HISTORIC SAVANNAH FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES EVENTS FOR 2021 PRESERVATION MONTH

SAVANNAH, GA – April 21, 2021 – Historic Savannah Foundation (HSF) will lead the observation of National Historic Preservation Month in May with several community partnerships and unique events that celebrate the art of preservation and exhibit its significant impact on the past, present and future of Savannah. Preservation Month began as National Preservation Week in 1973. In 2005, the National Trust extended the celebration to the entire month of May and declared it Preservation Month to provide an even greater opportunity to celebrate the diverse and unique heritage of our country’s cities and states.

HSF will kick off Preservation Month on Tuesday, May 4 at 10 a.m. with a tourism-focused media call held in conjunction with Visit Savannah and the Tourism Leadership Council. The event will feature remarks by Visit Savannah President Joe Marinelli, Tourism Leadership Council President & CEO Michael Owens, Josh Brooks, Historic Savannah Foundation Board Chair, Historic Savannah Foundation President & CEO Sue Adler, and Davenport House Museum Director Jamie Credle. HSF will also provide an update on the construction of the Murray C. Perlman & Wayne C. Spear Center/Kennedy Pharmacy addition and the Urban Enslaved Exhibit. HSF broke ground on this project in December 2020. In addition to offering historical insight, the work will bring a storefront back to Broughton Street, breathing life back into a piece of Savannah’s local history that can also contribute to the economy and drive tourism, to which tourism insiders Marinelli and Owens will attest.

HSF’s Davenport House Museum is supporting Preservation Month with an exciting slate of events and activities. Springtime Tea at the Davenports will be held on May 5, 6, 12, 13, 19, 20, 27 and 28 at 5 p.m.; and the Early Bird’s Preservation Walking Tour of the Landmark Historic District’s East Side will take place on May 1, 8, 15, 22, 29, starting at 8 a.m. Reservations for these events are recommended as, due to COVID-19 safety protocols, attendance for some activities is limited. Social distancing will be enforced, and masks will be required at indoor events. For more information, please visit http://www.davenporthousemuseum.org/programs/ or call 912-236-8097. 

HSF’s Annual Preservation Awards will be celebrated once again in a virtual format with an online ceremony at 6 p.m. Thursday, May 13. It will initially be made available to an exclusive group of HSF members and supporters, with a recording to be made available to the general public later that week. The awards recognize local citizens, organizations, and companies who value the rich history of their city and celebrates their revitalization of historic structures and sites. Each year, Preservation Award nominations are judged by an independent, all-volunteer jury selected for their expertise in architecture, preservation, and design. For information about becoming a member of HSF, please visit https://www.myhsf.org/support/membership/. Memberships start at just $50.

As part of National Historic Preservation Month, HSF is celebrating the community partnerships it has forged with many area entities to help bring mutually beneficial projects and initiatives to fruition. In addition to the May 4 kick-off with Visit Savannah and the Tourism Leadership Council, HSF is teaming with Ethos Preservation and enjoying generous support from Savannah Bike Tours. Ethos is launching a Coastal Historic Survey project that will involve a team of historic preservation consultants and architectural historians who will be surveying unincorporated areas along the Georgia coast east of Interstate-95 to identify historic resources in all of Georgia’s coastal counties, including Bryan, Camden, Chatham, Glynn, Liberty, and McIntosh. HSF is proud to support this effort and encourages residents of Chatham and neighboring counties to take part in virtual meetings that will help Ethos identify historic resources in their communities. For meeting dates and times, visit https://www.coastalhistoricsurvey.com/.

Savannah Bike Tours has graciously announced it will donate $1 from each tour booked during the month of May to HSF.

For more information on any of the Preservation Month events or activities, please visit myhsf.org, call 912-233-7787, and follow HSF on their social media, including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Historic Savannah Foundation, a leading nonprofit preservation and cultural institution, saves buildings, places, and stories that define Savannah’s past, present, and future. Following its formation in 1955, the organization started a Revolving Fund to save endangered historic properties, now totaling nearly 410 buildings throughout several of Savannah’s historic districts. HSF continues to build capacity within its operations, secure new financial resources, improve its image and visibility, and increase public policy efforts to protect Savannah’s historic districts. For more information about the work of the Historic Savannah Foundation, visit www.myhsf.org. 

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For media inquiries, please contact Hollie Barnidge at hollie@lesleyfrancispr.com or 912-272-8651 or Lesley Francis at lesley@lesleyfrancispr.com or 912-429-3950 or the team at 912-417-LFPR (5377).