Green–Meldrim House facts for kids
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Green–Meldrim House
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Green–Meldrim House in the mid-20th century
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 Location in Georgia (U.S. state)
Location in the United States
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| Location | Madison Square, Savannah, Georgia |
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| Built | 1853 |
| Architect | John S. Norris |
| Architectural style | Gothic Revival |
| Part of | Savannah Historic District (Savannah, Georgia) (ID66000277) |
| NRHP reference No. | 74000664 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | January 21, 1974 |
| Designated NHL | May 11, 1976 |
The Green–Meldrim House is a very old and special house in Savannah, Georgia. It's located right next to Madison Square. Built in 1853, this house is famous for its beautiful and fancy Gothic Revival architecture. It's considered one of the best examples of this style in the southern United States. Today, the house belongs to St. John's Episcopal Church, which is right next door. You can take tours of the house, and the church also uses it for meetings and events.
Contents
What Does the House Look Like?
The Green–Meldrim House stands on the west side of Madison Square in the middle of Savannah. Its main front faces south, with a lovely porch and garden looking out onto the square.
This house is a great example of the Gothic Revival style. It has brick walls covered in stucco, a cool cast-iron porch, and special windows that stick out called "oriel windows." There's also a tall, strong cast-iron fence around the front. The main entrance has an iron archway that is thought to be one-of-a-kind in the United States. The roof has a decorative, castle-like edge called a "crenellated parapet."
Inside, the house has a central hallway with rooms on either side. Many of the original wooden details, plaster designs, and ironwork are still there. There's even a beautiful freestanding staircase made of iron.
A Look Back: The House's Story
The Green–Meldrim House was designed and built in 1853. The architect was John S. Norris, and it cost a lot of money back then – about $93,000. The first person to own the house was Charles Green, who was a very rich cotton merchant.
During the American Civil War, Union troops captured Savannah in 1864. A famous general named William Tecumseh Sherman used the Green–Meldrim House as his main office. He stayed there until the war ended. In December 1864, General Sherman sent a famous message from this house to President Lincoln. He told the President he wanted to give him "the City of Savannah, with one hundred and fifty heavy guns and plenty of ammunition, and also about twenty-five thousand bales of cotton" as a Christmas gift. The cotton actually belonged to Charles Green, the house's owner!
On January 12, 1865, General Sherman and the Secretary of War, Edwin Stanton, met at the house. They talked with 20 Black Baptist and Methodist ministers. This meeting was later called the "Savannah Colloquy." Their discussion led to General Sherman's Special Field Orders No. 15. This order included the famous idea of giving some formerly enslaved people "forty acres and a mule" (land and an animal).
In 1892, a local politician and judge named Peter Meldrim bought the house. He lived there for many years. In 1943, his family sold the house to St. John's Church, which is right next door. In the 1950s, a landscape architect named Clermont Huger Lee designed the garden to look just right for the time period.
Today, you can take tours of the house during the day. The church also uses it for special events like wedding receptions. The furniture you see in the house now is not the original furniture from when it was first built.
Pictures of the House
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The library of the Green–Meldrim House
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Side view
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Historical marker
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HABS photo
See also
