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Savannah, Georgia’s oldest city, also has the distinction of being the first planned city in the United States. Founded in 1733 by James Oglethorpe, Savannah was designed to include city squares. Twenty-one of the original squares remain, shaded by trees, lined by restored Greek Revival and Regency style homes and graced with sidewalks for strolling and benches for social chatting. This historic area attracts visitors from far and near to Georgia’s first British settlement.
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Savannah, Georgia’s east coast jewel, is located at the mouth of the Savannah River. The river runs along the state line between Georgia and South Carolina. River Street was once the location of Savannah warehouses along the Savannah River.
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Today, River Street is a popular Savannah downtown attraction with clubs, restaurants and shops along cobblestone streets that lead to the waterfront’s plaza. From the plaza, visitors can view cargo ships sail up the Savannah River.
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Early Savannah was a city where both farmers and fishermen brought their goods to market in horse drawn wagons. The area of the city, near the waterfront, where those goods were sold became a commercial and social center. Today this four block area, called City Market, is still a center of Savannah commercial and social life.
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Visitors to City Market will find cafes, restaurants, ice cream and candy shops as well as specialty shops featuring such things as handmade cigars and distinctive gifts. City Market also features art galleries, entertainment venues and horse drawn carriages.
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The story of Savannah’s history is told through presentations at Savannah History Museum. However, much of Savannah’s history can also be learned by visiting city attractions. Colonial Park Cemetery is believed to be the final resting place of Button Gwinnett, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. Christ Church is the location where John Wesley, founder of the Methodist Church, preached and established the first Sunday School. Old Fort Jackson was built as a result of the authorization by President Thomas Jefferson for the purchase of land for the purpose of building a fort. Later it was used as a Confederate stronghold. Owens-Thomas House, designed by the first professionally trained architect in the United States, contains an Urban Slave Quarters that showcases items on loan from the Acacia Collection of African Americana. These items are things constructed and used by slaves. First African Baptist Church in Savannah, founded in 1777, is the oldest African-American church in North American and was a part of the Underground Railroad.
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Laurel Grove South Cemetery is the final resting place of slaves and free people of color. Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace stands as a memorial to the founder of the Girl Scouts.
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