Books on German Immigration

Orleans Square, on Barnard Street, might as well be called Parking Lot Square. Sadly, it’s one of Savannah’s squares most negatively impacted by the thoughtless development boom of the mid-20th century.

The square itself is quite charming, with a large central fountain dedicated to the German immigrants to Savannah that was installed on the 250th anniversary of the founding of Georgia. But once you take your eyes off the ground and look around the square, the charm vanishes. The biggest blight is the Civic Center, whose backside and rear parking area mars the western end of Orleans Square. Five of the eight lots which surround Orleans are dedicated to parking. Another is occupied by SCAD’s gym.

Luckily, the houses which do survive on Orleans are beautiful, particularly the Harper Fowlkes House on 230 Barnard. Built in 1842 in the Greek Revival style, this house is occasionally open for tours and also serves as the Georgia headquarters for the Society of the Cincinnati. Another noteworthy home on Orleans is the Stephen Williams House, constructed in 1834 in the Federal style. It’s currently an inn with individually designed rooms.

Location on our Savannah Map
Harper Fowlkes House
Stephen Williams House Inn
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Laid out in 1841, Crawford is the only of Savannah’s squares with recreational equipment: a basketball court, won after a 1946 Savannah-wide basketball competition. Found on Houston Street, the square was named after native Savannahian William Harris Crawford, who was Secretary of the Treasury and ran unsuccessfully for President in 1824.

All of the squares in Savannah were fenced in at one time, but only Crawford remains so. It’s also retained its cistern, from the days when Savannah’s fire department kept a station in every square. The fence, the cistern and the basketball court give Crawford a distinctly unique feel to it. Compared to the rest of Savannah’s squares, only Ellis Square is less “standard”. Still, with a gazebo in the center and azaleas that bloom in spring, Crawford definitely manages to charm.

During the days of Jim Crow, when segregation was the law of the land, Crawford was the only square which blacks were allowed to use. It’s a historically black neighborhood, and today a very quiet, peaceful one. But “peaceful” probably isn’t how Crawford was described a few years ago — none other than the fabulous Lady Chablis used to call it home. I doubt anything within a two-mile radius of her could be considered “peaceful”.

Check out our pictures of one of Savannah’s least appreciated, and most unique squares.

Location on our Savannah Map

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Historical Sketch Of Tomo-Chi-Chi

The second of Savannah’s squares to be laid out was Percival Square, later renamed to honor Georgia’s last royal governor James Wright.

The marble monument in the middle of the square is to William Washington Gordon, a successful businessman and politician, highly-regarded in Savannahian society. When he died, his influential friends demanded that the city honor him with a lavish memorial in Wright Square. “There should be no trouble”, they reasoned, “right now, there are just some troublesome Injun bones. Move them away!”

They were the remains of Tomochichi, who had been buried in the center of the square 144 years ago, as a way to thank the Indian chief for helping out the colony in its harrowing first years. Citizens were outraged about this insult to one of the city’s most important founders. In consolation, a memorial stone was placed in a corner of Wright Square, and the nearby Tomochichi Federal Building was named in his honor.

There’s always something going on in Wright Square. During our time in Savannah, the northernmost bench in the square has been the hocking place of a big old man who sings the blues, all day long. Last time we were there, he was singing, “Girl, you done me wrong. GIRL, you done me so wrong. Girl, I wish you was dead”. We had just bought delicious (and outrageously overpriced) sandwiches at a nearby shop called Zumzi’s, and sat down on the other side of the square to listen to a scraggly old guitar player howl out classics like Desperado.

Location on our Savannah Map

- One of the movies filmed in Wright Square is “Cape Fear”