These include the birthplace of Juliette Gordon Low (founder of the Girl Scouts of the USA), the Georgia Historical Society (the oldest continually operating historical society in the South), the Telfair Academy of Arts and Sciences (one of the South's first public museums), the First African Baptist Church (one of the oldest African-American Baptist congregations in the United States), Temple Mickve Israel (the third-oldest synagogue in the U.S.), and the Central of Georgia Railway roundhouse complex (the oldest standing antebellum rail facility in the U.S. and now a museum and visitor center).

During the 1996 Summer Olympics hosted by Atlanta, Savannah held sailing competitions in the nearby Wassaw Sound.

Savannah, a prosperous seaport throughout the nineteenth century, was the Confederacy's sixth most populous city and the prime objective of General William T. Sherman's March to the Sea.

On December 21, 1864, local authorities negotiated a peaceful surrender to save Savannah from destruction, and Union troops marched into the city at dawn.

The Shawnee destroyed another Native people, the Westo, and occupied their lands at the head of the Savannah River's navigation on the fall line, near present-day Augusta.

[13] These Shawnee, whose Native name was Ša·wano·ki (literally, "southerners"),[14] were known by several local variants, including Shawano, Savano, Savana and Savannah.

Georgia's Ogeechee River flows toward the Atlantic Ocean some 16 miles (26 km) south of downtown Savannah and forms the southern city limit.

Savannah is prone to flooding due to abundant rainfall, an elevation just above sea level, and the shape of the coastline, which poses a greater surge risk during hurricanes.

Due to its proximity to the Atlantic coast, Savannah rarely experiences temperatures as extreme as those in Georgia's interior.

[21][22] Seasonally, Savannah tends to have hot and humid summers with frequent (but brief) thunderstorms that develop in the warm and tropical air masses, which are common.

[23] Although decades might pass between snowfall events, Savannah has experienced snow on rare occasions, most notably in December 1989, when up to 3.9 inches (9.9 cm) was recorded in one day in parts of the city.

(This estimate may be low, as deaths among the many impoverished rural African Americans living on Georgia's barrier islands may not have been reported.)

In 2008, metro police achieved a 90 percent clearance rate for homicide cases, described as exceptional by violent crime unit supervisors.

[62] Before British colonization of the Americas and the founding of colonial Georgia, the coastal region's indigenous inhabitants practiced Native American religions.

[68] Georgia's mild climate offered perfect conditions for growing cotton, which became the dominant commodity after the American Revolution.

Its production under the plantation system and shipment through the Port of Savannah helped the city's European immigrants achieve wealth and prosperity.

In the United States' early years, goods produced in the New World had to pass through Atlantic ports such as Savannah's before they could be shipped to England.

In 2000, JCB, the third-largest producer of construction equipment in the world and the leading manufacturer of backhoes and telescopic handlers, built its North American headquarters near Savannah in Pooler on I-95 near Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport.

[77][78] Beyond its architectural significance as the nation's largest, historically restored urban area, Savannah has a rich and growing performing arts scene and offers cultural events throughout the year.

[103][104] An earlier nickname was "the Forest City", in reference to the large population of live oak trees that flourish in the Savannah area.

[10] The city's location offers visitors access to the coastal islands and the Savannah Riverfront, both popular tourist destinations.

Other picturesque towns adjacent to Savannah include the shrimping village of Thunderbolt and three residential areas that began as summer resort communities for Savannahians: Beaulieu, Vernonburg, and the Isle of Hope.

The squares vary in size and character, from the formal fountain and monuments of the largest, Johnson, to the playgrounds of the smallest, Crawford.

One of the few black regiments to fight for the American side in the Revolutionary War, the soldiers were recruited from present-day Haiti, which was the French colony of Saint-Domingue until its independence in 1804.

In popular culture, the square is the location of the park bench seen in the 1994 film Forrest Gump from which the title character dispenses wisdom to others waiting for a bus.

Built between 1808 and 1812 to protect the city from attack by sea, it was one of several Confederate forts defending Savannah from Union forces during the Civil War.

Mercer, with its main campus in Macon, received additional state funding in 2007 to expand its existing partnership with Memorial by establishing a four-year medical school in Savannah (the first in southern Georgia).

Third- and fourth-year Mercer students have completed two-year clinical rotations at Memorial since 1996; approximately 100 residents are trained yearly in several medical practices.

Along the trail, visitors can observe native animals such as Florida panthers, Eastern timber wolves, and alligators in their natural habitat.

Amtrak operates a passenger terminal at Savannah for its Palmetto and Silver Service trains, which run between New York City and Miami.