Blog Posts

The Mighty Oak of Savannah

7/21/2019

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Oak trees are beautiful and powerful. People appreciate them for the massive shade they create and their towering presence. Oak trees have lived a long time and have seen centuries of history. One quick tour of Savannah and you can see we love our oak trees. They in fact play an important part in our tourist economy. Oak trees are awe inspiring. One famous oak tree in Savannah started a movement: the Candler Tree.

Standing south of the corner of Drayton and E. Gaston Streets it is thought to be 300 years old. The land around it was owned by the early renditions of Candler Hospital. This tree has creds in 2001 it was named a Georgia Landmark and Historic Tree. It was recognized in 2004 by the National Register of Historic Trees.

In 2000 the hospital which owned the land for over a hundred years left and Huntingdon II Ltd purchased the land. Before this purchase in the seventies and early eighties the tree was in trouble because of development and its health was in dire condition. It was given a prognosis of no more than twenty years to live. In 1982 the Savannah Tree Foundation was formed to protect the urban forest of Savannah. Their first project and galvanizing moment was the saving of Candler Oak. The first group of the Savannah Tree Foundation were called the ‘Monday Morning Mothers of the Earth,’ named after the day & time by which they liked to meet.

To preserve Candler Oak they received a conservation easement for the Candler Oak. It was the first such easement for a single tree in America. The easement was for 6,804 feet surrounding the oak tree. The oak tree was measured with the dimensions of:

Diameter
65 inches

Circumference
17 feet

Height
54 feet

Average crown spread
110.25 feet

The Savannah Tree Foundation’s website list as their first:
Use of satellite imagery to document tree canopy changes in an urban area Protect a single tree—The Candler Oak—through a conservation easement Introduce the “Project Learning Tree” curriculum into Georgia schools Produce a State of the Trees Report to guide municipal urban forestry policy Develop an urban forest component in a countywide disaster management plan, which later served as a model for the USDA Forest Service. The Foundation helped established the Mother Matilda Beasley Park site which was contaminated and was owned by an investment group, which planned to develop it for commercial purposes. Today Mother Matilda Beasley Park has been landscaped according to a master plan. They were also in preserving the future of Bacon Park Forest which 17 years ago was in danger of being developed into sports fields. Today the Savannah Tree Foundation is one of the leading tree foundations in the nation.

Though the property has had different owners in recent years (the short-lived Savannah Law School purchased the property in 2012. They would use for their logo the Candler Oak), today the property is owned by the Savannah College of Art and Design.

The Candler Oak has seen the likes of Gen. Oglethorpe, Mary Musgrove, the Revolutionary and Civil War, when Cotton was king, Johnny Mercer, Young Flannery O’Connor, and other significant people and events of Savannah. It was the founder of the Savannah Tree Foundation. It is healthy and still standing many years after its death sentence of twenty years thanks to a little help from her friends.

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A Proud History of Healing: Candler/St. Joseph's Hospital

7/9/2019

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The Early Candler Hospital now owned by the Savannah College of Art and Design.

Savannah is known for its first. The first golf course, first black church, the third oldest synagogue, first steamship to cross the Atlantic Ocean, first planned city in America, first art museum in the South, first girl scout troop, and the list could go on. So it is no surprise to find Savannah has the second oldest hospital in the nation: the Candler\St. Joseph’s hospital two hospitals that joined forces.

St. Joseph’s Hospital had its beginning in 1875 when the Sisters of Mercy reached out to help ailing seaman. Candler Hospital is the second oldest continuously operating hospital in the United States. It began in the 1730s when the Methodist missionary George Whitfield brought medicines to treat sick seamen and the poor. Whitefield would also start the oldest orphanage here in Savannah: Bethesda. His efforts would lead to a charter in 1804 as a seaman’s hospital and poor house known under the name of Savannah Poor House and Hospital Society.

In 1819, the hospital moved to Gaston Street where it remained for 160 years and is currently owned and used by Savannah College of Art and Design. During the Civil War the building served as a Union Hospital. In 1872 it was renamed the Savannah Hospital. As they became larger they started the city’s first nursing school in 1902. The Methodist Church would purchase and continue the work of Rev. Whitefield with the guidance of Bishop Warren A. Candler in 1930. Candler would also become the name of the hospital. In 1960 it would join forces with the country’s oldest women’s hospital, Mary Telfair (the hospital was started with a bequeath of money from Mary Telfair one of Savannah’s greatest philanthropist who also started the oldest art museum in the South: Telfair Academy. In 1997 Candler Hospital would take on its current organization by entering an agreement with St. Joseph’s Hospital.

Today, Candler/St. Joseph’s Hospital centuries removed from its beginnings continues as one of Savannah’s oldest and proudest institutions.

The Mary Telfair hospital the first hospital for females. It was later incorporated into the Candler system. Now used for apartments.

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A Creative Town

6/20/2019

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Painting of Savannah by Andre Ruellan

Savannah is said to be a town of creatives. Savannah was recently voted the best place for creatives to live. This is largely due to a world renown Music Festival, Savannah College of Art and Design, Telfair Museums and other art organizations. But the fact is Savannah has been able to call themselves a home for creatives at other times too. For Example, During the early to the mid twentieth century with Telfair Academy established in 1886, the Savannah Art Club, and what I have termed Cotton Row Art Colony on Factor’s Walk the art community in Savannah was flourishing.
One of the examples of an artist who came for a period to enjoy and create here in Savannah was Andre Ruellen (April 6, 1905 – July 15, 2006). She painted in the realist style with a modernist touch. Her work would be collected by the Whitney Museum, New York, Phillips Collection, District of Columbia Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Philadelphia MOA, San Diego MOA, and Savannah’s own Telfair Museums. One of her first paintings to be bought by a museum was the Wind-Up a painting of Savannah bought by the Phillip’s Collection.
Andre Ruellen came to Savannah in 1941 with her husband painter and printer John Taylor. Taylor would teach printmaking at the Telfair Academy. When the couple first came to Savannah they went about town sketching things of interest to themselves. Observing them an over eager police officer thought the two may be spies and took them down to the police station. Alexander Brook, one of the Cotton Row painters and friend, came to their rescue and vouched for them. They were released. Having said this the officer may not have been that far off. Ruellen who was of French descent had parents who were ardent socialists.
Ruellen who had been born in Manhattan had her first published work in the socialist magazine The Masses Ruellen found the American South of interest and would visit Georgia several times. Ruellen was a social realist painter at times. She looked at the South with an eye that would create paintings that would reflect a commentary about southern life. While in Savannah she created three paintings of Savannah scenes Savannah Landscape: City Market, The Wind-Up, and Savannah. Two of these are in the Telfair Museums collection. John Taylor, her husband, has a print created during his printmaking classes at the Telfair that rests in the Museum’s collection.
Ruellen and her husband during her short stay could have had contact with two of Savannah’s more successful painters Christopher Murphey Jr. and Augusta Oelschig who had garnered national attention. But that year in Savannah either living or passing through would have been Edward Weston, Alexander Brook and his wife Gina Knee (a painter whose work can be found in the Phillip’s collection and Denver Art Museum to name two). Ruellen may have even had contact with two Savannah celebrities Harry Hervey who was writing screenplays for Hollywood and plays for New York was living here and maybe Johnny Mercer visited home while she was here.
Whatever the case there was an active arts community here in Savannah during her several weeks stay. Savannah has always been a city of artists and creatives. Today that tradition continues.

The old City Market by Andre Ruellan

The Wind-Up By Andre Ruellan

Andre Ruellan

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George Walton: A Man for all Duties

5/6/2019

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The signatures of the three Georgian signees on the Declaration of Independence.

Georgia had three signers of the Declaration of Independence. All of them spent significant parts of their life in Savannah. Button Gwinnett is buried here. Lyman Hall and George Walton were the other two. For this blog entry we will be exploring the life of George Walton.

George Walton was born in 1749 in Virginia. His parents died when he was an infant, resulting in his adoption by an uncle with whom he entered apprenticeship as a carpenter. Walton was a studious young man, but his uncle actively discouraged all study, believing a studious boy to be an idle one. At the age of twenty when his apprenticeship had ended, he moved to Savannah in 1769 to study law. He was accepted into the bar in 1774. He quickly became one of the most successful lawyers in Georgia. He also became one of the leaders in the newly forming American Revolution. He served on the Provincial Congress and was the President of the Council of Safety in Georgia in 1775. In 1776 he was chosen along with Gwinnett and Hall to serve as a delegate to the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia. It was here that on July 4th he signed with the other two Georgia representatives the Declaration of Independence.

Returning to Savannah he was in the battalion of General Robert Howe. On January 9, 1778, Walton received a commission as colonel of the First Georgia Regiment of Militia. During the Battle of Savannah in 1778 led by Archibald Campbell, Walton was hit in the thigh by a ball that threw him from his horse. He was subsequently captured by the British, who allowed his wound to heal before sending him to Sunbury Prison.

The colonists eventually made an exchange for him. This was done in time to allow him to be elected Governor of Georgia in 1779. He served for only two months before he was forced out because of his progressive controversial views. But his views did not prevent him from being to Congress to serve in the government in another capacity.

Walton after the Revolutionary War would serve as Chief Justice of Georgia. He would also serve as delegate to the state constitutional Convention in 1788 that would ratify the Federal constitution. When James Jackson left during his term as US Senator he was appointed to serve as the US Senator for Georgia.

Walton was a leading force in the education movement in Georgia. He was a founder and trustee of the Academy of Richmond County in Augusta and of Franklin College (now the University of Georgia) in Athens.

Walton retired to his Meadow Garden home in Augusta in the 1780s. He would die at this home on February 2, 1804. In 1848 he was reinterred from his original burial place on his nephew’s home (Rosney) to be reinterred beneath the Signer’s Monument in downtown Augusta.

Walton was one of those remarkable men of his period who served in what ever position he was needed. He saw the country through from the Declaration of Independence to the ratification of the Constitution. He saw Savannah and Georgia through the Revolutionary War to the ratification of the Georgia Constitution. He also led our state to establish the predecessor of University of Georgia, the first public university, in the United States. Although he is not as known as other founding fathers but he was a remarkable leader in the establishment of our State and Country.

Signer's Monument in Augusta

Walton's home Meadow Garden

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Walking the Talk

4/10/2019

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Ulysses Houston

Ulysses Houston pastor of Savannah’s First Bryan Baptist Church during the Reconstruction era was not just a pastor of sermons but of action too. He was born a slave in South Carolina. He was taken by his master to Savannah to serve as a house servant. After he was freed he worked in the city’s hospital. He learned to read from white sailors while working there.
As many literate and capable black leaders he was attracted to the ministry. The black churches were the most prominent entity in black life. He was licensed to preach in 1855. In 1861 Rev. Ulysses L. Houston became pastor of First Bryan between 1861 to 1889. The church grew during his time as pastor. As he served as pastor, he also served twice as president of the black Baptists in Georgia.
As an influential minister he was one of 16 black church leaders who met with Gen. Sherman and Defense Secretary Edwin M. Stanton in 1865. In this meeting the black representatives told the two representatives of Lincoln’s administrative that the primary thing former slaves and other blacks needed was land to farm. This request would lead to Sherman’s fabled forty acres and a mule But for now land belonging to those who rose up in rebellion against the federal government had already been declared "abandoned" by an act of Congress .Sherman ordered 400,000 acres of land on the coast from Charleston to the border of Florida and Georgia St. John’s River be redistributed to the former slaves.
With this new order from Sherman, Houston rushed to take advantage of it. He led 1,000 blacks to Skidaway Island, Ga on of the barrier islands off the shore of Savannah where they established a self-governing community. Houston was declared the “black governor.” They farmed and raised crops on the island until 1866 when whites regained the land.
In 1868, during Reconstruction, Houston was elected to the Georgia State Legislature. He was one of thirty-three blacks who were elected. They are now called the ‘Original 33’. The ‘Original 33’ were all expelled or through violence or the threat of violence were forced to resign by the white community. A monument called “The Expelled Because of Their Color" sits on state Capitol property. The names of the thirty-three men are inscribed on it.
Houston Baptist Church in Port Wentworth (small town outside of Savannah) and its adjoining cemetery were organized in 1886. It was obviously named after Houston. The church is built like a plantation praise house. While the church disbanded a while back it now serves as a small museum of the history of Port Wentworth.
Houston led a life of service to his community and demonstrated the Gospel not only through his words but also through his actions.

Houston Baptist Church in Port Wentworth

'The Expelled because of Their Color' Monument on Georgia State Capitol Grounds

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Savannah's Small Town

3/26/2019

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Thunderbolt Bluff

It is hard to tell where Savannah starts and Thunderbolt begins. The small town east of Savannah lies on Wilmington River Bluff. Surrounding Savannah there are many small towns whose history is not quite as grand but interesting and add to Savannah’s history. The Town of Thunderbolt owes its name to a legend of a lightning strike that created a freshwater spring on the Wilmington Bluff. Thunderbolt came into being as a shipping point for the needs of the plantations and small farmer’s on the coast. It also became a place for building and repairing of boats for those same people. The town was incorporated in 1856 as Warsaw.
This incorporation was done amidst an economy change to a place where fish was processed. The incorporation would lead to a trolley from Savannah through Gordonston and ending in Thunderbolt being created. No longer would it be the place just beyond Savannah’s city limits to hold duels, or the place once inhabited by Native Americans. It was a new town of ‘white ‘commerce.
In 1890, Georgia State College was founded in Thunderbolt for the education of African Americans. This college is known today as Savannah State University. It was the first college in Savannah and the first historically black university in Georgia. In 1921, Warsaw's name was restored to Thunderbolt.
In1893 the casino came to town. The electric company wanted to entice people to ride the trolley to its end (Thunderbolt). The casino was one of the first establishments in the Savannah area to show movies. The site had two bandstands for concerts and dancing. One bandstand was a circular gazebo in the center of a large round duck pond west of the casino. Wood and cast iron benches lined the bluff overlooking the river. The casino grounds included an amusement park, a thirty-acre zoo and a beer garden. A post card image of the Casino, tightrope walkers perform on a rope set up over the duck pond at almost twice the height of the Casino. It was one of the ‘most be places’ to be on a Saturday. The casino burned down in 1930 and was never replaced.
But the citizens of Thunderbolt had not stopped with being a place to be. In 1939, yacht racing became popular and saw the construction of a yacht basin. Annually, the "Blessing of the Fleet" was celebrated until recent years and shrimping evolved into the primary seafood product. The bluff of Thunderbolt had served its military purposes. During the Civil War a battery was built on the bluff to keep union troops from going up the Wilmington River. Jefferson Davis came to town to tour the battery. During World War II the yacht basin was used for rescue boats. Today, the city still serves as base for shrimpers to dock, sell and process their product. They also have a yacht repair company that works on yachts around the world. In fact, I laughed at the irony of some of my homeless men working on the yacht of Bill Gates. They have Tubby’s a seafood place with live bands and large crowds. But compared to its former self it is a sleepier town. So, the next time you cross the bridge of interstate 80 via Victory Drive slow down and see Thunderbolt. They have no duels or casino but they do have some vintage homes, a bluff, shrimpers to purchase from, yachts, and pier.

Thunderbolt Marina where they work on yachts

Thunderbolt's former casino. Notice trapeze artist.

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February 07th, 2019

2/7/2019

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American Prohibition Museum

Savannah has always had a love-hate relationship to alcohol. The first act of alcohol prohibition in America was decreed in Savannah in 1735. Oglethorpe thought that alcohol would be ruin for the industriousness of the colonist. So no alcohol. Although it should be noted they allowed alcohol at Mary Musgrove’s Trading Post outside of Savannah’s city limits.

The first Statewide prohibition went into effect in 1908, years before the rest of the country followed suit. While Georgia worked on prohibition Savannah looked into seceding from the state to avoid the prohibition.

“Savannah is the spigot of the South’ during the Prohibition some have said. During Prohibition, Georgia also boasted more moonshine stills and busts than any other state in the nation. It also so happened Savannah had the perfect location for the enterprise of bootlegging. The marshes would provide cover for the stills of Moonshiners (Skidaway Island State Park has preserved one such operation on one of their trails). The narrow waterways led out to the ocean and they could flee revenuers by making a run for the international water line about 3 miles out. The waterways provided spots for rendezvous to transfer the moonshine from boat to boat and then transport from boats to waiting cars at secret locations on land. These cars would become the stuff of legend. Some say the souping up the engines and designs were the predecessor of NASCAR. Local Sherman ‘Moose’ Helmley was legendary for his ‘souped’ up cars. The greatest ‘bootlegger of all time, Al Capone had Moose make his rum-running cars. Moose added secret compartments and adjusting the suspension to make the car appear to be running light with a full load.

Savannah had its own notorious gang of bootleggers called The Savannah Four. They were Fred Sr., William, Carl, and Fred Jr. Haar.” It is said they sold bootleg liquor from their grocery store during statewide Prohibition; National Prohibition made them even more successful. They controlled of a fleet of ships that ran loads of booze from Scotland, France, Cuba, and the Bahamas; once shipments were brought ashore they were broken down and run by road, typically in trucks disguised as potatoes trucks or in faux oil tankers.”

So it is no surprise that the only museum solely dedicated to Prohibition is here in Savannah. It also makes sense that we have an open container law. Or that we have s speakeasy called the Mata Hari which you only gain entrance by a password and inside you find a burlesque show. Of course all of this is legal today. But the next time you hear that old quote about the difference between Georgia cities “If you go to Atlanta, the first question people ask you is, "What's your business?" In Macon they ask, "Where do you go to church?" In Augusta they ask your grandmother's maiden name. But in Savannah the first question people ask you is "What would you like to drink?” Know we are not kidding.

Entrance to Mata Hari

Toilet in Mata Hari

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Gordonston, A Nice Place to Live

1/25/2019

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The Gordon's Home

Savannah has some great neighborhoods. One of the first neighborhoods was Gordonston. It was founded in 1917. It was part of the storied Gordon family farm.The Gordon family was one of the most prestigious families in Savannah. William Washington Gordon was elected in 1834 as the mayor of Savannah and served in that position for two years. While serving as mayor he was elected to the Georgia General Assembly as a member of the House of Representatives in 1835. In 1838, he was elected to the Georgia Senate. He also founded and served as the first president of the Central Railroad and Banking Company of Georgia, A memorial was constructed on June 25, 1882 in Wright Square in his honor. To do so they destroyed the grave of Indian Chief Tomochichi. This caused a scandal in Savannah. His son, son’s wife, and granddaughter led in bringing Tomochichi’s granite moument that sits in the corner of Wright Square to somewhat rectify the situation.

Gordon’s son William Washington Gordon II was a Confederate Captain in the American Civil War, later serving as a Brigadier General in the United States Army during the Spanish–American War. He was also the chairman of the Savannah Cotton Exchange and vice-president of the Merchants' National Bank and a founding director of the Georgia Railroad and Banking Company.

Gordon II had a wife named Nellie Kinzie Gordon. She was from one of the founding families of Chicago. She was also prominent in the civic life of Savannah. She became responsible for starting two medical facilities for Spanish American Soldiers during the Spanish American War.

Gordon II and his wife Nellie were the parents of Juliette Low Gordon. Juliette was the founder of the Girl Scouts. This was the family who made Gordonston from their farm land. In 1917, William Washington Gordon III, along with his three sisters and one brother, inherited an approximately 80-acre tract of land east of downtown Savannah on what is now called Skidaway Road. W. W. Gordon purchased his sibling’s interest in the property and laid out a subdivision named Gordonston.

Gordonston is roughly bounded by Gwinnett Street to the north, Skidaway Road to the south, Goebel Avenue to the west and Pennsylvania Avenue to the east. Gordonston is distinguished by its Beaux-Arts inspired radial plan in which only Henry Avenue joins Savannah's established grid-iron plan of streets The Beaux-Arts radial plan, laid out by J. G. Langdon, is centered on Pierpont Circle, a small, landscaped park that serves as a central traffic. Kinzie and Anderson avenues have planted medians. Kinzie is planted with oak trees; Anderson is planted with Crepe Myrtle.

One of Savannah’s most prominent architects, Henrik Wallin designed at least one of the homes in Gordonston. Wallin was the architect of the Armstrong House next to Forsyth Park, First Baptist Church, Wallin Hall a SCAD building, to name a few. In Gordonston he designed the Colonial Revival-style house at 411 Gordonston Avenue in 1914.

One of the more significant markers of Gordonston is a landscaped park that was dedicated to the "children of Gordonston" by Juliette Low in 1926. the cornerstone was laid for the gates of Gordonston Memorial Park, and the park was dedicated to Willie and Nellie.

In the cornerstone Daisy [Juliette Gordon Low] placed the tools she had used in making the gates, and the stone pillars in which the gates are set have a daisy carved on each column. The park, which was also called Brownie Park and Gordon Memorial Park, was rededicated in the name of Juliette Gordon Low in 1940. Enclosed by an iron fence, the park contains a city well and a cabin built in the late 1940s for Girl Scout troop meetings. Oak and magnolia trees are found throughout the naturally landscaped park, with an understory of dogwoods, camellias, and azaleas. A trust established by the Low family provides funds for the maintenance of the park.

The home of William Washington Gordon III at 2 Pierpont Circle is on the register of the National Historic Homes. This neighborhood is known as one of Savannah’s best even to this day. The Gordons all lived prominent lives but one of the lasting vestiges of their time here is this neighborhood.

A home in Gordonston

Joggers running pass the gate to Gordonston Park

Original layout of Gordonston

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Savannah: Agricultural Innovator

1/13/2019

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Savannah has always been a city of innovation. Because of our size we often do not think of Savannah as a place for innovations. We look to New York, Los Angeles, or Chicago as the capitals of innovation. Yet Savannah especially in the world of agricultural crops has been a leader. Most have heard of the ten acres experimental gardens trustees Garden started by Oglethorpe. It brought to America specifically South Carolina and Georgia the peach. Although a failed experiment the growth of mulberry trees for silk worms in Savannah led to a Queen, Caroline, wearing a dress made of Savannah silk. But the most prominent and economic changing crop was the cultivation of upland cotton.

Cotton would change the fortunes for good and bad of southerners. As the south became the center of the world cotton empire. But Savannah is not only responsible for the introduction of the cotton plant to America it is also responsible for the ability to harvest it for a more productive use. The cotton gin improved on by Eli Whitney was done here on one of the storied plantations of Savannah: Mulberry Grove. Mulberry Grove was the home of Revolutionary War Hero Nathaniel Greene and his gregarious wife Caty.

You may have heard of the Historic plant collections at the University of Georgia Bamboo Farm and Coastal Gardens began in 1890, when Mrs. H. B. Miller planted three bamboo plants, obtained from Cuba, at a site in southwestern Savannah. Because th bamboo farm grew into a success it became an ideal spot for a plant introduction station. In 1919 Barbour Lathrop a supporter of U.S. plant exploration, purchased the forty-six-acre tract. Lathrop leased the property to the USDA for $1.

Charles Herty one of Savannah’s great men contributed to research and advocacy in the agriculture world. His first contribution was to use southern pines to create newsprint which became the source for the newspaper industry. This would explode the South’s pulp industry. He also worked to create a turpentine industry which helped preserve the trees to also be used to produce timber. The "Herty system" of collecting turpentine required less forestry expertise and labor. It also produced more turpentine without harming the pine tree.

But what you probably do not know about Savannah is its contribution to the soybean being cultivated in the United States. According to a historical marker “Samuel Bowen, a former seaman of the British East India Company, brought the soybean from China to Georgia in 1765. Bowen, with assistance from the Surveyor General of Georgia, Henry Yonge, cultivated the first soybean crop near Skidaway Island. Bowen’s successful soybean harvest led to the production of soy sauce and vermicelli (soybean noodles), both of which were exported to England.” Apparently, the legendary Greenwich plantation was the center of Bowen’s soybean operation. Today Greenwich Cemetery sits where the plantation once sat.

It is hard to think of the south without the thoughts of cotton, peaches, and pine trees. These are staple features of the south even to this day. But with the introduction of bamboo and soybeans Savannah introduces a bit of the exotic or more precisely the Asian. And where would America be without its Chinese restaurants even in the smallest of cities.

Eli Whtney's cotton gin

Greenwich Plantaton

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A Square as Reminder of Jim Crow Days

1/8/2019

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Crawford Square

Crawford Square is on Houston Street between Perry and Hull Streets and is the only square that is still fenced as all the squares were at one time. Crawford Sqaure is probably one of Savannah’s most unique squares. It was laid out in 1840 and was name for Savannah William Harris Crawford. He was a Georgia Senator, Minister to France, Secretary of Treasurer under James Madison as well as major candidate for President. The square is the smallest and was the only square that allowed blacks free use.

Crawford Square is the only square to retain part of its fence that all the squares originally had. You can see the multiple purposes squares were often used. After the great Savannah Fire of 1820 two cisterns were placed in the square to give access to firefighters for water to fight fires. These cisterns are partially revealed. In the middle of the square is a gazebo. And on one side of the square is a basketball court.
The basketball court is significant because of how it came to be. In the days of Jim Crow money for the black community and its recreation needs was not highly forthcoming. But the recreation department held a basketball tournament that is still held today and offer the winner of the tournament a basketball court. The Black team from the Crawford Square Neighborhood won the tournament and received the court that now stands in Crawford Square as an award. Through the years developers and others have wanted to do away with the court because of various reasons but the black community has insisted on the court remaining. Thus, it is the only square with a recreational use.
I imagine one day there may be a historical marker alongside the square marking where The Lady Chablis of the Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil fame lived before she became the star she was meant to be. The Square is a reminder of hard times for blacks but also of how they pulled together to create a good place to live.