Tag Archives: National Historic Landmarks

Humphrey Gwathney House, 1823, Savannah

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The Gwathney House on Broughton Street in Savannah, Georgia.

Built between 1822-23 and remodeled in 1883, the home of merchant Humphrey B. Gwathney is a residential gem of Broughton Street, known as Savannah’s “main street”. According to the Beehive Foundation, “Historical records and regional property history reveal that Gwathney was an antebellum merchant and prominent resident who commissioned the construction of the Humphrey B. Gwathney House at 401 East Broughton Street around 1822–1823. Like virtually all wealthy property owners in Savannah during this era, his wealth, business operations, and domestic household relied heavily on the labor of enslaved individuals.”

The house was restored in 1994-1995 by the nonprofit Beehive Foundation in 1994-95, which is one of Savannah’s greatest assets, publishing fine books about the history and culture of Georgia and the South. Founded by Mills Bee Lane IV as the Beehive Press in 1970, Beehive has been at the forefront of historic preservation for nearly five decades. Lane’s monumental 11-volume series, The Architecture of the Old South, has done more to bring attention to Southern architecture than any other source. And Lane wasn’t just a cultural observer, he was actively involved in saving and preserving landmarks throughout his life.

Savannah Historic District, National Historic Landmark

Laurence Dunn House, 1875, Savannah

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Historic two-story townhouse with black shutters and a front porch, surrounded by greenery and trees, in Savannah.

This Italianate townhouse was designed by Savannah architect Augustus Schwaab (1823-1899) for Laurence Dunn (1825-1895), an Irish immigrant who came to Savannah circa 1851. He was a grocer and saloon keeper who also dabbled in real estate and shipping. He served with the Confederacy during the Civil War.

Savannah Historic District, National Historic Landmark

 

Joachim Hartstene House, 1803, Savannah

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Front view of the Joachim Hartstene House in Savannah, Georgia.

Joachim Hartstene (c.1732-1803) was a German immigrant of whom little is known. He built this house around the time of his death and it remained intact until being essentially rebuilt with most of the original boards and other architectural features circa 1964.

Savannah Historic District, National Historic Landmark

Grovania, Georgia

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Besides Ellis Grocery, the old Georgia Southern & Florida Railroad freight depot is the last public landmark in Grovania. The graffiti on the passing train car seems to sum up how often you might encounter a scene like this today.

Henry Willink Cottage, 1845, Savannah

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A quaint white house with a red metal roof and black shutters, featuring a front porch with potted plants. The house is surrounded by greenery and a brick pathway.

The Willink cottage is one of many early Savannah landmarks that have been moved to the vicinity of East St. Julian Street. Henry Frederick Willink, Jr. (1825-1906; some sources list birth date as 1825), was the son of a prominent German immigrant, Henry Frederick Willink (1785-1873). After time spent at the Chatham Academy, the younger Willink apprenticed at his father’s shipyard before moving to New York to improve his skills. Willink returned to Savannah in 1851 to start his own shipyard. [His home, originally located near Oglethorpe Avenue at the intersection of Price and Perry Streets, is said to have been built in 1845, but since he didn’t return to Savannah until 1851, there is some debate about the date].

By the outset of the Civil War, his business, Willink & Miller, was in full swing garnering commissions to build the gunboat Macon, as well as the ironclads Savannah and Milledgeville. After the war, he did quite well with other shipbuilding projects, as well as a wrecking  business and a marine railway on Hutchinson Island. From at least 1864 to 1877-79, Willink served as a Savannah alderman, but it is unclear if he served consecutive terms The Confederate veteran is buried in Laurel Grove North Cemetery.

Savannah Historic District, National Historic Landmark

Major Charles Oddingsells House, 1797, Savannah

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A charming yellow historic house with a shingled roof, featuring black shutters and a white front porch with steps. An American flag is displayed to the right of the front door of the Major Charles Oddingsells House, in Savannah, Georgia.

Revolutionary War veteran Major Charles Oddingsells (1754-1810) came to Savannah as a young man, and he soon became a prominent planter and state legislator. He owned land and enslaved individuals all around Savannah but spent most of his time on Skidaway Island, where he died at the age of 56. He and wife Sarah Livingston Oddingsells had two children, neither of whom lived to adulthood. His illegitimate son, Anthony Oddingsells (possibly the son of an enslaved woman named Elizabeth Wilson), was a free man of color who later inherited Little Wassaw Island and several of the major’s enslaved individuals.

Savannah Historic District, National Historic Landmark

Muse-Long House, Circa 1900, Woodbury

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A weathered, two-story Victorian house with a green metal roof, surrounded by overgrown grass and vegetation.

According to Regina P. Pinkston’s Historical Account of Meriwether County 1827-1974 (Greenville, Georgia, Gresham Printing Company, 1974), this home was built by Dan Muse and was later owned by Remus Long.

Mountville Presbyterian Church, 1907, Troup County

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Mountville Presbyterian was organized in 1887. The church was built in 1907. After its congregation dwindled it was empty for a time until being restored as a home. The owners did an excellent job maintaining the exterior appearance. The belfry was originally of open construction but was enclosed during renovation; small roofs were added to both steeples, as well.

Freeman’s Cottage – John Ballon House, Circa 1820, Savannah

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A charming light green Savannah cottage with a gabled roof, white trim, and black shutters. The entrance features a dark door with a wreath and a small American flag. Flower pots with colorful blooms are placed near the door, and a white picket fence can be seen in the background.

This iconic Federal-style cottage was built by John Ballon, a free man of color who likely came to Savannah from Haiti. At the time, there were approximately 500 free people of color in Savannah. Because laws were strict regarding free Blacks at the time, a guardian, John Sullivan, held the deed for the house.

Savannah Historic District, National Historic Landmark

John David Mongin House, 1797, Savannah

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John David Mongin House in Savannah, Georgia's National Historic Landmark District.

One of just a handful of 18th-century houses remaining in Savannah, the Mongin House (known for a time as the Capital Dwelling House and now known as the Mongin-Carswell House) was relocated here from another lot on Warren Square and remodeled to its present condition in 1964. John David Mongin (1763-1833) set about building it, with the labor of enslaved individuals, as soon as he arrived in Savannah from Daufuskie Island SC. He was a successful merchant but records of his industry in Savannah are quite sparse.

The house also served as a hospital during the 1876 yellow fever outbreak and a rectory for Christ Church.

Savannah Historic District, National Historic Landmark