[4] "It was a wooden shed, about twenty-five feet wide," remembered historian Charles Seton Henry Hardee, who moved to Savannah in 1835.

The cost of the building's construction "vastly exceeded expectations" after excavations revealed weakened arches in the basement floor that required them to be replaced.

The city's mayor, John Screven, described it as "roomy, capable of being kept in the highest condition of cleanliness, with ample ventilation".

[2] It is now part of the Savannah Historic District, and is a popular destination for tourists due to its restaurants, art galleries and shops, which occupy many of the buildings erected in the 19th century.

[2] Sweet Georgia Brown's, a piano bar which gained popularity after its appearance in John Berendt's 1994 book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, was located at 312 West St. Julian Street.