City of Savannah Expanding Historical Collections Available Online
Staff Report From Savannah CEO
Tuesday, June 23rd, 2015
The City of Savannah is dedicated to increasing awareness of and access to our historical records. The City continues to work with partners to increase the number of digital records available to the public. As a result of this effort, the following collections are now online:
New Collections Available through Ancestry.com:
Within the Land, Tax and Property Records category:
- Tax Digests, 1809-1900
- Tax Records, 1887-1901Within the Voter Records category:
- Voter Registers, 1856-1896For a full listing of all City collections available through Ancestry.com, or to access the above listed records, please visit http://collections.ancestry.com/search/GA/CityofSavannah.
New Collections available through the Digital Library of Georgia:
- Benjamin Van Clark Neighborhood Documentation Project – Oral History Collection, 2003-2004Oral histories, collected by the Department of Cultural Affairs, related to the Benjamin Van Clark Neighborhood in Savannah, Georgia focusing on mass transportation and the development of streetcar suburbs; desegregation and its changing population; and the revitalization and rehabilitation of the community.
- Eastside Documentation Project – Oral History Collection, 2008-2009Oral histories, collected by the Department of Cultural Affairs, related to five eastside Savannah neighborhoods: East Savannah; Hillcrest; Pine Gardens; Savannah Gardens; and Twickenham.
- Ellis Square Oral History Project, 2007-2008Oral histories, collected by the City, related to the redevelopment of Ellis Square.
- Westside Documentation Project – Oral History Collection, 2005-2006Oral histories, collected by the Department of Cultural Affairs, of three predominantly African American neighborhoods: Hudson Hill; West Savannah; and Woodville.
- Mayor’s/Municipal Annual Reports for the City of Savannah, 1855-1923 (some gaps)The annual reports cover the City’s activities, finances, statistics and ordinances, and many include detailed departmental reports. The reports available online have been expanded to include all those in the collections of the City of Savannah, University of Georgia and Georgia Historical Society.
- Mayor’s Office Records, 1869-1904, 1960-1966*The Mayor’s Letter Books from 1869-1904 reflect activities of the City and correspondence with outside agencies, businesses and other local governments. The Mayor’s Speech File Books from 1960-1966 include speeches and correspondence from Mayor Malcolm Maclean’s administration.
- West Broad Street Appraisals, 1958-1961*Appraisals conducted for the City of Savannah and the Housing Authority of Savannah in preparation for the construction of U.S. Interstate-16. Many of the appraisals include photographs of the subject property
*These collections were digitized with a policy of digitizing every page, front and back, so you may see blank pages throughout the digital document.For a full listing of all City collections available through the Digital Library of Georgia, or to access the above listed records, please visit http://dlg.galileo.usg.edu/Institutions/gsg.html.
New Photographs Available through the City’s online Digital Image Catalog:
- Public Information Office – Photographs, 1948-2000Over 150 photographs, most from the later part of the 20th century, representing significant community events, as well as City activities and employees.
To access the Digital Image Catalog and to see a full listing of all repositories with digitized City records available visit www.savannahga.gov/DigitalCollections.