Growth of the Jekyll Island Club around the turn of the century necessitated the need for more space. Charles Alling Gifford designed these condominiums to meet that need.
Jekyll Island Historic District, National Register of Historic Places + National Historic Landmark
Along with one of the Corinthian lions that once guarded the property, these ruins and the abandoned swimming pool are all that remain of Edwin Gould’s beloved Chicota College.
Jekyll Island Historic District, National Register of Historic Places + National Historic Landmark
Now used as offices of the Jekyll Island Authority, these two structures provided housing for servants of the wealthy families who vacationed here during the Club Era.
Jekyll Island Historic District, National Register of Historic Places + National Historic Landmark
One of the few remaining structures of the Jekyll Island Club which hasn’t been restored, the carriage house used by the Baker and Crane families appears to have at least been stabilized. The upper floor was used to house the carriage drivers and handlers and the lower flower was for storage of carriages and stabling of horses. It was also occasionally used as a social hall for staff of these families.
Jekyll Island Historic District, National Register of Historic Places + National Historic Landmark
The stables for the Jekyll Island Club were designed by Charles Alling Gifford, a favored architect of the club membership. The facility has served as a museum for many years and was recently rebranded as Mosaic, the Jekyll Island Museum.
Jekyll Island Historic District, National Register of Historic Places + National Historic Landmark
Cherokee was built for Jekyll Island Club member Dr. George Frederick Shrady between 1903-1904. The architect is unknown. Dr. Shrady was one of President Ulysses S. Grant’s last physicians. It was later owned by Dr. Walter Belknap James. One of the most beautifully proportioned cottages in the Millionaire’s Village, it is now a property of the Jekyll Island Club Resort.
Jekyll Island Historic District, National Register of Historic Places + National Historic Landmark
Now known as the McMillan Inn, this imposing Italianate Victorian was originally the home of Thomas Hasley McMillan (11 March 1854-21 September 1941), one of late-19th-century Savannah’s most successful businessmen. He came to Savannah from Fayetteville, North Carolina, in 1878, to open a branch of his McMillan Copper Works. The most successful supplier of turpentine stills in the South, they once had plants in Fayetteville, Jacksonville, Pensacola, and Savannah. Mr. McMillan also served as chairman of the Savannah Park & Tree Commission.
Some sources note that it was originally home to the “McMillan Brothers” and was designed as a duplex. I’ve been unable to track down information about the brother but will update when I learn more.
Savannah Historic District, National Historic Landmark
In the years following the Civil War, much of Savannah’s riverfront was filled with four- and five-story cotton warehouses. The lower riverfront level was where the cotton was stored and the top floors (facing Bay Street) served as offices for the cotton factors (brokers), who set prices and traded their most valuable product around the world. The offices are known as Factors Row, while the iron bridges which connected them to the city are known collectively as Factors Walk. They date variously from the late antebellum to late Reconstruction era. Today, the buildings are home to shops and restaurants, but the city and business owners have worked hard to retain the historic integrity of the structures.
Savannah Historic District, National Historic Landmark
Murals were very common as advertising in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Most have been painted over but some have been saved and some exposed during restorations. This one, for Taylor’s Art Store is a favorite. The supporting advertisement for Seal of North Carolina Plug Cut Tobacco is quite rare and likely dates the mural from 1880-1890.
Savannah Historic District, National Historic Landmark
This view looks west with the monumental United States Custom House in the foreground. The Custom House was built on the site of one of James Oglethorpe’s homes by prolific Savannah architect John Norris. Notably, it was the site of the last documented trial involving the illegal importation of slaves, in re: The Wanderer.
Savannah Historic District, National Historic Landmark