About Green-Meldrim House
The Green-Meldrim House is a National Historic Landmark and one of Savannah’s most distinctive examples of Gothic Revival residential architecture. Cotton merchant Charles Green commissioned architect John S. Norris to build the house around 1850 for Green and his wife Lucy, resulting in an elaborate residence noted for pointed arches, ornate ironwork, carved woodwork, marble fireplaces, high ceilings, and a dramatic lighted dome above the main staircase.
The house became nationally significant during the Civil War when General William T. Sherman used it as his personal headquarters after reaching Savannah in December 1864. From this setting he conducted military and civic business during the occupation of the city and wrote his famous message presenting Savannah to President Abraham Lincoln as a Christmas gift. The site’s interpretation also addresses the Green and Meldrim families and the lives of people who worked in and around the household.
Guided tours allow visitors to examine the preserved interiors, decorative arts, triple front doors, plasterwork, and architectural features that make the house exceptional. The building remains an active parish house for neighboring St. John’s Church, so its continued community use adds another layer to a site already notable for architecture, Civil War history, and Savannah’s nineteenth-century social history.
