When we last left off in our blogging, the city of Savannah was thriving. According to VisitSavannah.com, “Pre-Civil War Savannah was praised as the most picturesque and serene city in America.” In 1820, it was the 18^th largest city in the United States and was exporting more than $14 million of goods annually. All changed, though, when the war began.

Three months before the Civil War, Confederate forces seized Fort Pulaski on the Savannah River. In April, 1862, Union soldiers blockaded the waterways surrounding Savannah, capturing Fort Pulaski. During this time, many residents were in desperate financial straits.

When Union General William Tecumseh Sherman marched through Georgia in December 1864, he captured but did not destroy Savannah, finding it so beautiful. On December 22, 1864, he telegrammed President Abraham Lincoln, offering the city as his Christmas present – complete with its 150 heavy guns, ammunition, and 25,000 bales of cotton. Residents continued to suffer financially during the Reconstruction period that followed the war, but ultimately overcame their challenges to become a thriving city once again.

Savannah Walking Tours: See for Yourself

Cool Savannah Tours & Gifts is located by the Savannah Cotton Exchange, right in the heart of Savannah’s history. We offer walking tours with guides that bring the city’s sometimes glorious, sometimes tumultuous history to life including our:

Architecture and history tour: discover the city’s historic treasures of delightful architecture and hear how people from the past lived and enjoyed Savannah’s beauty and grace.
Haunted Savannah pub tour: enjoy an exclusive tour of the best haunted pubs & bars that makes Savannah the best watering hole and the “Most Haunted City in America!”
Ghost haunting tour: the coolest part of a Savannah walking tour? No matter where you step, you are walking over the dead. Unmarked graves exist under sidewalks, streets, house and building.

Call us at (912) 231-3571 for more information about Savannah sightseeing tours today! Or, sign up for a trolley tour online and get a 10% discount using this promo code: 10percent