Greene Square

The ward and square carry the eponym of General Nathanael Greene, second in command to George Washington in the American Revolution. If you are looking for his monument and burial place, however, you will need to go to Johnson Square.

Ahhh… take a few seconds to relax to bird calls greenery.

In the 19th Century, Greene Square became a centerpiece of an African American community.

On the corner of Houston and East State Street, you will find the Cunningham House. Constructed in 1810 by Henry Cunningham was a former slave and the founding pastor of the Second African Baptist Church. After Cunningham’s death, the residence became a home for orphaned girls.

Speaking of, right across East State St. is where you will find the Second African Baptist Church. Once the First African Baptist Church, by Franklin Square, reached a membership of 850, 200 members came together to form the Second Colored Church.

Then in 1823, both the First and Second Colored Baptist Churches were renamed to the First and Second African Baptist Churches by the Sunbury Association, an association of area Baptist churches.

February 3, 1863. Union officer Rufus Saxton stands in front of the Second African Baptist Church reading Field Order No. 15. Issued by General William Tecumseh Sherman, the Field Order is the famed ‘40 acres and a mule’ military order issued during the Civil War. The order would redistribute roughly 400,000 acres of land to newly freed black families in forty-acre segments.

Unfortunately, President Andrew Johnson reversed the order, returning the lands to southern owners who took a loyalty oath.

While in the square, looking northeast from the Second African Baptist Church, you’ll find the Tiny House. This home, formally known as The John Dorsett House is the smallest free-standing house in Savannah. Built in1845 for New York City-born shipbuilder John W. Dorsett, the house, like many in the historic district was moved from its original location on Hull Street near Crawford Square to its current location.

In the southeast, there stands The Kate Baldwin Free Kindergarten. The kindergarten was founded by the children of Kate A. Baldwin and incorporated in 1899 as a “benevolent and charitable institution for the free training, instruction, and education of young children…” The Kate Baldwin Free Kindergartens educated approximately 4,000 children between 1899 and 1943.

Learn more about Green Square and its historic significance when you book your stay with us.