WHEREAS, On February 12, 1733, the City of Savannah was founded by General James Oglethorpe and settlers from the ship Anne that landed at Yamacraw Bluff and were greeted by Tomochichi, the Yamacraws, and Indian traders John and Mary Musgrove. In 1751, Savannah and the rest of Georgia became a Royal Colony and Savannah was made the colonial capital of Georgia; and

WHEREAS, Savannah's downtown area, which includes the Savannah Historic District, the Savannah Victorian Historic District, and 22 parklike squares, is one of the largest National Historic Landmark Districts in the United States (designated by the U.S. government in 1966); and

WHEREAS, Savannah is a city of diverse neighborhoods. More than 100 distinct neighborhoods can be identified in six principal areas of the city: Downtown (Landmark Historic District and Victorian District), Midtown, Southside, Eastside, Westside, and Southwest/West Chatham; and

WHEREAS, Savannah is a port city, a military city, and a college city that has figured prominently in national events such as the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and the Civil Rights Movement; and

WHEREAS, Savannah, Georgia is known for its natural beauty, history, art, period architecture and the very best in food anywhere in the world; and

WHEREAS, consistently named one of the “world’s friendliest cities” and ranks in the top 5 travel destinations by readers of national and international publications; and

WHEREAS, Savannah is the home of John Wesley, Juliette Gordon Low, Johnny Mercer, Judge Mills Lane, Rev. Ralph Mark Gilbert, W.W. Law, Justice Clarence Thomas, Big Boi , and Senator Rev. Raphael Warnock, with many more famous names to come; and

WHEREAS, 912 is the three-digit number that identifies Savannah’s telephone service area code

NOW THEREFORE, I, Van R. Johnson, II, Mayor of the City of Savannah, GA, do hereby declare the date of September 12, annually from this year forward as

SAVANNAH DAY

and in recognition thereof, I urge all our City’s residents to show love, fully enjoy and celebrate Georgia’s First City.

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