Savannah Relics

06/14/2025

1899 Magic Lantern Slide - Officers of the 49th Iowa Volunteer Infantry at Camp Onward

The 49th Iowa Volunteer Infantry mustered into service on June 2, 1898 in Des Moines, Iowa. Bound for Jacksonville’s Camp Cuba Libre. They were still there when fighting ended on August 13th. They left Jacksonville on October 25th, arriving at Camp Onward in Savannah, Georgia the following day. Eventually the unit served in Cuba as part of the occupation forces, leaving Savannah on December 19, 1898 aboard the U.S. Transport “MINNAWASKA” bound for Havana, Cuba.

Magic Lanterns, or lanterna magica, were early slide projectors popular through the 18th and 19th centuries. They were superseded in the mid-20th century by modern day 35mm slide projectors.

06/14/2025

1860’s Screven House Business Card

The Screven House opened on October 20th, 1857 on the corner of Bull and Congress (The building was replaced in 1912 with what is now known as the Manger Building, which will reopen in 2026 as a new hotel, ).

George McGinly was the proprietor of the hotel in the 1860’s. The business card is printed on Parkesine, an early type of plastic.

Alexander Parkes patented Parkesine in 1856, and unveiled it at the 1862 Great Exhibition, where it won a bronze medal. Parkes attempted to develop Parkesine commercially, but failed due to the high cost and general production difficulties. The introduction of Parkesine is generally regarded as the birth of the plastics industry. However, the Parkesine company went out of business in 1868.

06/04/2025

1920’s John Schwalb Trade Token - Good For One Glass Soda

John F. Schwalb (1869-1942) had a drug store at 2319 Whitaker in the 1910’s, then at 2026 Habersham in the 1920’s. He is buried at Bonaventure Cemetery.

06/03/2025

1890’s Bill Dugan Whiskey Label - Smith Bros

Abraham E. Smith and Henry L. Smith operated a wholesale cigar, to***co, and liquor company at 145 Bay Street (which became 27 West Bay Street after 1896). Most recently, this building site was the courtyard of Moon River. They were sometimes listed at 143 and 147 Bay Street as well.

Fun fact: Michael T. Quinan worked as a clerk there in the 1890’s before he purchased a soda water manufacturing company from John Ryan. Antique bottle collectors are very familiar with both names.

The Bill Dugan characature was also used as a cigar brand in the late 19th and early 20th century.

06/02/2025

1909 Postcard of Tornado Damage to Home

Between April 29 and May 1 in 1909, an outbreak of tornadoes swept through the midwestern and southeastern United States. Forty-three confirmed tornadoes touched down in just a few days, killing at least 180 people and injuring nearly 800.

One such tornado (an F2) hit Savannah on May 1st, tearing off the uppermost level of a four-story building and wrecking one home. One person was killed and another injured.

05/31/2025

19th and 20th Century Photos of Forsyth Park Fountain

Built in 1858, the Fountain at Forsyth Park is named after Georgia Governor John Forsyth. During a time when yellow fever was an epidemic, it was originally intended to provide potable water to the citizens of Savannah.

The fountain will be temporarily removed this summer to undergo renovations. The last major restoration was in 1988.

05/31/2025

1795 Letter written on behalf of Joseph Habersham

This letter, written May 30th 1795 by George Woodruff in Savannah, Georgia to Reverend William Frazer in Trenton, New Jersey, is requesting school accommodations for Colonel Joseph Habersham’s two sons, as well as some other young men under his care. The request is due to the fact that Habersham has been appointed to Post Master General of the United States and must relocate to Philadelphia.

George Whitefield Woodruff (1765-1846) studied law at the College of New Jersey and was admitted to the bar in 1788. Soon afterwards he was appointed District Attorney of Georgia and moved to Savannah, Georgia. In 1796, he married Jean Houstoun of Savannah, daughter of Sir George Houstoun.

Joseph Habersham (1751-1815) was a businessman who served as a soldier in the Continental Army. He was the 3rd Mayor of the City of Savannah, as well as the 6th Postmaster General of the United States.

The Reverend William Frazer (1743-1795) was the rector of St. Michael’s Episcopal Church from 1788 to 1795. Though he was a Tory during the American Revolution, he remained in America after the war. He also had a school in Trenton, where the children of many prominent political figures attended (including Alexander Hamilton’s sons). Rev. Frazer passed away July 6, 1795 - five weeks after this letter was written.

11/19/2024

My eBay store is live! Own a unique piece of Savannah history.

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10/10/2024

1950’s Union Pin - IBEW 508

C.C. Pacetti & Sons was a roofing and sheet metal company with an office on Liberty & Price (where Spanish Moss Printing currently resides).

The local Savannah chapter of IBEW (International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers) was founded in 1916, and still operates to this day.

09/09/2024

1974 Uncut Sheet of Savannah Braves Tickets:

Before the or the Sand Gnats, Grayson Stadium was home to the Savannah Braves from 1971-1983. A Double-A affiliate for the major league team of the same name, they eventually relocated to Greenville, South Carolina.

03/09/2024

Hibernian Society of Savannah 100th Anniversary Printing Plate

The Hibernian Society of Savannah was founded in 1812 for the purpose of offering aid and assistance to needy Irish immigrants. They are the oldest of Savannah’s many Irish societies and organizations, and the originators of Savannah’s Saint Patrick’s Day Parade.

03/02/2024

1863 Land Contract for Lot 33 in Monterey Ward

Lots 32 and 33 in Monterey Ward are what is now 1-9 E Gordon Street. The row of homes were built between 1852 and 1853 by brothers John and Ephraim Scudder. They paid $1100 for the lots. Isaac D. LaRoche, a commercial merchant and auctioneer, paid $23,000 for the lot and homes in 1863.