Chippewa Square (Savannah, Georgia)

Public square in Savannah, Georgia

Chippewa Square

The south-facing James Oglethorpe Monument, viewed from where the bench in Forrest Gump was located for its 1993 filming

Namesake| Battle of Chippawa
Maintained by| City of Savannah
Location| Savannah, Georgia, U.S.
Coordinates| 32°04′33″N 81°05′35″W﻿ / ﻿32.0758°N 81.0931°W﻿ / 32.0758; -81.0931
North| Bull Street
East| East McDonough Street
South| Bull Street
West| West McDonough Street
Construction
Completion| 1815 (210 years ago) (1815)

Chippewa Square is one of the 22 squares of Savannah, Georgia, United States. It is located in the middle row of the city's five rows of squares, on Bull Street and McDonough Street, and was laid out in 1815. It is south of Wright Square, west of Colonial Park Cemetery, north of Madison Square and east of Orleans Square. The oldest building on the square is The Savannah Theatre, at 222 Bull Street, which dates to 1818.

The square is named in honor of American soldiers killed in the Battle of Chippawa during the War of 1812. (The "Chippewa" spelling is correct in reference to this square.)

In the center of the square is the James Oglethorpe Monument, created by sculptor Daniel Chester French and architect Henry Bacon and unveiled in 1910.[1] Oglethorpe faces south, toward Georgia's one-time enemy in Spanish Florida, and his sword is drawn.[2] Busts of Confederate figures Francis Stebbins Bartow and Lafayette McLaws were moved from Chippewa Square to Forsyth Park to make room for the Oglethorpe monument.[3] Due to the location of the monument, Savannahians sometimes refer to this as Oglethorpe Square, but that is located just to the northeast.[4]

The "park bench" scene which opens the 1994 film Forrest Gump was filmed on the north side of Chippewa Square.[5] The bench was a fiberglass prop, rather than one of the park's actual benches.[1] A replica of the prop bench used in the film is on display at the Savannah Visitors Center. The original prop is now kept in Paramount Studios, Los Angeles.[6]

Chippewa Square is also home to the First Baptist Church (1833),[7] the Independent Presbyterian Church and the Philbrick–Eastman House (1847).[8]

## Dedication

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Namesake  | Image  | Note

|
|

Battle of Chippawa |  | The square is named for the Battle of Chippawa, a conflict during the War of 1812.

## Markers and structures

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Object  | Image  | Note

|
|

James Oglethorpe Monument |  | James Oglethorpe Monument in the center of the square.
Historical marker  |  | Historical marker for the monument, erected by the Georgia Historical Commission in 1957.
Historical marker  |  | Historical marker for the square, laid in 1815.

## Constituent buildings

[edit]

See also: Buildings in Savannah Historic District

Each building below is in one of the eight blocks around the square composed of four residential "tything" blocks and four civic ("trust") blocks, now known as the Oglethorpe Plan. They are listed with construction years where known.

Northwestern residential/tything block

* Independent Presbyterian Church, 207 Bull Street (1891) – by John Holden Greene; gutted in the 1889 fire, rebuilt 1891
* Independent Presbyterian Church School Building, 207 Bull Street (1894) – by Charles Henry
* Honora Foley Property, 14 West Hull Street (1896) – by Henry Urban; also known as the Foley House Inn
* Julius Perlinski House, 22 West Hull Street (c. 1903)

Northwestern civic/trust block

* First Baptist Church, 223 Bull Street (1833)

Southwestern civic/trust block

* Philbrick–Eastman House, 17 West McDonough Street (1847)[9]

Southwestern residential/tything block

* 3 West Perry Street (1831)[10] – former home of Joseph Frederick Waring
* John Stoddard House, 15 West Perry Street (1867)[10]
* Stoddard Row, 19–25 West Perry Street (1854–55)
* 233 Bull Street (1842) – originally the home of Moses Eastman, later of the Philbrick–Eastman House[11]

Northeastern residential/tything block

* Board of Education Building, 208 Bull Street (1908–1910)

Northeastern civic/trust block

* The Savannah Theatre, 222 Bull Street (1818) – oldest building on the square

Southeastern civic/trust block

* Julius Koox Duplex, 230–232 Bull Street (1871)

Southeastern residential/tything block

* 234 Bull Street (c. 1900)
* 240 Bull Street (1890)
* Hetty, Abbie & Phillipa Minis House, 11 East Perry Street (c. 1820)

## Gallery

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* Board of Education Building (western half; Bull Street facade), 208 Bull Street

* Board of Education Building (eastern rear half), 208 Bull Street

* The Savannah Theatre, 222 Bull Street

* Julius Koox Duplex, 230–232 Bull Street

* 234 Bull Street

* 240 Bull Street

* Hetty, Abbie & Phillipa Minis House, 11 East Perry Street

* 3 West Perry Street

* John Stoddard House, 15 West Perry Street

* Stoddard Row, 19–25 West Perry Street

* Philbrick–Eastman House, 17 West McDonough Street

* First Baptist Church, 223 Bull Street

* Foley House Inn, 14 West Hull Street

* Julius Perlinski House, 22 West Hull Street

* Independent Presbyterian Church, 207 Bull Street

* Independent Presbyterian Church School Building, 207 Bull Street

## References

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1. ^ a b Tour Guide Manual for licensed tour guides in the City of Savannah, accessed June 16, 2007.
2. ^ Our Coast's guide to Savannah's Squares, accessed June 16, 2007. Site features an excellent interactive map of Savannah's squares and numerous photographs.
3. ^ City of Savannah's monuments page Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine This page links directly to numerous short entries, many accompanied by photographs, discussing a variety of monuments, memorials, etc., in the squares and elsewhere. Accessed June 16, 2007.
4. ^ Chan Sieg (1984). The squares: an introduction to Savannah. Virginia Beach: Donning.
5. ^ Savannah Scene Archived 2008-11-03 at the Wayback Machine magazine, May–June 2007, pp 10–11, accessed June 16, 2007.
6. ^ "Forrest Gump, Savannah: Bench & Filming Locations". gosouthsavannah.com. Retrieved April 12, 2021.
7. ^ Barry Sheehy; Cindy Wallace (1 February 2011). Savannah, Immortal City. Greenleaf Book Group. pp. 216–. ISBN 978-1-934572-70-2. Retrieved August 17, 2013.
8. ^ Whip Morrison Triplett (2006). Savannah. Arcadia Publishing. pp. 38–. ISBN 978-0-7385-4209-6. Retrieved August 17, 2013.
9. ^ Philbrick-Eastman House – The Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation
10. ^ a b Historic Building Map: Savannah Historic District – Historic Preservation Department of the Chatham County-Savannah Metropolitan Planning Commission (November 17, 2011), p. 38
11. ^ Brown Ward – City of Savannah research paper

* v
* t
* e

Squares of Savannah, Georgia

Horizontally from north to south
Row 1

* Franklin Square
* Ellis Square*
* Johnson Square*
* Reynolds Square
* Warren Square
* Washington Square

Row 2

* Liberty Square
* Telfair Square*
* Wright Square*
* Oglethorpe Square
* Columbia Square
* Greene Square

Row 3

* Elbert Square
* Orleans Square
* Chippewa Square
* Crawford Square

Row 4

* Pulaski Square
* Madison Square
* Lafayette Square
* Troup Square

Row 5

* Chatham Square
* Monterey Square
* Taylor Square
* Whitefield Square

Key: * original four squares | now demolished
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template