Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XIV.djvu/669

 SAVANNAH 645 custom house, market house, hospitals, and asylums. The custom house is of granite, 110 ft. long, 52 ft. deep, and 52 ft. high, and contains also the post office and United States court rooms. St. John's and Christ churches (Episcopal) are respectively Gothic and Ionic edifices. Several other churches are very hand- some and commodious, among which is the independent Presbyterian church, of granite, costing about $130,000. The Georgia histori- cal society has a large and beautiful hall. The reservoir is on a circular tower 80 ft. high; Savannah. new pumping works have recently been erected. There is a monument to Gen. Greene in John- son square, and one to the memory of Pulaski in Monterey square, on the spot where he fell in the attack on the city in 1779. The harbor is one of the best on the southern coast. The depth of water on the bar is 19 ft. at mean low water, and 26 ft. at mean high water; within, at the Tybee roads anchorage, the depth is 31 ft. and 38 ft. respectively. Only 12 ft., however, at mean low water and 18 ft. at mean high water can be carried up to the city, and much dredging is required to keep the channel open in certain places to this extent. The river flows between marshy lands, which are inter- sected by numerous creeks and artificial chan- nels, and are cultivated chiefly for rice. Long narrow islands and spits almost level with the water occupy a large portion of the space be- tween the opposite banks, and reduce the main channel for a considerable part of the way be- tween the city and the mouth to a width of a quarter of a mile and even less. From the city to Hutchinson's island, which extends about 6 m., is only about 600 ft. The chief defences of the river are Fort Pulaski, a strong fortifi- cation on Cockspur island, at the mouth of the river, built by the United States at a cost of $988,859, and Fort Jackson on the right bank, 4 m. below the city, built at a cost of $182,000. Steamers run regularly up the river to Augus- ta, and to New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Florida, and southern ports. The chief busi- ness of Savannah is the receipt and shipment of cotton, though the trade in lumber is also considerable. As a cotton port it ranks sec- ond in the United States. It recovered rapid- ly from the effects of the civil war, and the value of its commerce has since about doubled. The following table exhibits the shipments of cotton and the value of exports for ten years : YEARS Entire value of ENDING To foreign ports. To const- "iwporti Total. eiportt to for- JUNE 30. i efgn port. Bales. Value. Balei. Bal e, ! 1866. 64,085 $12,695,600 162,946 226,981 1 112,890,663 1867. 109,874 16,298,527 147,096 256,970 16.742.511 1868. 275,188 24,174,980 289,629 514.767 24,644,100 1869. 168,008 20,483,619 187,9S8 ! 855,991 21,049,656 1870. 266,854 29,258,208 204,729 470,568 29,749.088 1871. 481,509 82.504,3<>8 252,750 734.2591 82,984,768 1872. 290,091 27,829,917 155,641! 445.782 28.262,115 1878. 876,198 27,125,070 229,855 605,558 27,592,050 1674* 178,479 12,277,160 189,110 817.589 12,440,288 1875t 459,249 81,609,865 206,056 665,805 82,424,490 The value of imports from foreign countries in 1874 was $788,220; of exports to coastwise ports, $18,076,451 ; of all exports, $50,500,.946 ; tonnage entered in the foreign trade 237,619, cleared 189,399 ; entered in the coastwise trade 842,673, cleared 377,459. The number of ves- sels belonging to the port on June 30, 1874, was 80, with an aggregate tonnage of 22,170. The chief manufacturing establishments are several planiug mills, founderies, and flouring and grist mills. There are a national bank, with a capital of $750,000 ; three state banks, with an aggregate capital of $9,000,000 ; and several building and loan associations. The
 * Six months ending Jan. 1. t Year ending Jan. 1.