Historic Inn in Savannah
Five rooms in an 1857 townhouse with its own iron balcony, fourteen-foot ceilings and four working fireplaces. The square is out the front door and the walled garden is behind.
Built In 1857, An Inn Since 2002
The house went up in 1857 for a cotton factor, lost its top floor to a fire in 1889, and got it back two years later with the ironwork that is still on the balcony. It was apartments for most of the twentieth century and very nearly came down in 1974.
We took it on in 2002 and spent four years on it — the plaster, the heart-pine, the fireplaces, the garden wall. Five rooms is what the house gives you if you are not willing to carve the good rooms in half, and we were not.
- ✓On the National Register, and treated accordingly
- ✓Four working fireplaces, lit October through March
- ✓Fourteen-foot ceilings on the main floor
- ✓A walled garden and off-street parking behind
Five Rooms
Rates are per night for two and include breakfast in the dining room, afternoon sherry in the parlor and parking behind the house.
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05Two-night minimum on weekends in March, April and October, and over St Patrick's Day weekend. Midweek is usually open.
What The Rate Covers
Breakfast in the dining room
Cooked to order between eight and ten, on the table that came with the house. Not a tray, not a buffet.
Sherry in the parlor at six
A Savannah habit we kept. The parlor stays open to guests all day, which matters more than it sounds in August.
Parking behind the house
Off the lane, gated, one space per room. In the Historic District that is genuinely hard to find.
A fire in your room
Four of the five rooms have working fireplaces, laid and lit for you from October through March.
Four Rooms You Will Walk Through Every Day
What Happened To This House
Guests ask, so here it is in four lines.
1857 — Built
Put up for a cotton factor in the year the square filled in, three stories over a raised basement, with the brick laid in Flemish bond you can still read on the side wall.
1889 — Burned
The top floor and roof went in a fire that started two doors down. The family rebuilt within two years and added the iron balcony, which is the part everyone photographs.
1922 — Divided
Cut into six apartments, which is what saved it. Occupied buildings do not get demolished, and this one very nearly was in 1974 anyway.
2002 — An Inn
Bought, stripped back to the good bones and put right over four years. Five rooms, because dividing the big ones would have undone the point of the building.
Twenty-Two Squares, And You Are On One Of Them
Lafayette Square is one of the twenty-two that survive from Oglethorpe's plan, and the inn sits on its east side. Forsyth Park is a seven-minute walk south, the cathedral is across the square, and River Street is about fifteen minutes north and downhill.
Savannah is a walking city and the Historic District is flat. Most guests park behind the house on arrival and never move the car until they leave.
- ✓Forsyth Park — 7 minutes on foot
- ✓Cathedral Basilica — across the square
- ✓City Market and River Street — 15 minutes
- ✓Savannah/Hilton Head airport — 20 minutes by car
What They Write Afterwards
Fourteen-foot ceilings, a working fireplace in the room, and a square full of live oaks out the window. We have stayed in the big hotels on Bay Street and this was not the same experience at all.
They keep the parlor open all day, which sounds like nothing until you have spent an August afternoon in Savannah and want somewhere cool with a chair and a book.
We asked about the house and got a proper answer — who built it, what burned, what was put back. You can tell they actually care about the building they are looking after.
March And April Are Spoken For By Christmas
Azalea season and St Patrick's Day are the two stretches we turn people away from every year. If those are your dates, write now — we will hold a room while you decide.
How A Room Is Held
Write To Us
Your dates, how many, and the room that caught your eye.
We Reply Today
With what is free, the rate, and an honest word on which room suits you.
One Night Confirms
A single night's rate holds the room. The balance settles at checkout.
Arrive After Three
Park behind the house. Someone will meet you at the door.
Questions Guests Ask
Is the inn actually in the Historic District?
Yes — on the east side of Lafayette Square, which is one of the twenty-two surviving squares. Forsyth Park is seven minutes on foot, the cathedral is across the square, and River Street is about fifteen minutes north. You will not need the car once you have parked it.
Where do I park?
Behind the house, off the lane, gated, with one space per room at no extra charge. Parking in the Historic District is metered, scarce and enforced, so this is the amenity guests thank us for most. Anything larger than a standard SUV, tell us first.
What is breakfast like?
Cooked to order and served in the dining room between eight and ten, on the table that came with the house. It is included in the rate with no per-person charge. Tell us about allergies or preferences when you book and it is simply handled.
Are the fireplaces real?
Four of the five rooms have working wood fireplaces, and we lay and light them for you from October through March. The Garden Level does not have one — it has thick masonry walls instead, which is why it is the room we recommend in high summer.
Do you take children?
The house suits guests twelve and over. It is an 1857 building with tall ceilings and bare floors, sound travels between rooms, and there are only five of them. If you are traveling with younger children we will happily point you at somewhere in the district that is better set up for it.
What is the cancellation policy?
Seven days or more before arrival, a full refund. Inside seven days it is half, and inside forty-eight hours it is the full stay — with five rooms a late cancellation is very hard to refill. We call before charging anything, and if something has genuinely gone wrong, talk to us.
Inquire About A Room
Send your dates and we will reply today with what is free and what it comes to. Nothing is charged until you confirm.