Found in the old railway shed of the Central of Georgia, the Savannah History Museum is a good place to stop when just arriving in Savannah, for an overview of the city’s development through the ages.

The railway house, a National Historic Landmark, is interesting in its own right. Built in the 1850s, it’s the nation’s only remaining iron-roof structure and was important as an early example of a train/shop complex. Under the same roof is Savannah’s tourist information center and a neat cafe which occupies an old passenger car.

Visits to the museum begin with a 20-minute video detailing the history of Savannah — from Oglethorpe and the settlers up into the “present”-day. The video is at least twenty years old, so its idea of modernity is amusingly stuck in the early 90s, with a power-suited poofy-haired businesswoman walking briskly down Bull Street representing “progress”. The museum exhibits are hit and miss … for every item of interest, such as one of the country’s few remaining Crestmobiles, there’s something like the Forrest Gump bench. Well, not the Forrest Gump bench, but a replica of what it kind of looked like. You know: a bench.

The museum doesn’t take long to get through, but at just $5 per adult, it’s cheap and provides a good overview of the city. There are a lot of hands-on activities, so I could see kids having a lot of fun there.

Savannah History Museum

303 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd
Location on our Savannah Map
912 651 6825

- Forrest Gump the Movie

Book your Savannah Trolley Tours Here

Named after revolutionary hero Nathaniel Greene (whose monument and burial site is at Johnson Square), Greene Square on Houston Street was laid out in the 1790s and for a long time was the center of Savannah’s black population. With a number of beautiful homes encircling it, it’s one of the more enchanting squares in the city.

The Second African Baptist Church on the northeast side was built in 1802. Though destroyed by a fire and rebuilt in 1925, it retains much of its original interior, such as its benches, chairs and pulpit. This is where General Sherman famously promised each freed slave “40 acres and a mule” after the Civil War.

Pay attention for signs around the square which reveal the pre-revolution street names. President Street was originally King Street, and Congress Street was Prince Street. Other signs highlight about Greene Square’s homes. The house on 521 East York Street was built from the famous Savannah gray bricks of the Hermitage Plantation, and at 124 Houston, there’s an early 19th-century wood and stucco house built by Isaiah Davenport; one of the prominent architect’s few remaining structures in Savannah.

Greene Square itself has no monuments or fountains; it’s basically a plain green park. But it’s rich in contrast, and the charm of the houses which surround it make it one of the must-see squares in Savannah. Especially in the afternoon sun, Greene Square is photogenic from just about every angle.

Location on our Savannah Map

- Cheap Flights To Savannah

Juliette Low, Girl Scout Founder

Andrew Low was a Scot who moved to Savannah when he was 16. He immediately entered the cotton business and, by the time he was in his 30s, had become the leader of uncle’s firm and the richest man in the city. Accordingly, he ordered a magnificent house built for his family on the newly plotted Lafayette Square.

For the job, he hired John Norris; an architect who had done a number of important buildings in Savannah, including the Customs House on Bay Street. The house was designed in the Italianate style, three-stories with stucco over brick. In 1849, the Lows moved in, and began throwing lavish dinner parties and inviting famous guests such as William Thackery and Robert E. Lee, an old friend. The house would eventually be passed down to Juliette Gordon Low, who had married Andrew’s son William. The carriage house, where she founded the Girl Scouts, has become their Mecca — almost every time we’ve gone by, there’s a group of green-skirted girls waiting to get in.

We did the house tour, and had an excellent time. Every room is perfectly upheld, decked out with period furniture and ornamentation. The house is currently owned by the Colonial Dames of America, and the ladies who took our tickets and led us on the tour were as sweet as could be. Our guide answered all the questions we could muster, and had plenty of interesting anecdotes about the house, the family, and the era in which they lived.

Make sure to stop by the Andrew Low House when in town… We thought it was really great.

Location on our Savannah Map

- Savannah Houses and Museums