Haunted Savannah by Georgia Byrd

Author:Georgia Byrd
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Globe Pequot
Published: 2023-05-04T00:00:00+00:00

THE FITZROY SAVANNAH

Within an echo of the horns of freighters passing along the riverfront, stands 9 Drayton, an understated building that is said to be the oldest continuously operated saloon and eatery in the historic city. Inside the former home built for Confederate Army officers, the dark brick walls and dimly lit restaurant holds stories and shadows from its past, beginning in 1853 when the building was constructed. Now called The Fitzroy Savannah, little do today’s diners realize the story of a brutal murder and evil cover-up that unfolded there years ago still lives inside the brick crevices. Sometimes it’s seen in the swaying of a vapor-like body hanging in the back of the main dining room; other times it’s heard beneath the restaurant’s floors in the painful moans of a man dying. But the terrible story of a good man who died in a drunken brawl still rings true today at the little pub in downtown Savannah.

The charm of an old Savannah pub often lies in its walls that are etched with eerie tales, and The Fitzroy on Drayton has its share of those. Standing three stories high on busy Drayton Street, it’s the kind of bar where “everybody knows your name” and diners still relish their last meal there, days after dining there. With rustic brick walls, an original concrete floor with random nicks, and an incredibly peaceful ambiance, it’s the kind of place that begs strangers to cozy up for a few hours to solve the world’s problems while sipping a cold brew or a Scotch on the rocks.

In the summer, the sign on the door reads COME IN AND COOL OFF. Winter boasts the place’s “hot toddies.” The rooftop bar is friendly and relaxing, and the chef often emerges from the kitchen and strolls the tables, reassuring the patrons that his dishes are the best in town. The establishment is a place where tourists make return visits and join in friendly conversation with locals who patronize the picturesque bar, some daily.

Built in 1853 by wealthy cotton merchant George W. Anderson, there’s nothing fancy about The Fitzroy. The new owners stripped out a massive mahogany bar that infused the room with an old-world style and an elegance. Patrons adored the bar with its splendid alabaster columns and shiny gold fixtures. Many an elbow had rested on that alabaster, and if conversations through the years had been recorded, they would have filled volumes with wise (and foolish) quotations.

But while The Fitzroy projects an image of pleasure and tranquility, it also holds the distinction of being one of Savannah’s most frightful and haunted establishments with links to one of the most horrific scandals in the country’s history. And through its many years of name changes and owners, some stories are better left untold.

Here’s one to be shared.

Former owners and twosome, Gerald and Kristy, were Northerners who ventured to Savannah from Pittsburgh to open the pub that they would name after their grandson, Isaac. They will tell you that apart

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