Savannah, Georgia (GA), United States

Facts & Statistics
Place Name	Savannah
Pronunciation	suh-VAN-uh
Place Status (Type)	city
Capital Of	Chatham County
Population	137,560 (1990)
Location	Chatham County, Georgia (GA), United States, North America
Latitude	32°01'N
Longitude	81°08'W

Savannah (suh-VAN-uh), city (1990 pop. 137,560), Chatham co., SE Ga., a port of entry on the Savannah R. 18 mi/29 km upstream from its mouth; 32°01'N 81°08'W. A RR, fishing, and industrial center, it is a leading Southern port for the import and export of a wide variety of goods. The port of Savannah is connected by RR and interstate roads to the rest of the country. A 985 acres/399 ha container berth terminal was available to shipping in 1996 at the Garden City Terminal. The Ocean Terminal is a 208 acres/84 ha facility. Tourism is becoming increasingly important as a major industry of Savannah. Savannah is Georgia's oldest city; it was founded by James Oglethorpe in 1733 and served as the colonial capital. During the Amer. Revolution the British took Savannah on Dec. 29, 1778, and held it until July 1782. A land-sea force of French and Americans tried to retake the city in 1779, first by siege and then by direct assault (on Oct. 9), but failed dismally. Savannah was the state capital 1782-1785. With the growth of trade, and esp. after the invention of the cotton gin and the construction of RRs extending to the cotton fields of central Ga., the city became a rival of Charleston as a commercial center. The first steamship to cross the Atlantic, the Savannah, sailed from there to Liverpool in 1819. In the Civil War, Fort Pulaski, on Cockspur Isl. near the mouth of the Savannah R., was captured by Federals in 1862, but the city did not fall until Dec. 21, 1864, when Sherman entered. The original design of the city included a series of public squares surrounded by homes and important bldgs. (churches, mansions, schools). This area now forms the largest historic district in the U.S. on the Natl. Register. Adjacent to the historic district lies the Victorian district, a neighborhood experiencing rejuvenation; many of these homes are multi-family rental properties. Despite devastating fires in 1796 and 1820, many old homes and bldgs. remain, including the Pirates' House (1754), an old seaman's inn mentioned in Stevenson's Treasure Island; the Herb House (1734), the oldest existing bldg. in Georgia; and the Pink House (1789), site of Georgia's 1st bank. The mansion birthplace of Juliette Gordon Low (built 1819-1821) is owned and operated by the Girl Scouts of Amer. as a memorial to their founder. Savannah's historic dist. was designated a natl. historic landmark in 1966; many of its 18th- and 19th-cent. homes have been restored. The monument and grave of Nathanael Greene are in Johnson Square. The many churches include the Lutheran Church of Ascension (dating from 1741); the Independent Presbyterian Church (1890s), a replica of an earlier church destroyed by fire and the scene of Woodrow Wilson's marriage to Ellen Axson; and the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist (1876), one of the largest R.C. churches in the South. Monterey Square provovided the setting for the best-selling novel Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, which increased tourism and general interest in the city in the mid-1990s; in the center of Monterey Square, the statue of Revolutionary War hero Casimir Pulaski has been restored. Savannah is the seat of Savannah State Univ. and Armstrong Atlantic State Univ. (both units of the Univ. System of Ga.), Savannah Col. of Art and Design, several mus., the Telfair Acad. of Arts and Sciences, and the King-Tisdell Cottage and Mus. featuring displays of Savannah's Afr.-Amer. heritage and other important history of the city. An air force base and a U.S. coast guard station are here. Savannah served as the host city for the 1996 Summer Olympics sailing competition. Several beach and isl. resorts as well as a wildlife refuge are nearby. Internatl. airport to the W. Inc. 1789.