And running very far very fast, at least if you enjoy history, is impossible. Every 100 yards on my morning runs I had to pause and go back 100 years. Pulaski Square, for example, was named for the Polish Count Casimir Pulaski, who gave his life during the Siege of Savannah while fighting with Americans during the Revolutionary War. Johnson Square, the first developed under Oglethorpe's plan, has a monument for revolutionary hero Nathanael Green. Christ Episcopal Church on Johnson Square, known as Georgia's Mother Church, was where John Wesley preached and established the first Sunday school in 1736, and the monuments and markers in that square alone would take half a day to absorb.
Churches are big, literally and historically, in Savannah.
The First African Baptist Church on Franklin Square was founded by slaves, used as an Underground Railroad site before and during the Civil War and was the center of the area's civil rights activities during the 1950s and 1960s. Why Savannah's sultry, caressing air and moss-draped oaks would inspire dashing through snow remains a mystery, but historical markers can't answer all our questions. The few cheesy T-shirt and gift shops that do exist can be found along the riverfront, a major urban renewal effort that began in the 1970s to make use of abandoned warehouses and other remnants from the heyday of cotton. The warehouses, including the imposing brick Cotton Exchange where prices were set and cotton was traded, now host shops and restaurants, and several large hotels have been developed along the river's banks. However, visitors wishing the full experience opt to stay in Savannah's many bed and breakfast inns in the historic district, some as elegant and storied as the rest of the city.