Class. Book. ^■^^4- >) 2jOi~ jSHVHnnHH. SAVANNAH. GA. THE SAVANNAH MORNING NEWS 1904. JAN 10 1905 D.ofD, i NEW CITY HALL, SAVANNAH. CA. Erected 1904. Designed by Savannah Architect. Built by Savannah Contractors. I p' ancient mules, have given way to fifty-one miles of the finest electric roads in the country, with cars of the largest and latest pattern. The area of the city has extended southward for over two miles, with hundreds of fine homes, possessing every modern comfort and con- venience, covering what was then unused and almost valueless commons. Many hundreds of dwellings have been erected in the past five years to meet the requirements of the fast increasing population, and many ad- ditional ones are in course of erection. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. ti;5 Savannah, Georgia. — A CiTv of Opportunities. De Soto Hotel. Savannah's Famous Tourist Resort. Statue to Sergeant Jasper, oj Revolutionary Fame. Sandy road beds in the city have given way to up-to-date paved highways, thirty-four miles of asphalt, belgian block and vitrified brick pavements now enabling all parts of the city to be reached quickly and in comfort. Outside of the city the country has been drained and opened up to truck farmers. Forty miles of the finest suburban paved roads of the South extend in all directions, bringing pleasure resorts within easy reach, and enabling farmers to bring their produce to market in ease and at a minimum expense. On all sides the improvements in recent years have been enormous. Savannah to-day and Savannah twenty 3'ears ago are as different cities in many respects as though they were not the same municipality. The stranger who has not visited Savannah in some j^ears will be surprised at the vast strides that have been made, at the rapid increase in business, the great accumulation of wealth, and the many oppor- tunities that have been opened up for the investment of capital profitably. In the following pages some details are given that will be of interest and value. Fuller information on any point can be obtained on applica- tion to the Mayor of Savannah, or to the Savannah Chamber of Com- merce, Cotton Exchange, or Board of Trade. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. CLIMATE SAVANNAH'S climate is best described in one word, it is " ideal." Snow, sleet and slush are unknown. Ice is a rarity. Extreme heat is as unusual as extreme cold. While the North and the West are in the embrace of blizzards Savannah is enjoying a temperature that is bracing but not full of acute suffering and distress. Tourists have found Savannah the most enjoyable city of the South from December i to May i. When the northern and western cities are complaining of exceedingly high temperatures, while their hospitals are full of the victims of the heat, and the newspapers day after day chronicle scores of cases of pros- tration and sun-.stroke, Savannah revels in breezes direct from the ocean that temper the heat of midday, and render the nights cool and pleasant for repose. Sun-strokes are practically unknown in Savannah. An entire sum- mer often passes without a night in which sleep is not to be had with comfort. But ten miles from the Atlantic in an air line, every afternoon brings its refreshing wind from that inexhaustible source of health and comfort. The wide streets of the city, the many open spaces, the thousands of trees, all assist in making the summer pass more pleasantly in Savan- nah than in probably any other city in the United States outside of the mountains. The following official statement from the United States Weather Bureau gives detailed information as to climatic conditions here : Seasonal Means of Temperature. December 52° January 51° February 54° Mean 52° March 59° April 66° May 74° Mean 66° June 79° July 82° August 81° Mean 81° September 76° October 67° November 58° Mean 67"^ PRECIPITATION ^Amount Rain- ■fall In inches and hundredths). Annual Mean Greatest Yearly Year Least Yearly Year 50.85 73-94 1885 36.84 1901 Seasonal Averages of Rain-fall in Inches December 3.15 January 3.09 February 3.28 Seasonal Avg...9.52 March 3.67 April 3.28 May 2.76 Seasonal Avg...9.7i June 6. II July 5-82 August 7.89 Seasonal Avg. 19.82 September 5.67 October 3.69 November 2 . 44 Seasonal Avg. 11.80 Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. Yachts ofj Savannah Yacht Club at Thunderbolt. HEALTH, 5AVANNAH to-day stands pre-eminent among American cities from the standpoint of general healthfulness. For miles around the country has been thoroughly drained. In the city an extensive system of sewerage has recently been supplemented by a modern house-drainage system, the plan of the noted New York engineer, the late Col. George Waring. The entire water supply of the city is obtained from artesian wells from 500 to 1 , 500 feet deep. This water is the purest furnished to con- sumers in the United States, filtered by nature. The chemical analyses, to which it has been subjected, show it absolutely free from any deleterious matter. It is clear as crystal and flows at the rate of ten million gallons daily. The waterworks are owned and operated by the municipal government and the rates are so low that all enjoy an abundance of water for domestic and manufacturing purposes. The death rate among the white population of the city for the year 1903, which was in nowise an exceptional year as regards mortality, was 13 to the 1,000 population. In all there were but 481 deaths among the whites, from all causes. One remarkable fact in this connection, is that 73 of these were of persons over 70 years of age, a fact that speaks vol- umes for conditions prevailing here as to longevity. A Health Officer, with a large and efficient corps of sanitar}^ agents, keeps the city under careful inspection at all times. The city is protected from invasion of disease from abroad by the United States Marine Hos- pital vService, which maintains a well equipped quarantine station at the mouth of the Savannah river. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Oppcrtunities. EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. OVER seven thousand pupils are enrolled in the public schools of Savannah, occupying fourteen school buildings and taught by 154 teachers. Of these 4,567 are white children, in ten schools, taught by no teachers, and 2,517 colored children, in four schools, taught by 43 teachers. In the county, outside of the city limits, there are 638 white children, in 13 schools, taught by 17 teachers, and 2,492 colored children, in 27 schools, taught by 27 teachers. In the entire county there are 9,509 children receiving a free education. Savannah Free Public Library — 25.000 Volumes. Savannah was one of the first cities of the South to recognize the importance of public schools. Its educational system is now recognized as thoroughly abreast with the best in this country. During the year 1903 the expenditures were $156,000. The course covers ten years, two in the primary, five in the grammar, and three in the high school. In addition to the public schools there is a number of private schools in the city, and a well developed free kindergarten system to the exten- sion of which especial attention is being paid. A public library of 25,000 volumes, to membership in which all white residents are eligible without cost, is a valuable adjunct to the public schools. The Telfair Art Gallery, which possesses the finest collection of art works in the South, enables students to pursue their work under many advantages. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. 13 H Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. 15 Telfair Art Academy. Finest Collection of Paintings and Sculptures in the South. The curriculum in the pubHc schools is being steadily broadened. The buildings are the finest in the South for educational purposes. The accompanying illustrations convey an idea of the class of buildings erected in Savannah for its schools. The home seeker can find here every opportunity to educate his children at a minimum of expense. In the State there are several colleges, in addition to the State University, at which tuition fees and living expenses are exceedingly moderate. A Bay Street Block. i6 Savannah, Georgia.— A City of Opportunities. NATIONAL BANK OF SAVANNAH. Building Construction Begins in October. 1904. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. 17 FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS. T *HE conservatism and strength of Savannah's fi- nancial institu- tions have ahnost become a proverb in the South. In financial circles throughout the country their stability and able management are recog- nized. They meet in full the large monetary requirements of the busi- ness community. With a capital and surplus exceeding $5,000,000 and deposits in excess of $10,000,000 and con- nected with the strongest banking institutions of the North, they are ever ready to supply the wants of their patrons. Savannah has not known a bank failure in a half century or more. Ev'ery one of its finan- cial institutions is in a highl}^ prosperous condition, their dividends varjang from six to eight per cent, per annum, and considerable addi- tions being made j^early to their reserve funds. Their directorates include the leading business men of the city, and each enjoys the abso- lute confidence of the business interests of the community and state. With correspondents throughout the north, south and west, they are in position to handle economically and expeditiously all business entrusted to them and have been a powerful factor in the splendid development of Savannah's business during the past two decades. Ten institutions conduct the enormous banking business of the city, their united clearings for the year 1903 exceeding $195,000,000, over $50,000,000 more than the bank clearings of Atlanta, and almost equal to the combined bank clearings of Augusta, Macon, Chattanooga and Jacksonville. Their capital, surplus and deposits are as follows : Liberty Street Branch of Citizens San/c. i8 Savannah, Georgia.- A City of Opportunities. GERMANIA BANK BUILDING, Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. 19 Southern Bank Building. lANK. Capital. Surplus and Undivided Profits. Total. Deposits. Merchants National National Bank of Savannah I Southern ! Citizens Gerniania Savannah Bank & Trust Co Savannah Trust Co Chatham Oglethorpe Savings & Trust Co Commercial Total.... 500,000 250,000 500,000 500,000 300,000 350,000 500,000 150,000 125,000 50,000 134,823 280,150 505,050 312,925 208,368 157,662 93, "4 41,910 86,712 9,416 634,823 530,150 1,005,050 812,925 508,368 507,662 593,114 191,910 211,712 59,416 $ 3,225,000 I I 1,830,130 i I 5,055,130 303,800 811,854 2,343,407 2,436,434 1,398,424 1,409,640 405,000. 535, 94^-. 566,841 234,613-. |io,535,955 Savannah Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. Merchants National Bank. A coaling station is projected at this port, which promises to be of great importance, enabling vessels of all sizes to coal here rapidly and economically. It is expected that work on the plant will begin this fall. It is proposed to duplicate one of the finest plants North. The value of the cotton handled through Savannah for the fiscal crop year ending September i, was $72,500,000. Savannah's retail trade is valued at over $41,000,000 a 3'ear, and is steadily growing. The rosins and spirits turpentine handled at Savannah for the year ending September i, 1904, aggregated in value $10,000,000. Savannah is becoming more and more of a supply point for building materials. Its trade in such articles has now reached $2,000,000. The Armour Fertilizer Company has completed arrangements for the erection of a 90,000 ton plant to be erected on Hutchinson Island, in front of the city, and adjacent to the S. A. Iv. R. R. terminals. A dry dock capable of serving the largest vessels visiting the port of Savannah is projected. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. TRANSPORTATION FACILITIES FOUR great railroad systems center at Savannah, and two steamship Hnes operating the finest fleets of coastwise steamships on the Atlantic coast connect it with the ports of the North. Direct communication is also had with the countries of the old world by regular lines of freight steamships, and scores of tramp steamers and sailing vessels that visit the port during the year. The railroad systems centering at Savannah, giving it direct con- nection with all parts of the United States, and enabling its jobbers and manufacturers to keep in touch with distributors and consumers every- where, are as follows : SYSTEM MII^EAGE STATES TRAVERSED. Central of Georgia... Seaboard Air Line Atlantic Coast Line Southern 1,845 2,612 4,034 7,139 Georgia and Alabama. \ Virginia, North Carolina, South Caro- } lina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama \ Virginia, North Carolina, South Caro- } lina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama. ( Virginia, North Carolina, South Caro- •< lina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mis- ( sissippi, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee Four Systems 15,630 Ten States. Population 16,000,000. The Ocean Steamship Company operates eleven steamships, with a total tonnage of 45,700, from Savannah to New York and Boston. The Merchants and Miners Transportation Company operates seven steamships, of 17,100 tonnage, connecting Savannah with Baltimore and Philadelphia. These vessels carry both passengers and freight, and give three sail- ings weekly from Savannah to New York, one to Boston, two to Phila- delphia, and three to Baltimore. In all, these railroad and steamship systems have terminals here cov- ering 750 acres, and with a wharf frontage of 25,000 feet, or nearly five miles Their facilities for the prompt and cheap handling of freights are not surpassed at any port of the world. Freights are discharged directly from the steamships to the cars and vice versa. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. 5 t- Savannah, Georgia.— A City of Opportunities. 23 Savannah's superb transportation facilities make it an unexcelled distributing point. A number of firms located at other trade centers have established warehouses here and supply theii customers from Sav- annah. Merchants throughout Georgia, Florida, the Carolinas and Alabama, largely receive their goods through this port. A Union depot, costing with approaches $700,000, is used by all of the roads entering here, except the Central of Georgia which maintains its own depot. St. Louis, Kansas City, Omaha, and other centers for the distribu- tion of food products, as well as Chattanooga, Birmingham, and other important points in the mineral section of the South, are many miles nearer to Savannah than to any of the Northern seaports. Nearly all of the cotton mills of the South are within a radius of three hundred miles of Savannah. Savannah is recognized as the natural port of entry and export for the entire southeast, and for a great extent of western country. The construction of the Panama canal will strengthen its position in this and other respects. When that great waterway is completed Savannah will be 705 miles nearer to its mouth than New York, 610 miles nearer than Philadelphia, and 520 miles nearer than Baltimore. It will also be nearer than New Orleans or Galveston. All experts on the commercial situation predict a vast and rapid growth for the business of Savannah with the completion of the canal across the isthmus. From a transportation standpoint. Savannah offers every advantage to the merchant and manufacturer. bavannah Yacht CiuD. at I nunderboli. Six Miies Jrom Savannah on Electric kaiiway. A Beautiful Stretch of Water to the Sea. 24 Savannah, Georgia.— A City of Opportunities. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. 25 COMMERCE. 5 AVANNAH is the prin- cipal seaport of the South Atlantic Coast. Its importance has been recognized for many years by the federal govern- ment, which has expended in all seven million dollars in the improvement and deepening of its harbor. There is now practically a depth of 28 feet at mean high tide in its chan- nel from the city to the sea. A movement has been inaugu- rated looking to a fur- ther survey and appropri- ation for 30 feet at mean low water. Competent engineers have declared this practicable, and at the next session of Congress a surv^ey will prob- ably be ordered. Three billion pounds of freights passed inward and outward through Savannah ^'during the year 1903. This applies only to freights handled via ocean routes. The value of foreign commerce of the port for that year was $58,566,773. In 1890 it was but $30,949,991. The coastwise or domestic commerce exceeded $100,000,000 in value, including all kinds of raw products of the South and various manufac- tured goods both ways. In all there were 824 arrivals of vessels coastwise during 1903, and 145 from foreign ports, a total of 969 vessels arriving during the year. Their total tonnage was 1,414,254. Practically an equal number of vessels cleared from the port during the year, making a total tonnage inward and outward approaching 3,000,000. In the foreign trade the average tonnage of vessels visiting this port has increased 115 per cent, in the past twelve years. The largest freight steamships afloat now regularly visit Savannah for cargoes. Savannah Cotton Exchange. 26 Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. Savannah, Georgia.— A City of Opportunities. 27 The chief articles of export are cotton, rosins, spirits turpentine, lumber and timber, phosphate rock, iron and steel and manufactured forms, cotton manufactured goods, cotton seed oil and other products of the cotton seed, fruits and vegetables, and miscellaneous manufactured goods. Savannah draws freight from twenty-two states, as follows : Cotton from Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, Alabama, Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana, Indian Territory, Oklahoma. Naval stores from Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, South Carolina. Loading Lumber. Savannah Exports Qvar 200.000.000 Feet Yearly. 28 Savannah, Georgia — A City of Opportunities. Savannah, Georgia.— A City of Opportunities. 29 United States Custom House at Savannah. Phosphate rock from Florida. Lumber, Etc., from Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi. Hardwoods from Tennessee. Cotton manufactures from Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Alabama. Fruits and vegetables from Georgia, Florida and South Carolina. Iron, steel, etc., from Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee. Grain, grain products and packing house products from Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Nebraska, Kansas, Kentucky, Ten- nessee, Indian Territory, Oklahoma. Canned goods from Georgia, South Carolina, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, California, Washington, Oregon. Groceries, provisions, etc., from points as far w^est as Cincinnati, Chicago, St. Louis, Kansas City, Omaha, and as far north as Baltimore and New York, and east as far as Boston. Manufactured goods from all points north and as far west as Ne- braska and Michigan. Shipments of phosphate rock through this port increased from 7,000 tons in 1892 to 186,000 tons in 1902. Shipments of lumber and timber increased from 56,000,000 feet in 1880 to over 205,000,000 feet last year. Shipments of pig iron have grown from 12,000 tons twenty years ago to approaching 100,000 tons. Shipments of cotton seed and its products, cotton seed oil, meal, etc., are now over 50,000 tons a year. This class of exports is steadily in- creasing. 30 Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. Cotton, the South 's great staple, is handled in enormous quantities at Savannah. For the crop j^ear ending September i, 1903, there were exported from this port over 1,300,000 bales, weighing 325,000 tons. Savannah holds the world's record for the largest cargo of cotton exported. In November, 1903, the British steamship St. Andrew was cleared from this port with a cargo equivalent to 26,6^9 square bales of 500 lbs. each, her registered tonnage being 4,451. Of cotton manufactured goods 30,000 tons were shipped through Savannah in 1903, an increase over 1902 of 65 per cent. Savannah is the outlet through which Southern mills, in increasing numbers, ship their products to the markets of the world. Savannah handles yearly a million barrels of rosins and turpentine. It is the greatest port and the chief market of the world for these products of the South. Every year shows a marked increase in the commerce of Savannah. Its future is recognized as the brightest among Southern ports. Eight miles of river front afford ample wharfage facilities. Interior View Antiseptic Broom Co.'s Factoiy. Savannah, Georgia. — A City ok Opportunities. 31 32 Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. John Rourke and Sons' Foundry, Machine Shops and Marine Railway. MANUFACTURES. WHILE Savannah is, comparatively, in the infancy of its industrial development, it possesses a number of large and important manufacturing establishments, and many of minor size which are prospering and developing rapidl}^ steadily increasing their capital, output and wage roll. The fifty principal manufacturing concerns of the city now employ about 4,300 hands, and have an output yearly of the value of over $8,000,000. The past five years have seen a remarkable development in this de- partment of activity. A number of the city's largest manufactures have been established during that time, have been exceedingly successful, and have opened the way for other industries, several of which are now projected. Every indication points to Savannah becoming one of the chief man- ufacturing cities of the nation within a few years. The stability of its present industries, the success they have achieved, and the rapid increase in the capital invested, the number of hands employed, and the value of their output, speak strongly of Savannah's future along this line. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunitihs. 33 Plant of Eagle Mfg Co.. Planing Mill and Manufacturers of Boxes and House Building Soft Materials. The largest industries are located on the river front, where the ad- vantages of cheap handling of their raw materials and the manufactured products offer inducements. Ample room still exists there for a number of industries. At other points in or adjacent to the city land suitable for manufactories is to be had that possesses admirable transportation facilities. One of the great advantages Savannah possesses as a manufacturing point, outside of the superior water and rail transportation facilities, is the mildness and equableness of its climate. Work here, either indoor or outdoor, is not interfered with and hampered by severe weather, either extremes of heat or cold. It is probable that there is less loss of time in the average manufacturing establishment in Savannah from climatic causes than in any other town of the United States. There is also naturally a con- siderable saving in heating, and the long days enable the operation of plants without artificial lights over the greater part of the year. Fuel is cheap, taxes low, labor easily trained. From Savannah its manufactured products are distributed over a half dozen or more southern states, with an aggregate population of ten millions. These states are rapidly growing in wealth and people ; their 34 Savannah, Georgia.— A City of Opportunities. Sash, Door and Blind Factory and Planing Mill of A. S. Bacon <& Sons. Savannah Brewing Company's Plant. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. 35 Works of the Georgia Car and Manufacturing Co. demands are broadening every year, and manufacturers located at Savan- nah are in a position to meet their wants under conditions that are most favorable for success. Many openings exist for new enterprises. Considerable of the goods of all kinds used in this section are still brought from the north and west, at great expense for handling and transportation, which could and should be made at home. Manufacturers, who enter this field, study the de- mands of the people, and meet them, will place themselves on the high road to wealth. Savannah offers every possible encouragement to men embarking in manufacturing industries, large or small. Especially favorable are the opportunities for manufactures into which lumber, cotton and wool largely enter, Savannah being a great market for these raw products of the South. Every article which enters into daily use could be made here profitably. Savannah's manufactures now include fertilizer works, soap facto- ries, breweries, machine shops, iron foundries, copper foundries, crate and box factories, pants factories, cigar factories, railroad car works, locomotive works, candy factories, broom factories, baking powder facto- ries, copper works, marine railways, ice factories, sash, door and blind factories, planing mills, rice mills, mattress factories, harness works, wooden ware factory, coffin factory, rosin oil works, paint and varnish works, proprietary medicine works, boot and shoe factories, canning fac- tories, cotton seed oil works, etc. 36 Savannah, Georgia.- A City of Opportunities. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. 37 WHOLESALE TRADE. THE greater part of four leading southern states is tributary to Savannah as a jobbing centre. From its wholesale houses the merchants of the interior towns of Georgia, Florida, Alabama and South Carolina, to a large extent, draw their supplies of goods. Savannah's position as a seaport, with extraordinary transportation connections with the great markets of the North, gives it the benefit of cheap freight rates from the mills of that section. With ten steamships sailing from four great northern emporiums of trade to Savannah every week, its jobbers are enabled to receive their stocks continuously and at the minimum of expense. The four great railroad systems centering here place them in easy communication at all times with all interior points in the states men- tioned, enabling them to supply the wants of their merchant customers promptly and satisfactorily. As a result of these favorable conditions, and of the enterprise of its business men, Savannah has, for many years, been one of the greatest distributing points of the South. Its jobbing trade is now placed at $52,500,000 yearly, divided as follows: Groceries, $12,000,000; dry goods, $7,000,000 ; boots and shoes, $3,000,000 ; clothing, $4,000,000 ; hardware, $4,000,000 ; fruits, vegetables and provisions, $5,000,000 ; liquors and tobacco, $10,000,000 ; fertilizers, $3,500,000 ; hay, grain etc., $2,000,000; builder's supplies, $2,000,000. The section of the South tributary to Savannah is rapidly develop- ing in population and wealth. With its growth the jobbing trade of Savannah must continue to expand and prosper. The peculiar advan- tages the city enjoys have been recognized by competitors in Atlanta and other cities who have been forced to establish large warehouses here, from which they can meet the demands of their patrons in the section referred to. Savannah's superior position and facilities for meeting trade requirements must enable it to extend its wholesale trade with each year. It offers man)' inducements for the investment of capital in this line of business. Small industries are thriving in Savannah. There is opportunity here for many more. Uncleared land can be bought a few miles from Savannah at $10 an acre, which could be developed into profitable truck farms. One million dollars worth of wool is handled in vSavannah every year. The Georgia crop is practically marketed through this port. Interior View Morehouse Mfg. Co.. Manufacturers of Baking Powders. Etc. \ ■ 1 m ■ 1 M w^^^i^^^^^"! ik^^ ii i m 1 EP M i Hi^''.^ Box. Crate and Tub Works of the Pierpont Mfg. Co. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. 39 CITY GOVERNMENT. 5AVANNAH has a thoroughl}' organized municipal government, with all the departments pertaining to a modern city well equipped for their work and maintained at all times in a first- class condition. The city's revenues, about $900,000 a year, enable it to provide all of its departments with up-to-date appliances, to keep a sufficient number of trained employes in each of them, and to carry on their business in a manner satisfactory to its citizens. The direction of municipal affairs is centered in the Mayor and twelve Aldermen, elected bi-ennially, by the vote of the entire city. The departments are under the direction of superintendents elected by the Mayor and Aldermen and subject to removal by that body. The police force consists of 95 men, of whom 23 are mounted. It is provided with the Gamewell telegraph system, and covers the city effec- tively. Expenditures in this department are $90,000 annually. In addition there are four private police forces, regulated by city ordinances, for the protection of railroad and steamship terminals, consisting of 50 men. The fire department includes 86 men, operating 7 engines, of the latest pattern, 11 hose reels, i chemical engine, 3 hook and ladder trucks. Expenditures $81,000 yearly. The department of public works, which includes the maintenance and cleaning of highwa3-s, the scavenger work, drainage, etc., gives employment to 200 men, and expends on such departmental work $135,000 yearly. The water works department, caring for the artesian water plant supplying the city with purest w^ater, for all purposes, and a reserve plant for the use of river water in an emergency, expends $60,000 yearly. The average daily pumpage of artesian well water is 8,600,000 gallons, or over 120 gallons for every man, woman and child. The health department includes the Health Officer, one food inspec- tor and seven sanitary inspectors. Its expenditure are $18,000 yearly. The city is lighted by 520 arc lights, at a cost of $37,000. Out of its total income in 1903 $150,000 was expended on new improvements, such as paving streets, opening streets, etc. One fourth of all the expenditures of the city government, exclusive of sinking fund and interest on debt, are for permanent public better- ments. Savannah has issued no bonds in a quarter of a century. Its credit is of the highest. Its old bonds command a fine premium. Foundry and Machine Shops of Wm Kehoe & Sons. Works of the Southern States Fertilizer Co. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. 41 The assessed valuations for 1904 are $42,062,192. Five years ago they were $36,582,859. Average yearly increase $1,100,000. The city tax rate is $1.45 on the $100, less 10 per cent, for prompt payment, making a net tax rate of $1 .30 on the $100. In 1903 there were issued 638 permits for new buildings and improvements ; in 1902, 578 permits. New buildings and improvements are on equally as extensive a scale this ^^ear. In the past five years over nine miles of streets have been paved with asphalt, belgian blocks and vitrified bricks. The city now has forty miles of paved streets and lanes, and is paving on an average of two miles yearly. The new city hall, in course of construction, will cost when com- pleted, $250,000, entirely paid for out of the regular revenues, without additional taxation or obligations of any nature. A Park and Tree Commission has charge of the parks, squares, grass plats, trees and cemetery. It is steadily beautifying the city. It puts out about 1,000 trees each year. Savannah is known far and wide as "The Forest City of the South." The city has a scientific house drainage system, distinct from the regular sewerage system for the carrying off of rain water, etc. J. J. McDonough <& Co.'s Lumber and Planing Mill. i -^^ii C'-^ ... f r LLl. [il ilTi f P w ■■:'^: ^^^^''.liBBiH F t> ■ ■ — -~- , ^11!^ B ^^ ":^i^ 5*.- » ' "% -« ' w ' . , ' ^^^^^^^^^^^ ^H^i^;. P. Shatter Co. 's Rosin Oil Works. Largest in the World. Twenty-one Stills. Using 60.000 Barrels of Rosin Yearly. Manufacture Rosin Oils, Lubricating Oils. Brewer's Pitch. Etc. Yards and Barreling Department Shatter Rosin Oil Works. Savannah Locomotive Works. An Interior View. Standard Candy Co. 's Factory American Cigar Co.'s Factory. Employs 500 Girls and Women. McMillan Bros' Coppei Works. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. 45 One of the Dixon Lumbei Company's Plants. Savannah Candy Factory. 46 Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. Vale Royal Lumber Mill. Savannah Volunteer Guards' Armory. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. 47 Bathing at Isle of Hope. One of Savannah's Nearby Resorts. SPORTS AND PLEASURE RESORTS. 5URF BATHING, still water bathing, yachting, rowing, fishing, hunting, automobiling, road driving, golf; these and other pleas- ures are at the command of the Savannahian. Tybee Island, but eighteen miles from the city, with an excellent train service throughout the summer, possesses one of the best beaches on the Atlantic coast. It has a fine hotel, manj^ boarding houses, and a large number of cottages which can be rented for the season. Fishing, crabbing and turtle hunting add to the enjoyment of the visitor. Two days each week the fare to the island from the city is but 25 cents for the round trip ; on other days, 40 cents. A book of 52 tickets, good for a year, can be had for $6.50, enabling one to make the trip to and from the shore at any time for 25 cents. Isle of Hope, Thunderbolt, Montgomery and other suburban water- ing points, within four to ten miles of the city, are reached by trolley cars of the Savannah Electric Company at a total expense of five or ten cents each way. At these places the visitor can enjoy salt water bathing with- out the surf accompaniment. Row boats, power launches, tackle and bait are for rent, and the finest fishing in the country is near by. At Thunderbolt a casino with beautiful grounds, admission to which is free, provides theatrical performances and various kinds of amusement throughout the sunnner. This and other resorts are noted for their fish dinners. Among the fish frequenting the fresh and salt waters about Savannah are the bass, drum, black, rock, red snapper, jack, whiting, fresh water trout, sea trout, shad, cavalli, sheepshead, grouper, flounder, perch, mullet, bream, croaker, sea cat, pompano, sturgeon, German carp, etc. It is not infrequently that a string of a hundred or more fish, weighing from one to one hundred pounds, is the result of a .single day's sport. Some of the gamest fish of America abound in this vicinity. Savannah, Georgia.— A City of Opportunities. Grounds of the Casino. Thunderbolt. Bicyclists on the Ogeechee Road, near Savannah. This City is the Bicyclist's Paradise Savannah, Georgia. — A City ok Opportunities. 49 On the waters and in the country round about Savannah the sports- man finds ample game in season. Deer and bear are shot within a few miles of the city, and among the birds that fill the gunner's bag are part- ridge, every variety of wild duck, snipe, woodcock, plover, marsh hen, dove, rail and others. The finest paved roads in the South stretch out in all directions from the city, connecting it with the watering resorts. Running through the pine woods and skirting the waterways, these highways present many pretty bits of scenery. They are exceedingly popular with automobilists, a number of whom bring their machines from the North and West and winter here. Locally two hundred and fifty automobiles are owned, ranging from the modest vehicle for two, to the most powerful machines costing $5,000. Savannah is the greatest automobiling point in the South. A speedway is projected, and every year the improvement of the country highways continues. To the bicyclist Savannah is a veri- table paradise. The lover of driving finds excellent service at the several livery stables. ^ J- Power Launches Dot the Waters About Savannah. Scene at Thunderbolt. 50 Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. 51 Yachting is a time honored sport at Savannah. A number of fast boats are owned by devotees, and the annual regatta is an event of social as well as sporting importance. Scores of naphtha and gasoline launches dot the waters near the resorts. The Savannah Yacht Club owns fine quarters near Thunderbolt, and has a membership of several hundred. The links of the Savannah Golf Club are recognized as among the finest in the South and are deservedly popular with lovers of the game. The mildness of the winter enables the Savannahian to extend his out-of-door sports throughout the year. While snow and ice cover the North and West the waters and fields and woods of this vicinity are open to the lover of nature and the sportsman. Amateur photographers here revel in opportunities to secure beautiful views on land and water. The Savannah Camera Club has a large membership, excellently equipped quarters, and visiting photographers can enjoy every advantage for a nominal fee. During the winter the accommodations of the hotels and numerous boarding houses are often taxed. There are three large hotels, the De Soto, Pulaski House and Screven House, whose rates are moderate for the accommodations furnished.* Good accommodations can be had in any of the numerous boarding houses at reasonable rates. Savannah Col; Club House. 52 Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. Savannah, Georgia.— A City of Opportunities. 53 54 Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. 55 TRUCK FARMING. ClylMATE, soil and situation have combined to render the country adjacent to Savannah pecuHarly adapted for profitable truck farming for the northern markets. Within view of the city, running close to its electric lines, its steam railroads and its wharves, are thousands of acres already developed into rich gardens of small fruits and vegetables. Awaiting the advent of men with experience and energy to convert them into similar sources of wealth are thousands of other acres of land capable of bearing every vegetable that is usualh^ found in the markets of the great centres of population. When the snow covers the hills and valleys of the north and the farmer's occupation there is restricted to the care of his stock, the truckers of Savannah's vicinity are watching the rapid growth of their crops and preparing for their picking and shipment to the large cities of other sections. When the farmers of the eastern and middle states have just put the plough into the soil the farmer of this neighborhood is receiving hand- some cash returns from the commission merchants who have begun to dispose of the first of the season's fruits of his labors. By the time the farmer a few hundred miles to the north is watching the first sprouts that tell of the coming of his crops, the farmer who re- sides in or near Savannah has begun to plant his second crop on some sections of his land, while from others his hands are gathering the vege- tables that are in demand at remunerative prices among the millions who are just welcoming the balminess of spring elsewhere. Railroad, steamship and express companies unite in their endeavors to give him rapid communication with his customers. Refrigerator cars carry his perishable fruits, ventilated cars are al- ways at his sendee, and the steamships plying to New York, Boston, Baltimore and Philadelphia exert ever}' effort to advance his interests and build up what is already a great industry although still but in the infancy of its development. Every year the county authorities are extending its drainage system and bringing more land within the area of cultivation. Every year the paved roads are being extended, bringing more and more land into easy touch with the railroad and steamship terminals. Truck from the Savannah farms reaches the markets four to five weeks ahead of similar fruits and vegetables raised in the vicinity of Norfolk, Va., and six to eight weeks ahead of those raised by the farmers of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York. The great shipping crops are Irish potatoes, cabbages, English peas, beans, cucumbers, tomatoes and strawberries. These are handled in 56 Savannah, Georgia.— A City of Opportunities. Savannah, Georgia. — A City of Opportunities. 57 ever increasing quantities. Other vegetables are rai.sed principall}^ for the local market, but are shipped in a minor way. Irish potatoes are one of the main crops, and generally very profit- able. Planting begins about February i, shipping about May 15. Snap beans are planted from February 20 to March 10. Shipping begins about May i. Cabbages are raised nearly the year round. For shipping they are planted late in the fall and marketed principally in April and May ; ship- ping frequently begins in March. Seeds are planted in October-Novem- ber and the plants put out in December-January. English peas are planted early in January and shipped in March- April. Tomatoes are another great crop. The seeds are sown in hot-beds in February, the plants set out the first days of April, and the fruit is ready for picking from the middle of May on. Cucumber seed is sown in March and shipping begins about May 15. Onion sets are put out in September-October and the}^ are marketed through the winter and spring. Turnips are planted in September. They are ready for market in January. Strawberries are set out in September-October. Fruit is gathered from April i to June i. Other vegetables are easil}^ raised, but generally sufficiently only for local consumption. An average yield per acre is as follows : Cabbage, 300 crates. Irish potatoes, 60 barrels. English peas, 150 baskets. Tomatoes, 300 crates. Snap beans, 200 baskets. Cucumbers, 500 baskets. Strawberries, 2,000 quart baskets. Onions, 500 bushels. At the present time there are over one hundred truck farmers operating in the immediate vicinity of Savannah. The total area culti- vated by them is about 3,500 acres. Some of the larger farms include several hundred acres of highly cultivated land. Negro labor is princi- pally used. It is cheap, plentiful and satisfactory. Three crops are allowed yearly, generally two of vegetables, followed by hay, although three vegetable crops can be had if desired. A number of the truckers operating on the largest scale have their homes in the city, driving out to their farms daily and leaving a reliable negro foreman in charge at night. In this way they and their families enjoy all the advantages of city life without interference with farm operations. Land can still be rented or purchased within convenient distance of the city. 58 Savannah, Georgia.— A City of Opportunities. Savannah, Georgia.— A City of Opportunities. 59 6o vSavannah, Georgia.— a City of Opportunities. Chatham County Court House. Savannah, Ga. Seventy-five thousand tons of sulphate and muriate of potash were imported to Savannah the year ending September i , for consumption in its fertihzer works. Fift}' thousand tons of sulphur ore are brought into the port of Savannah yearly. The average time for a sailing vessel from vSavannah to Liverpool is ten days less than from New Orleans to that port. Savannah has churches of all denominations. It contains some of the handsomest church structures in Georgia. ««ACT, ACT IN THE LIVING PRESENT.'* ^\ LIBRARY OF CONGRESS