Davenport House Savannah Architectural Tour

In this tour, Dr. Robin B. Williams takes viewers on a detailed architectural exploration of the Isaiah Davenport House in Savannah, Georgia, from the basement to behind-the-scenes access in the attic.

[@sdmsdm7926]

As always, he makes learning about history & architecture so interesting, & he has a soft spoken voice which makes listening to him very enjoyable. He makes me want to visit....as soon as we can enjoy life again when this pandemic dies off....

[@RickBeall]

I learned so much more about old houses than just the Davenport House, from this tour. This tour is very enriching and enlightening. And of course I learned a lot about ther Davenport House. Dr Williams, thank you for saving me from the tourist videos (hey i"m a tourist, I can say that), and thank you for saving me from the ghost tour videos. Real knowledge! Kids, get it here!

[@gloriatorrance5430]

My favourite of them all.

[@dotti2928]

I agree with Timothy Monahan 100%!! Very fascinating! I have toured this house many times but now I want to go back again and look for certain things! You are one amazing guy Dr. Williams and I like your shoes too!!

[@curtandoscar]

What a pleasure. Once again, the perfect balance: educational, steady camera work, wonderful detail about everything from the width of the floor boards and what that says, to the tightenable Newel post, to the way we know that the house was just that well built as to not have settled in all these years. Fabulous. We must be thankful for those who prevented the demolition of such treasures all over the world. When I think that Scollay Square in Boston - an entire neighborhood of 1000+ buildings - was bulldozed in the early 60s in order to make way for the truly hideous cement Brutalist City Hall and gigantic brick plaza where so many beautiful brownstones once stood - housing tens of thousands. The bricks, to boot, are incredibly slippery in Boston's icy, cold winters and incredibly hot in summer and the whole plaza is a wind tunnel. I often think the "urban renewal" crowd should be brought up on charges!

[@monicacall7532]

What a beautiful home! I’m so glad that it wasn’t demolished in order to put in a parking lot. Georgian/Federal architecture is my favorite style, and the classic furniture styles of that time are simple but elegant. The trompe l’oielle (French for “fool the eye”) wall painting meant to look like silk wall hangings in the parlor is exquisite. Do you know if this house and it’s original furnishings were built/made by enslaved craftsmen or if the furnishings were made in the North or in Great Britain or Europe?

[@timothybmonahan]

I really enjoy learning not only about the architecture and the history of the building, but also how the lives were different when the home was built. Learning about public and private spaces, the different levels of ornamentation, the different functions of different rooms, the lack of plumbing, the lives of the enslaved people and the builder are all fascinating topics. Thanks for the vary insightful tour.

[@deniseproctor7190]

Well done!! Thanks for a wonderful tour!

[@goombabear]

Savannah is my spiritual home.

[@TheJahwana]

So enjoyed this video.

[@TheManifestress]

Dr Williams I am so enjoying all your videos! I live near Chatham square and I’m learning so much. I appreciate your expertise and also your ability to relate architecture and culture and history. The waterfront video is the first my sister and I viewed and we are excited to go there and retrace your steps.

[@robyncarter5135]

My family and I love to take tours of different places when on holiday, and hope to get back to it post Covid. We would definitely look up any of Prof. Williams’ tours when in Savannah. Interesting and entertaining. Thanks!

[@urbantraces9640]

When the time comes, send me an email to .

[@DDH40228]

Excellent content! Well done.

[@normanwandsworth]

May I be so bold as to make a suggestion? Georgian and the Federal style are different. The Federal style aligns roughly with the Regency style. Regency, Federal, Empire, Biedermeyer, all late 18th century to the early 19th Century. And the Georgian period was the previous one hundred years.

[@heatherknopp3723]

Yes, Georgian was more Roman Classicism, including all the great structures like Independence Hall, University of Virginia, etc.. It was the prominent style during America's revolutionary times. Once we had thrown off our English masters, we threw off their building styles and turned more toward the Greeks as well as lighter touches with design and decor. It was called Federal in the US (to mark our new style of government), Regency in the UK. In the 20th Century, we drew on those styles again with "Colonial Revival" and "Greek Revival" styles.

[@jelsner5077]

Lovely house and tour. Are the reproduction wallpapers available for sale or were they created exclusively for this house?

[@TheCaffeinatedOrganist]

It took me a minute- the woodwork in the parlor is the reason why that side of the house is 12”-15 inches wider than the business office and dining room side. The windows remain a standard size but the flanking column and arch would have visually crowded them from the interior perspective. Exterior blinds (shutters) were never static (opened and closed at different times of the day) and when closed, the asymmetrical reality of the facade is less pronounced and troubling to the eye.

[@urbantraces9640]

Great point. Thank you for that observation.

[@Swampzoid]

What was the purpose of the cove between the front entrance stairs ? I'd love to see interior photos of before it was restored. I know the house had been turned into apartments at one point.

[@urbantraces9640]

With many houses, the opening under the raised stoop provided access to the basement. I'm not sure what its purpose was here, since there were two other doors to the basement along Habersham St.

[@cliffwoodbury5319]

if they demolished that house that would be unecceptable!! i would be so pissed off 2 even know someone was thinking of coing somehting like this

[@urbantraces9640]

It's shocking to think how little value historic buildings had in the early 1950s. In fact, many buildings were demolished for their Savannah Grey bricks. But overall, Savannah was fortunate to have had far-sighted and vocal advocates for preservation before many other cities.

[@patty4709]

Do the walls have the original wallpaper or a reproduction?

[@urbantraces9640]

The wall papers on the walls are all reproductions. The one in the hallway is based on fragments discovered at the nearby Berrien House.

[@almyers8074]

Hi Robin, maybe the positioning of the Davenport House was strategically planned, between upper and median classes as to service both without having one class invade the other. Thanks.

[@urbantraces9640]

Interesting suggestion. I'm sure the location was a desire to be close to his potential (rich) clients' houses to the west and what was affordable on the edge of the original city. A curious thing about the Savannah Plan is that it allowed people of lesser means to live behind wealthy people on the lanes and not just in peripheral areas. So class structure wasn't so segregated as we might think.

[@danielmoraga6474]

And the chandeliers ??

[@urbantraces9640]

There were no chandeliers in the house originally. The ceiling medallions were merely decorative.