The streets of the Savannah Historic District in Georgia are hugged by dreamy oaks draped in Spanish moss and carved fountains that anchor squares steeped in history. And it’s a must-visit for architecture buffs: The colonial city boasts charm and a sampling of American architecture unlike others of its age. On even a short walk, you’ll spot Corinthian columns, Gothic arched windows, and cast-iron craftsmanship as if leafing through an architecture guide book.
The colony of Georgia was founded in 1733 as a proposed solution to London’s poverty problem—and Savannah was meant to be the hub. The goal was to relocate the urban poor into the New World and set them up as farmers with plots of land for farming and gardens. This resulted in four (then six) squares, which were called wards and likely modeled after the squares in the West End, says David Gobel, professor of Architectural History at Savannah College of Art and Design.
While admirable, the plan to resettle the poor was foolish in retrospect as the Low Country soil is sandy and the weather too hot for farming. However, the area did flourish from 1791 to 1851 as a mercantile city because of its port on the Savannah River just 17 miles from the Atlantic.
Slowly, those original six squares blossomed into 22, which now make up the Savannah Historic Landmark District. Over the years, new buildings in Savannah often reflected the nation’s architectural trends in terms of style, Gobel says. This means that, today, the densely packed buildings in Savannah’s original layout create an “easy place to study the history of architecture in one snap,” says Jonathan Stalcup, founder of Architectural Savannah, a tour company that covers 300 years of history in just a few blocks.
The Historic Landmark District is well preserved, granted a bit of luck was involved. “Savannah had moments of poverty at the right time for preservation,” Stalcup explains. “They couldn’t tear anything down in the 1860s because of the Civil War, and during the 1950s modernization [era] our economy wasn’t booming.” This means few buildings were built at the time, fatefully saving the historic ones. By the 1970s, the city established the Historic Review Board which gave the city “more teeth to preserve” the buildings.
Take a peek at seven American architecture gems you don’t want to miss while visiting Savannah.
