Live Like a Local

Everyone in the Savannah area knows about the Bonaventure Cemetrery. It’s been the “premier” cemetery for over 100 years, but it gained world wide fame from what locals call The Book…better know as John Berendt’s Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. But there’s a lot more to Bonaventure Cemetery than a book and movie location.

Bonaventure Cemetery was used as a burial ground as early as 1794, when Governor Tattnall buried a relative there. The cemetery is the final resting place of local and national figures alike. Johnny Mercer, Conrad Aiken, and the Trosdal plot, famous for “The Bird Girl” statue now housed in the Telfair Academy of Arts and Sciences. Jack Leigh, the photographer who took the picture of the statue on the cover of The Book, is also laid to rest in Bonaventure.

photo from http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/classics/mercer_house/5.html

Though many claim it is just as haunted as the rest of Savannah, the fact remains that Bonaventure is a beautiful, peaceful place full of history. There are, of course, plenty of tours you can take, but you can also stop by the small visitors center for free information you can use for a self guided tour, provided by The Bonaventure Historical Society. You can explore area history through the stones, enjoy the huge Live Oaks draped in Spanish moss, and take in the view from the banks of the beautiful Wilmington River.

photo from http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~langolier/bonaventure.html

Bonaventure Cemetery is a graceful and historical gem! Make sure you visit on your next trip to Savannah. Take a picnic, enjoy the view, explore a little history, and feel like a local for a while. See you soon!

     October is always a fun time to enjoy the fall…and then, of course, there’s Halloween! Though most people only tell ghost stories during this time of year, we here in the Savannah area know that the spirits are active all year round!
     The tale of Little Gracie is a perfect example. Gracie Watson was the only child of the Watson Family, owners of the Pulaski Hotel. Little Gracie was a guest favorite at the lavish parties the Watsons held regularly, but she tended to wander off as the hours dwindled and could often be found playing in the stair well of the great hotel.
     Gracie took ill with pneumonia and passed away at the tender age of six, two days before Easter in 1889. Though the Pulaski Hotel is long gone, people still report hearing a child’s playful giggles in the area where the stair case used to be. Some have even seen a little girl in period clothing dashing past them.

     Little Gracie was laid to rest in Savannah’s Bonaventure Cemetery, where you can still visit her grave in Section E. A life sized statue of the child is there, and it is said if you bring a small trinket to leave at the monument, you can hear the sounds of a child playing.
     Yes, our area if full of visitors from the past. Plan a visit, explore, and have a fun and spirited time!