Colonial Park Cemetery Highlights

DAR Gate

The Savannah chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution erected the granite gate at the cemetery’s main entrance at Abercorn Street and Oglethorpe Avenue in 1913. The gate honors soldiers buried in the cemetery who had fought in the American Revolutionary War.

Yellow Fever Graves

One of Colonial Park’s historic markers highlights one of the many tragic episodes in Savannah’s past: the 1820 yellow fever epidemic, one of several major epidemics to hit the city during the 19th century.

The disease caused 666 reported deaths, many of them buried in mass, unmarked graves in what is now Colonial Park. Later epidemics (including the yellow fever epidemics of 1854 and 1876) would claim thousands more lives still before new health measures introduced in the late 19th century brought many urban diseases under control.

Back Wall

A particularly interesting feature of Colonial Park Cemetery is its rear wall, along which dozens of headstones hang (they are at the southeastern corner of the cemetery, near the East Perry Lane entrance).

Some of the the headstones report deaths at a very remarkable old age. This is the work of vandals, who have at some point in the cemetery’s past altered the memorial inscriptions.

The vandalism is often attributed to Union soldiers, who reportedly occupied the cemetery during the Civil War, though little direct evidence of this is available.

The cemetery lay abandoned for decades after the war before the city took control of the grounds and converted them into a park. By the later years of the 19th century, it was well known as a disreputable spot and a target for vandals — this was a big part of the reason the city wanted to clean it up.

Originally, a wall enclosed the cemetery (giving it one of its several historical names, the Old Brick Cemetery). Over the years, however, so much of this wall had been lost to brick-theft, vandalism and natural decay that it had become unsightly. Most of this boundary wall was removed during the 1890s improvement of the park.

The headstones were moved at the same time: some of them because they lay in the way of new paths to be made through the park and others because they had been broken or uprooted. Placing the stones along the back wall provided a tidy, more attractive way to present the headstones without removing them altogether from the grounds.

Famous Burials

Archibald Bulloch, 1730-1777

Archibald Stobo Bulloch was a Savannah lawyer, later US Continental Congressman and the first Provincial President Chief of Georgia. His great-great-grandson was Theodore Roosevelt.

Samuel Elbert, 1740-1788

Samuel Elbert was a Brigadier General in the Revolutionary War. He later served as Governor of Georgia and as Major General of the Georgia State Militia. Savannah’s (mostly lost) Elbert Square is named in his honor.

Elbert was originally buried at Rae’s Hall Plantation, near Savannah, together with his wife Elizabeth Rae Elbert. The grave, lost to time, was rediscovered in the early 20th century. Through the initiative of the Sons of the Revolution, Elbert’s remains were reinterred in Colonial Park Cemetery in 1924.

Nathanael Greene, 1742-1786

Nathanael Greene was a Major General in the Revolutionary War. Originally from Rhode Island, he later settled on his plantation, Mulberry Grove, near Savannah. His remains now lie beneath his monument in Johnson Square. Greene Square is named in his honor.

Button Gwinnett, 1735-1777

Button Gwinnett was Georgia’s signer of the Declaration of Independence. Originally from England, he moved to America in the 1760s, first to Charleston and then Savannah.

Meeting only with failure as a planter, he turned to politics. A political feud with Lachlan McIntosh over the leadership of an expedition to Florida proved fatal for Gwinnett. He and McIntosh duelled on May 16 1777. McIntosh was victor; Gwinnett died a few days later.

Edward Greene Malbone, 1777-1807

Edward Greene Malbone is considered America’s most accomplished painter of miniatures. He began his portait-making career at only 17, his work taking him to Providence, New York, Philadelphia and Charleston. He died of tuberculosis in Savannah at the age of only 29, a stopover on his journey home from a health-seeking trip to Jamaica.

Lachlan McIntosh, 1725-1806

Lachlan McIntosh was a Major General in the Revolutionary War. Originally from Scotland, he moved to Georgia as a child. He fought at the 1779 Siege of Savannah.

William Scarbrough, 1776-1838

William Scarbrough was a successful Savannah businessman and merchant, though ruined in the depression of 1819. He was one of the principal backers and directors of the Savannah Steamship Company, which built the SS Savannah, the first ship to cross the Atlantic under partial steam power. Scarbrough’s old house, now the Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum, is open to visitors.

John Joachim Zubly, 1724-1781

John Joachim Zubly was a pastor and politician. Born in Switzerland, he moved to America at the age of 20, working first in South Carolina and later at Savannah’s Independent Presbyterian Church.

First a supporter of American independence from Britain, later an opponent of the same, Zubly was expelled from Georgia in 1776. He returned to Savannah once the British regained its control, continuing to write against the revolutionaries. He was popular with neither side of the struggle for American Independence. His grave is unmarked.

Guided Tours Of Colonial Park Cemetery

Dedicated historical tours of Colonial Park Cemetery are occasionally offered by Savannah’s tour companies.

Many introductory walking tours of Savannah will also include some of the history of Colonial Park Cemetery. It is also a popular subject for inclusion in ghost tours, although these do not typically enter the cemetery itself.

Current Colonial Park Cemetery Tours

Colonial Park Cemetery Tour, 1hr30. With Segway of Savannah/Savannah Glides. 1 hour Segway tour and 30 minute walking tour of Colonial Park Cemetery. $69 per person. Call 912-233-3554 for reservations or book online. More details

Historic Graveyard Tour, 1hr. With Ole Bones Oddities and Tours. Historic walking tour of Colonial Park Cemetery. $20 per person. Reservations can be made online. More details

Colonial Park Cemetery Tour, 1hr30. With Ghost City Tours. Walking tour of Colonial Park Cemetery and its history. Adults $19.99, children (6-11) $9.99, young children (0-5) free. Book online or call 855-999-9026 for reservations. More details

Historic District Burial Grounds and Cemeteries, 1hr30. With Historic Savannah Pub Crawl. Walking tour of the cemeteries and lost burial grounds of Historic District Savannah. From $30 per person. Call 912-429-2440 for reservations. More details

Visitor Information

Colonial Park Cemetery is administered by the City of Savannah. See the official webpage or call the cemetery department at 912-651-6843 for additional information.

Opening hours Open daily, 8am-5pm (March to November, 8am-8pm).

Admission Admission is free.

Pets Leashed pets are welcome at Colonial Park Cemetery.

Address 200 Abercorn Street, Savannah, GA 31401

See Also: Must-See Attractions In Savannah & Nearby

– Bonaventure Cemetery
– Jones Street
– Bull Street’s squares
– First African Baptist Church
– Forsyth Park
– Pin Point Heritage Museum

See also:
– African-American Monument
– Historic house tours
– Antiques stores
– Old Fort Jackson
– Wormsloe
– Savannah and Tybee Island boat tours