Old Ft. Jackson, Wormsloe Estate, and a Brewery

As we are now into our last week in Savannah, GA, we are beginning to get back in the travel mode.  I have done some trip planning with preferred routes.  I also filled up the truck’s 50 gallon diesel fuel tank.  It was great to be able to use my Kroger $.40 per gallon discount!  I still need to wash the vehicles and wax the camper.  I try to wax the camper about every 3-4 months.  A big job!  So, some work time ahead and more exploring as well.

Our next stop will be a quick two day stopover in Myrtle Beach SC to have some warranty work addressed on the camper.  Our 1-year bumper to bumper warranty will expire at the end of April, so need to fix any issues before then.  I will need to decide whether to buy one of the third party extended warranty plans.  I have heard many pros and cons about them from RV’ers.

This Palm Sunday we went to the local church Kirk O’ the Isles, a Presbyterian PCA church that we have attended twice before.  Glad we found this church due to some fine biblical preaching and very friendly people.  We were even invited out for lunch with a couple we met a few weeks ago, Joe and Kate.

We are seeing many weather reports from family and friends back home.  Cold and large amounts of snow.  So, I guess I had better not complain about a rainy cool afternoon in the 50’s!  After we returned from lunch, it was a lazy Sunday afternoon by the fireplace reading a book and napping.  Not a bad day!

Over the last few days, we did manage to work in a few trips to see Ft. Jackson, the Wormsloe estate, and then a brewery on Saturday afternoon.

Old Ft. Jackson

We knew of this Fort from a nephew being married there a few years ago, but it had not made it to our must see list until last week.  It is the older and smaller sister fort to the one we visited a couple of weeks ago (Ft. Pulaski).

Ft. Jackson is now operated by the Coastal Heritage Society and they have some reenactors assigned to help provide information about the history as well as to fire the cannon a few times each day.  There are many exhibits set up throughout the small moat encircled fort that is a mere 10 minutes from Savannah.

A quick history includes a beginning in 1808 when Thomas Jefferson ordered that our coastal defenses be improved.  They built the fort on top of an old earthen fort from our American Revolution days.  It saw active duty during the War of 1812 and the Civil War.  In 1924 it was purchased by the city, but not fully renovated until the 1970’s.

It had some interesting history, but the fort 10 miles further south (Ft. Pulaski), was much larger and had more interesting facets.  The entry fee was $8.00 each.

Wormsloe Estate

This was a quite interesting State Historic Site.  The entrance fee was $9.00 each and included a guided tour.  Probably the best thing here was the long entry road.  It was a 1.5 mile long lane lined on both sides with live oak trees forming a canopy.  The long straight lane is so long, you can’t see to the end of it.  That was very impressive.

Unfortunately, the only thing left of the 1737 home was the foundation.  All the rest was used in latter years to build other houses.  The building material then was tabby, a combination of lime and crushed oyster shells.  This was a favorite of coastal areas and brought over by the Spanish.

The short history was that James Oglethorpe brought 114 colonists from England.  They were mainly from a debtors prison and sent here in an experiment to create wealth by farming wine and silk in Savannah.  A group of wealthy English funded the experiment, but had not tested the local growing conditions.  Obviously, both crops failed due to the heat and humidity.

One of the colonists, a Noble Jones, a jack of all trades, was Oglethorpe’s right hand man and was awarded 500 acres that he used to become very wealthy as a farmer.  This became the Wormsloe Estate that included a fort around his house in case the Spanish would attack from Florida.  Today, these walls are the oldest standing structures in Georgia.

Coastal Empire Brewery

The Coastal Empire Brewery is a very friendly, medium sized brewery located on the outskirts of Savannah by a home brewer in 2010.  They have a good selection of brews and some games to play while visiting.  We tried the Praline Amber Ale, Savannah Brown Ale, and the Nettles & Ross ESB Ale.  All very tasty.

Take care and God Bless.