Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is a city in, and county seat of, Chatham County, Georgia, United States. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, it is the oldest city in the state, and was the capital of the colonial Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. A strategic port city in the American Revolution and during the American Civil War, Savannah today is an industrial center and an important Atlantic seaport. The city is the most populous in the Coastal Georgia region and the fifth-most populous in the state as a whole, with a population of 147,780 at the 2020 census and an estimated 148,808 in 2024. The Savannah metropolitan area, with about 432,000 residents in 2024, is the third-largest metro area in the state.
Savannah attracts millions of visitors each year to its cobblestone streets, parks, and notable historic buildings. These include the birthplace of Juliette Gordon Low, the Georgia Historical Society, the Telfair Academy of Arts and Sciences, the First African Baptist Church, Temple Mickve Israel, and the Central of Georgia Railway roundhouse complex.
Savannah's downtown area, which includes the Savannah Historic District, its 22 parklike squares, and the Savannah Victorian Historic District, is one of the largest National Historic Landmark Districts in the U.S., designated by the federal government in 1966. Downtown Savannah largely retains the founder James Oglethorpe's original town plan, a design known as the Oglethorpe Plan.
During the 1996 Summer Olympics hosted by Atlanta, Savannah held sailing competitions in the nearby Wassaw Sound.
History
On February 12, 1733, General James Oglethorpe and settlers from the ship Anne landed at Yamacraw Bluff and were greeted by Tomochichi, the Yamacraws, and Indian traders John and Mary Musgrove. Mary Musgrove often served as an interpreter. The city of Savannah and the colony of Georgia were founded on that date. In 1751, Savannah and the rest of Georgia became a Royal Colony, with Savannah as its capital.By the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, Savannah had become the southernmost commercial port in the Thirteen Colonies. British troops took the city in 1778, and the following year, a combined force of American and French soldiers, including Haitians, failed to rout the British at the Siege of Savannah. The British did not leave the city until July 1782. In December 1804 the state legislature declared Milledgeville the new capital of Georgia.
Savannah, a prosperous seaport throughout the nineteenth century, was the Confederacy's sixth most populous city and the prime objective of Major General William T. Sherman's March to the Sea. On December 21, 1864, local authorities negotiated a peaceful surrender to save Savannah from destruction, and Union troops marched into the city at dawn.
Savannah was named after the Savannah River, which probably derives from variant names for the Shawnee, a Native American people who migrated to the river in the 1680s. The Shawnee destroyed another Native people, the Westo, and occupied their lands at the head of the Savannah River's navigation on the fall line, near present-day Augusta, Georgia. These Shawnee, whose Native name was Ša·wano·ki, were known by several local variants, including Shawano, Savano, Savana and Savannah. Another theory is that the name Savannah refers to the extensive marshlands surrounding the river for miles inland, and is derived from the English term "savanna", a kind of tropical grassland, which was borrowed by the English from Spanish sabana and used in the Southern Colonies. Still other theories suggest that the name Savannah originates from Algonquian terms meaning not only "southerners" but perhaps also "salt".
Geography
Savannah lies on the Savannah River, approximately upriver from the Atlantic Ocean. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of, of which is land and is water. Savannah is the primary port on the Savannah River and the largest port in Georgia. It is also near the U.S. Intracoastal Waterway. Georgia's Ogeechee River flows toward the Atlantic Ocean some south of downtown Savannah and forms the southern city limit.Savannah is prone to flooding due to abundant rainfall, an elevation just above sea level, and the shape of the coastline, which poses a greater surge risk during hurricanes. The city currently uses five canals. In addition, several pumping stations have been built to help reduce the effects of flash flooding.
Climate
Savannah's climate is classified as humid subtropical. Throughout the Deep South, this is characterized by long and almost tropical summers and short, mild winters. Savannah records only a few days of freezing temperatures each year, and snowfall is rare. Due to its proximity to the Atlantic coast, Savannah rarely experiences temperatures as extreme as those in Georgia's interior. Nevertheless, the extreme temperatures have officially ranged from, on July 20, 1986, and July 12, 1879, down to during the January 1985 Arctic outbreak.Seasonally, Savannah tends to have hot and humid summers with frequent thunderstorms that develop in the warm and tropical air masses, which are common. Although summers in Savannah are frequently sunny, half of Savannah's annual precipitation falls from June through September. Average dewpoints in summer range from. Winters in Savannah are mild and sunny with average daily high temperatures of in January. November and December are the driest months recorded at Savannah–Hilton Head International Airport. Each year, Savannah reports 21 days on average with low temperatures below freezing, though in some years, fewer than 10 nights will fall below freezing, and the city has even gone an entire winter season without recording a freeze. Although decades might pass between snowfall events, Savannah has experienced snow on rare occasions, most notably in December 1989, when up to was recorded in one day in parts of the city.
Savannah is at risk for hurricanes, particularly of the Cape Verde type of storms that take place during the peak of the season. Because of its location in the Georgia Bight as well as the tendency for hurricanes to re-curve up the coast, Savannah has a lower risk of hurricanes than some other coastal cities such as Charleston, South Carolina. Savannah was seldom affected by hurricanes during the 20th century. Hurricane David, in August 1979, is a notable exception. However, the historical record shows that the city was frequently affected during the second half of the 19th century. The most prominent of these storms was the 1893 Sea Islands hurricane, which killed at least 2,000 people.
Savannah was most recently affected by an active 2016 hurricane season, including Hurricane Matthew, and was brushed by Hurricane Irma in 2017. The 2024 season saw impacts from Hurricane Debby and Hurricane Helene.
The first meteorological observations in Savannah probably occurred at Oglethorpe Barracks circa 1827, continuing intermittently until 1850 and resuming in 1866. The Signal Service began observations in 1874, and the National Weather Service has kept records of most data continually since then; since 1948, Savannah-Hilton Head International Airport has served as Savannah's official meteorological station. Annual records from the airport's weather station are available on the web.
Cityscape
Neighborhoods
Savannah is a city of diverse neighborhoods. More than 100 distinct neighborhoods can be identified in six principal areas of the city: Downtown, Midtown, Southside, Eastside, Westside, and Southwest/West Chatham.Historic districts
Besides the Savannah Historic District, one of the nation's largest, five other historic districts have been formally demarcated:- Savannah Victorian Historic District
- Cuyler–Brownville Historic District
- Thomas Square Historic District
- Pin Point Historic District
- Ardsley Park–Chatham Crescent Historic District
Demographics
In 2010, there were 51,375 households, out of which 28.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 35.2% were married couples living together, 21.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.9% were non-families. Among them, 31.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 3.13. As of 2010, the median income for a household in the city was $29,038, and the median income for a family was $36,410. Males had a median income of $28,545 versus $22,309 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,921. About 17.7% of families and 21.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 31.4% of those under age 18 and 15.1% of those age 65 or over. By the 2022 American Community Survey, the median household income was $53,258 with a per capita income of $31,006.