effort to create a planned society where the government tried to create a Utopia on earth.  I could make a snide remark here about the current political situation, but I’ll refrain.  Oglethorpe’s Utopia fell apart when his people discovered free enterprise.

I was amused during the city tour when the guide talked about Oglethorpe, who was trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, etc, etc.  He was the local hero who saved Georgia from those dastardly Spanish explorers down south in Florida. The amusing part is that just 2 months ago when we were touring St Augustine, we learned how Ponce de Leon & Menendez saved the countryside from those terrible British up north, led by Oglethorpe!  Teaches you to always evaluate the source of any “facts” you might be told!

Savannah's Cotton Exchange,
headquarters of the US cotton business
in 1887.

Savannah’s history is tied to the sea and its position as a major seaport.  During the early 1800’s, it was a major exporter of cotton, and this is where some obscure man named Eli Whitney tried to enforce his patent for a cotton gin (our daughter studied Whitney’s life when she wrote a TV script about the social impact of the cotton gin).  It was interesting seeing the converted historic buildings along the river wharves & the river bluff where Oglethorpe originally set up the city.  One reason these buildings still exist is because the city of Savannah was not burned down at the end of the “War of Northern Aggression” when William T. Sherman marched to the sea.

Did I mention that Savannah has some excellent restaurants? We found a couple of them.  One thing we started doing along the way is looking for any craft breweries or pubs serving craft beers, so Sue can sample the beers.  We’ve found one in St Augustine, Jacksonville Beach, and now Savannah.  We already have the addresses for the breweries in Jacksonville next week.

Enjoying our mint julep and rum punch at a
river-front restaurant.

Tybee Island lighthouse.  Sue is
tremendously disappointed that it was
closed & we couldn't climb it!

We drove out to Tybee Island, the northernmost barrier island in Georgia to see the lighthouse & whatever else.  There wasn’t much else, certainly when compared to the barrier islands of Florida (both the Gulf Coast & the East Coast).  We tried to visit two of the historic forts of the 1700’s, but since they were both US National Parks and since the date was October 1, and since your Congress just can’t get their crap in order, everything was closed.

 

We’re now planning our departure from Brunswick GA, on a 2-day cruise to Jacksonville, then farther up the St Johns River to Sanford FL, where we’ll keep the boat for the winter months.  Having to watch that tropical storm/hurricane approaching New Orleans, and how much wind/rain it will bring to this area.  We need to be back in TN by Oct 20, so unfortunately, we now have a schedule.

 

Florence Martus, Savannah's "Waving Girl".
She waiting over 40 years for her sailor to return.
Guess what?!?  A sailor has a girl in every port!!

                                          

Huge container ship headed up the Savannah
River.  The channel runs very close to the city, very
much like New Orleans & the MS River.