Savannah: A History of Her People Since 1733

by Preston Russell, Barbara Hines

Since 1992 this book has been the benchmark history of Savannah, Georgia. Includes more than 150 illustrations, bibliography, and index.

Genres: History, American History

204 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1992

Reviews

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I preface this by saying I have been a tour guide in Savannah for 8 years of my life (so far). Having read almost every book available about the city of Savannah and her history, this is certainly the most straightforward and engaging.

This book isn't just for the hard-core historian. It reads like a novel yet weaves the narratives of important families and individuals in and out of the dramatic backdrop of war and political and economic development with rare expertise. It's also brimming with insightful quotes from primary sources.

Altogether, this is the first historical account I've read that adequately does justice to the city I love so dearly, and I highly, highly recommend it.

[Daniel Burnett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect for what it is: 250 years of history told in 200 pages. The kind of book you read with your phone nearby so you can pause to look things up and fall down rabbit holes as you go along. Great historical overview of a beautiful city.

[Cally · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5🌟 Rounded Up
This was a fascinating delve into the history of Savannah with an easy-to-read and conversational writing style. As with most books of American history, the start is a little disjointed as our history spawns in the middle of others. There was a lack of context for several European historical events (I assume for the sake of brevity). While the section on historic preservation in the 20th century is nice, it is overall severely lacking in history past reconstruction. While the world wars were (albeit briefly) touched on, several historic periods to include the civil rights movement and Vietnam weren't mentioned at all.

[Maggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book when I first moved to Savannah in 2009. It gave me a very solid understanding of the history of the city and was an easy read. I highly recommend this as a good overview of the history of the city, from its founding in 1733 up to the 20th century.

[Chris Bonaparte · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not an overly exciting read, but gave a decent overall history of Savannah. From the people who found it, how war time life was like, to the culture of the city and how it has expanded through the centuries. A good book to have in hand when going to visit Savannah.

[Vanessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

very informative!

[Mason Bogardus · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best book you will find on the complete history of Savannah. The only critique is that there wasn’t enough written about Savannah in the 20th century.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent overview of Savannah history that one can read fairly quickly. In particular, it makes for a good introduction to Savannah's history in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. I would have preferred a little more detail, and I'd say I'm being charitable in describing its coverage as pretty spotty. A good example is the last third of the book, where Savannah's twentieth-century history is glossed over in a short chapter that oddly doesn't discuss any developments past WWII and is then followed by a strange concluding chapter that discusses in great detail Savannah's historical preservation efforts and also tacks on a random little section on Savannah ghosts. The addition of some nice maps also would have helped this book greatly.

[Denise · Rating 3 out of 5]

I will read anything on Savannah ~ I love the entire history and charm!