| Tips and photos of unusual, out-of-the-way Savannah attractions, posted by real travelers and locals. Savannah Map |
 | Savannah Off the Beaten Path | Tips 1 - 10 of 48 |  |
 Tybee Lighthouse on Tybee
Island, Georgia by deecat
Tybee Island has been labeled as "a shabbily genteel seaside community blessed with two long, wide beaches...a central business district that exudes a tawdry Coney Island-esque charm" OR " Tybee exudes an old-fashioned, Coney-Island-type appeal, complete with a rickety-tik amusement park, putt-putt golf, corn dog stands, and clapboard cottages"...OR "a small resort and residential island."
Regardless of how one views it, the island has a long sandy beach, activities that kids adore, a lighthouse to climb, and an old abandoned Army Outpost & Battery that serves as a museum now. Most of the activity centers on Butler Avenue where a pier juts out into the surf, and on the pier is a pavilion.
Of all that the island offers, I liked the Tybee Lighthouse the best. It's located at the northern tip at 30 Meddin Drive, (912)786-5801.
The second beach (which is popular with the locals) is along Pulaski & Taylor Streets. and it is dominated by the Lighthouse which is one of two operable lights on the Georgia coast. Tybee Lighthouse guides shipping through Tybee Roads at the approaches to the Savannah River. Built in the late 19th century, this lighthouse is about 150 feet tall, and there is a museum next door.
You may climb it any day 10:00 am-6:00 pm during the summer. There are Candle Lantern Tours on the 1st and 3rd Fridays of June, July, and August for $1.00. Leave a Comment
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 Statue of Gracie Watson
in Bonaventure Cemetery by deecat
"Haunting" describes Bonaventure Cemetery...Hauntingly beautiful .. Victorian statuary mingled with overhanging branches of large trees draped in Spanish Moss.
Danny Hansford (the character called "Billy Hanson" in the John Berendt book) is not actually buried in Bonaventure. He is buried in Forest Lawn, next to Bonaventure.[ VT tessh (Sam) says that these two cemeteries are separated by a road and an iron fence but that both cemeteries are owned by Bonaventure.]
Bonaventure is not as old as Colonial Park Cemetery, but it certainly is larger & more attractive. It was founded on property that used to be a plantation. At one time, called Evergreen Cemetery, its name was switched to Bonaventure (the name means "good fortune" in French)about 1907.
Sadly, the statue that graced the cover of the novel ("Bird Girl") was moved to Telfair Museum of Art because so many people came to Bonadventure simply to see & photograph it.
Another reason that tourists go to Bonadventure is to see the tomb of Gracie Watson. Gracie was born in 1883 & died of pneumonia when she was six years old. Because she was an only child & absolutely adored by her father, he had the famous sculptor, John Walz, carve a likeness of Gracie from a photograph. He did a life-sized statue out of marble, & visitors are entranced by the beauty of the child & of the sculpture. Legend says that Gracie's ghost haunts many of Savannah's buildings; thus, people are curious about her.
Sadly, this statue has taken abuse, so a tall iron fence was constructed around the statue. People still climb the fence to touch "Gracie"!
There are so many gorgeous statues & plaques as well as inspiring epitaphs that it takes a good 3 hours or so to really appreciate this place. Leave a Comment Other Contact: 330 Bonaventure Road
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 Entrance to Ft. McAllister
State Park by deecat
It extends over 1725 acres on the banks of the Ogeechee River. This fort was the location of the last line of resistance for the Confederacy against General Sherman's march on Savannah. (South of Richmond Hill on Highway 144).
The fort withstood seven attacks by Union gunboats, and the port held. Then, Sherman's ground force stormed the fort and closed down trade through Savannah's port, a severe loss for the Confederacy. Why? Because now the Union had a route to ship supplies to it troops.
The fort was restored by Henry Ford in the 1930s. This Fort is in Fort McAllister State Park, and you can follow the path around it to the entrance.
While walking along this parapet, you see the river on one side and a huge cannon on the other. There are informative signs along the way that includes information about both the sea and the land battles. It also tells about life in the fort and about General Sherman.
Deep within the mound are the baricks for the men stationed at the low-tech fort. Visitors may tour the mound and walk through. This is a very interesting place to visit. The Museum on site has artifacts from Confederate Gunboat, Nashville.
If you wish, you may picnic on the high bluff above the River near the fort.
Note: Just off Genesis Point lie the remains of the Nashville, a privateer sunk during a battle in 1863.
Besides the fort and museum, there is a 3.1 mile trail through a typical low-land marsh. (Bring insect repellent!) There is a viewing tower that overlooks a small creek. There is also a nature trail in the campground and a fishing pier. In addition, there are 65 campsites with water and electricity.
Location:
Genesis Point, east of Richmond Hill Leave a Comment
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 A breathtaking avenue lined
with live oaks by Dutchnatasja
The entrance to Wormsloe Plantation is probably just what most Americans think of when talking about a Southern Coastal plantation. The picturesque arch leading to quiet country lane lined with live oak trees.
Wormsloe Plantation is worth the drive if only to see the welcoming mile-long driveway lined with huge live oak trees.
Address:
State Historic Site
7601 Skidaway Rd
Savannah, GA 31406
Directions:
Take I-16 to exit 164A (I-516 / W. F. Lynes Pkwy). Take I-516 to the end, where it becomes S.R. 21, then continue on to Skidaway Rd, a total of 6.6 miles. Turn right on Skidaway and continue for 2.8 miles to the entrance to Wormsloe on the right.
Hours:
Tuesday–Saturday 9 a.m.–5 p.m.
Sunday 2–5:30 p.m.
Closed Monday (except holidays), Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years Day. Leave a Comment
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The Gryphon Tea Room is right in the heart of downtown Savannah, on the edge of some cute square (I'm terrible with names). Regardless, it's on Bull Street. The visit is worth it for the decor alone. Fabulous tiffany lamps, brass and oak bar fixtures, a huge glass ceiling panels - it's absolutely gorgeous. They have a sizable collection of different teas, and will just brew you a pot or will do the whole enchilada of afternoon tea. It was too hot for coddled cream and such so I just got a pot and my friend got a cool drink.
The tea was quite good and well brewed. The service was a little snippy. Just ignore them, it adds to the ambience.
TIP: walk around the area taking in the townhouse architecture to build up your appetite for smoky seductive tea. Savannah is so cool. Leave a Comment Phone: (912) 525-5880Website: 337 Bull Street
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 Tybee landscape by AzonieLeave a Comment
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We've only seen Bonaventure Cemetery from the Wilmington River. It is easily reached by driving out Wheaton Street to Bonaventure road.
Bonaventure ("good fortune" in French) was the good fortune of John Mulryne and Josiah Tattnall. Both were large landholders in Georgia, but they had much more in common than owning the land that became the cemetery. Mulryne, who built the third Tybee Lighthouse in 1773, was Tattnell's father-in-law. Bonaventure was his plantation home. The family cemetery on the plantation formed the nucleus of the present-day Bonaventure Cemetery. When Naturalist John Muir wrote about Bonaventure Cemetery in his 1867 book A Thousand Mile Walk to the Gulf, it was mostly the family cemetery today known as "Old Bonaventure."
Famous people buried here include
Conrad Aiken (poet)
Robert Houston Anderson (Civil War CSA Brigadier General-after the war was a police chief in Savannah),
Eugene Booth Jr. (nuclear physicist involved with the Manhattan Project)
Duncan Lamont Clinch and Charles Edward Gorden (US Congress),
Dr. Brodie Strachan Herndon (Civil War Confederate Army Officer - Chief Surgeon of the Confederate Army from 1862 to 1865. A graduate from the University of Maryland Medical School in 1829. He was the first person to perform a Caesarean operation in the United States)
Henry Roots Jackson (Civil war general CSA)
George Jones (U.S. Senator)
Robert Alexander Lawton (Brigadier General, CSA)
Rufus Ezekiel Lester (U.S. Congress),
John T. McFarland (assistant surgeon of the Confederate Georgia Infantry and Sharpshooters)
Hugh Weedon Mercer (Brigadier General, CSA)
Johnny Mercer (Songwriter)
James Neill (silent era actor)
William Wiseham Paine (US Congress),
Edward Fenwick Tattnall (US Congress),
JosiahTattnall (Confederate Naval Officer. He commanded the Confederate ironclad "Virginia" (ex-"Merrimac")
Edward Telfair (delegate to Continental Congress and Governor of Georgia)
Thomas Telfair (United States Representative from Georgia, 1813-1817; son of Governor Edward Telfair) Leave a Comment
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If you want antiques and other old stuff, head to Universe Trading Co. and check out the deals. Not all are antiques, but if you look you can find real gems of a deal.
Located at 27 Montgomery Street, 1 block west of the City Market in historic downtown Savannah! Leave a Comment Phone: 233-1585
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 Cathedral of Saint John
the Baptist by cobrioc |
 by cobrioc
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