When Savannah was first founded in 1733 Mr. Oglethorpe had a plan to do things his way.  And his was a little different. 

 

From the start he made 4 things Illegal. 

 

One. Slavery was banned.  Amen!  

 

Two. Catholics were banned.  The Spanish in Florida were Catholic, and the Brits were not fans. 

 

Three. Liquor was banned.  What can I say they had a rowdy trip over. 

 

Four. Lawyers were banned.  I guess they were never popular.      

 

Mr. Oglethorpe’s 4 rules did not last long. 

 

The first rule to go was rule number 2.  No Catholics. 

 

As the story goes, not long after the founding of Savannah, a boat full of Irish Catholics washed up.  These fellas were completely lost and had no where to go. 

 

When Mr. Oglethorpe realized they were not Spanish, and they needed help, he allowed them to join the colony and dropped the ban on Catholics.

What a nice fella. 

That makes sense.  But the only question I’m wondering, how did he get them Irish to stop drinking?

The Irish stuck around, and Today St. Patrick’s Day is the biggest holiday in Savannah hosting one of the largest parades in the USA.   

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Very soon after the Catholic ban was removed his other laws came down like a house of cards.

 

By 1751 liquor flowed like a fountain, lawyers sued anything that moved, and the evils of slavery began to emerge. 

That devil was up to no good. 

 

Savannah soon became the largest Slave Port in the South taking in 10’s of thousands of people.

 

Those were some dark times.  Let me tell you. 

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To learn about Savannah's history take our solo walking to "the Old Squares of Savannah'.  On the solo walking tour navigated by the WalknTours app you'll discover the history of the old squares of Savannah and learn their historic stories.