Massive thank you to everyone who came out to celebrate Virginia Kiah’s birthday this weekend. It was wonderful meeting new people, especially those who had known Mrs. Kiah.
So what’s next in preserving the memory and legacy of this remarkable couple, Dr. and Mrs. Kiah? We are writing a grant to pay for a historic preservationist to evaluate the house. We can’t begin any preservation efforts without first knowing where the problems are (and there are many). The grant pays for 60% of consultant’s fees, so we need to raise approximately $4,000 to make our match. To donate, click here and press the little up arrow to donate in $10 increments ($10, $20, $50, $1,000…). A PayPal pop-up window will appear when you click the button. We appreciate every dime!
The Kiah House in April 2019. We’re very concerned about the roof, which is crumbling at the edges. Also note how the top of the chimney is missing bricks, which fall occasionally and create a serious hazard.
You can also support the cause by buying a t-shirt. The t-shirts are a limited time offer, so get your orders in before June 17.
I was delighted to hear the Girl Scouts of America received an Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) grant to make Scouting and all Girl Scout programs more inclusive. From the Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace blog: “Access for All: Advancing Girl Scouts’ Commitment to Disability Inclusion is a two-year initiative led by the Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace in Savannah, Georgia, that will consist of trainings, conversations and activities promoting inclusion, empowerment and equity for those living with disabilities. The trainings’ goal is to spark an ongoing conversation about disability history, culture, rights and advocacy within the Girl Scout Movement.”
As a former employee, I had a truly memorable experience while leading one Girl Scout troop tour of the Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace. One young Girl Scout had several disabilities including some difficulty walking, and perhaps some difficulty hearing (I can’t remember precisely). She was blind. But she loved art and was thrilled to learn that Daisy (Juliette Gordon Low) was also an accomplished artist. Another employee produced a pair of white cotton museum gloves. With the gloves on, we allowed her to touch Daisy’s sculpture Girl with Tortoise. This artist plaster original was in the front parlor at the time. She was able to “see” the sculpture through her touch and truly connect to another artist and the Girl Scouts’ founder. The wonder and amazement on this young woman’s face still brings tears to my eyes.
We were not serving her remotely adequately with a traditional tour. But with some quick thinking, we improvised and created a lasting, special memory we all treasure. But most importantly, we made history come alive to everyone in that room. We made Juliette Gordon Low a vital, creative, force of nature again in her childhood home.
More from the Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace blog: “‘Many people don’t know that Juliette Low had profound hearing loss throughout her life, making her birthplace the perfect location for Girl Scouts’ new initiative, Access for All, to offer inclusion training for the birthplace staff, Girl Scout troops and their leaders, and other local audiences,’ explained birthplace Executive Director Lisa Junkin Lopez. Perhaps because of this hearing impairment, which worsened in adulthood, Low uniquely understood the value of Girl Scouts for girls with disabilities. As a result, the organization has long been inclusive of girls with disabilities, and it aims to serve all girls equally.
My three-year-old insisted on going to Tybee today. He’s had worse suggestions, so we went and had a few relaxing hours on the beach. Me reading, him playing with his toy dump truck and loader. I haven’t taken my son up in the lighthouse yet, mostly because I think that will end in me carrying him. It’s a lot of stairs.
Tybee Lighthouse from the beach.
James Oglethorpe had a navigational marker placed on the property now housing the lighthouse in 1733, the same year he founded Georgia. A lighthouse has stood in this area ever since. By 1736 Noble Jones, Georgia’s surveyor, supervised the construction of a 90-foot wooden tower, although it did not have a light. This daytime navigation marker was the largest on the British-controlled east coast. In 1741, a storm destroyed the tower.
A second, 90 to 94 foot lighthouse was built by 1742. It too did not have a light. An associated Keeper’s House was also built nearby. This lighthouse was gone by 1768, a victim of the harsh coastal elements. The third lighthouse was built in 1773 and destroyed by fire in 1791. The current lighthouse, a 100-foot, octagonal-base brick lighthouse, was built in 1791, probably on the foundation of the 1773 building. Note: the Tybee Light Station is a museum today; entry fees apply.
The Assistant Keeper’s House was restored in 2003. Since the restoration included some ground-disturbing activities, the Tybee Island Historical Society, which runs the Light Station and the Tybee Museum, called in archaeologists to make sure they weren’t destroying historic resources.
Archaeologists examined two corners the brick foundation beneath the existing, circa 1885 house. They excavated two test units (square areas that were dug out), finding nearly 5,000 artifacts in their small excavation. Artifacts recovered included architectural materials like brick, mortar, and window glass; kitchen ceramics, bottle glass, and tin cans were also discovered. Food remains showed the dietary variety: turtle, beef, pork, foul, fish, and eggs were eaten on site. Shellfish were also an important part of the diet including oysters, clams, crab, and whelk. Personal artifacts were found as well: a brass finger ring, pocketknife fragments, a glass marble, mirror glass, newspaper scraps, matches, and a piece of engraved slate. Bullets and other armament artifacts were found as well as uniform buckles and a brass insignia. Many of these are probably from the Civil War soldiers camped near the lighthouse.
The brick foundation under the current house is the footing for an earlier keeper’s house. A brown transfer printed sherd (ceramic fragment) was found in the foundation’s builder’s trench. Brown transfer printed ceramics were first made in 1809, so the building must date after 1809. The historical record states this circa 1809 house burned in 1885. Melted window and bottle glass were found with exploded bricks and highly tempered (heat-treated) nails. When iron is heated to extremely high temperatures, the nails are preserved and rust-free.
Artifacts from the 1700s were also found, so an even earlier building was also probably on this site. While no structural remains were found for an earlier building, an undated brick hearth and chimney pad were found, possibly from this 1700s era building.
A neighbor was recently lunching in Daffin Park and found an 1883 Liberty Penny lying on the surface. His excited Facebook post showed how important local history, and especially tangible artifacts, are to us. Archaeologists vary on how excitable they get when non-archaeologists take artifacts. Legally speaking, taking any artifact from someone else’s property is stealing. However, some archaeologists acknowledge that one or two artifacts taken from a surface context (aka no digging*) probably won’t seriously damage a site. Of course, on public property, if everyone takes one or two artifacts, this can add up.
1883 Liberty penny from Daffin Park
Designed by John Nolen, Daffin Park was founded in 1907, completed in 1909, and is part of the Parkside Place Historic District. The Beaux Arts-inspired Daffin Park is named after Philip Daffin, the first Chairman of the Savannah Park and Tree Commission. The park has always been designated for athletic pursuits, from the professional to the amateur. Grayson Stadium, built in 1941, replaced the older 1930s Municipal Stadium. Grayson Stadium encroached on Herty Park, which retains its original character as a pine grove, but today is also a dog park. The stadium also altered the park’s larger structure by eliminating the eastern circular drive. The east-west central roads have two live oak-lined allees creating a 210-foot-wide central mall that connected the two circular drives and four diagonal roads that lead to each corner of the park.
Google Maps snapshot showing how the park’s west end has been altered by Grayson Stadium, leaving the park less symmetrical than the original.
Athletic fields north and south of the mall are still intact today, as is the children’s playground at Waters and Washington streets, albeit with updated playground equipment. Originally the southern open fields were occasionally used an a land strip for small planes. In addition to the open fields, today the park has specific areas for beach volleyball, tennis, basketball, and fishing. (Yes! There are fish and turtles in the lake). The present in-ground pool replaced an earlier, less formal pool. Tom Barton wrote, “The lake that fronts Victory Drive has its own mini-history. The original wet spot was created in the shape of the 48 contiguous United States. Years ago, kids would sneak into the lake and avoid paying a nickel for a required, pre-dip soapy shower [before entering the whites-only pool]. Bathers could rent suits as well – which explains the soapy showers.”
Photograph of the Daffin Park Swimming Pool, 1905. From the Edward Girard Photographs collection, MS 1374. Source: Georgia Historical Society
Robin Wright Gunn recalls the park in the early 1970s, “Sometime during that era I recall several instances of riding in the back seat of the car, Mom at the wheel, as we rolled past the corner of Victory Drive and Bee Road, the location of Daffin Park, a somewhat neglected section of the unremarkably landscaped public facility. At some point in this period, less than a decade after Daffin Park was center stage for two racial desegregation lawsuits, this corner of Daffin became known as “The People’s Park,” the unofficial gathering place for Savannah’s hippies.” She writes about her attempt to find anyone who admits to visiting the park regularly during this time, possibly because of the recreational drug use then associated with the park. “Pot was everywhere, and heroin was easy to find. Perhaps it’s that hardcore reputation that has made it difficult to find people willing to talk about this slice of local history,” wrote Gunn.
The mall with its live oak allée at Daffin Park’s center.
Today the park is beautiful as ever and is always full with people engaged in all forms of recreation. So let’s go fly a kite!
Kite flying on the football fields.
*It is illegal to dig on public property.
Sources:
Daffin Park-Parkside Place Historic District National Register of Historic Places Registration Form. Download a copy here.
Multiple historic sites are hosting cool Halloween-themed programs. Consider a haunting with twist of history rather than a manufactured, fake presentation this season.
From Drowning to Dysentery: A Deadly Look at Fort Pulaski
“Fort Pulaski might not have its own ghost story, but our island has certainly witnessed its fair share of the macabre. On October 19th and 20th, join park staff for a special ranger-led lantern tour into the darker history of Cockspur Island. Tickets are $18 per person and can be purchased by calling 912-786-4383.” See their Facebook event for more details.
Beer, Bourbon & Bullets at Old Fort Jackson
While not directly Halloween-related, Civil War medicine is definitely scary. “’Beer, Bourbon & Bullets,’ will give attendees the chance to network and enjoy beer and bourbon cocktails, while getting a peek at military field medicine and the role that spirits played along with 19th-century tools and techniques.” Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door; members get a $5 discount. Details available on their Facebook event.
Yellow Fever in Savannah 1820: Davenport House
This annual event is always a crowd-pleaser, plus it offers many dates and times. “This October see a historical recreation of Savannah’s dreadful Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1820 with particular emphasis on daily life of the period. A highlight is moving though the candlelit rooms witnessing enactments by costumed performers. In an area seldom seen by visitors, the fate and experiences of the uncounted half to the city’s population, both free and enslaved Africans, are revealed. Reservations recommended. Limited attendance.” Tickets are $14.95. More information is available on their Facebook event.
Halloween Hike at Oatland Island Wildlife Center
Oatland Island Wildlife Center has been closed for sometime due to this summer’s tornado. They are having two Halloween Hikes, despite the continued closure. Also, this is the only kid-friendly listing here. “Pick your date [October 19 or 20] and don’t be late. This is a cash only event $10 kids, $5 adults. Purchased wristbands allow kids to get candy. In an attempt to be eco friendly plastic bags will not be provided as in years past. Please bring a container for their candy. Costume up and spend the evening trick or treating with our furry friends!” Their Facebook page has two events listed, one for each day.
Oatland Island wolf
*Quoted material comes directly from the links, usually the organization’s Facebook event page.
Savannah Archaeological Alliance 