Savannah's Madison Square

Madison Square was named for the fourth president of the United States, James Madison. Atop the monument stands Seargent William Jasper, Revolutionary War hero, who though mortally wounded, heroically recovered his company's banner. The statue shows Jasper holding aloft the banner he had just recaptured for his company.

Unveiled in 1888, the monument is the work of sculptor Alexander Doyle. Around the base are scenes from the gallant soldier's life. In one, he is shown wounded and dying, cradled in the arms of a comrade. Colonial roadways are marked by cannons on the south side of the square, including the old route to Darien, Georgia mapped out in 1733 with the help of Chief Tomochichi.

Madison Square was added in 1837.

General William Tecumseh Sherman was headquartered across from this square at the Green-Meldrim House in 1864.

Madison Square is one of the 24 squares that was designed and incorporated into the plan for the city of Savannah.

Savannahians sometimes refer to this as Jasper Square, in honor of Jasper's statue.

Madison Square features a vintage cannon from the Savannah Armory. The square also includes a monument marking the center of the British resistance during the Siege.

Notable Buildings on Madison Square:

Sorrel-Weed House -- (c.1841), 6 West Harris Street. Stuccoed building with welcoming-arms stairs at entrance.

St. John's Episcopal Church Parish House -- (1863), 14 West Macon Street, also known as the Green-Meldrim House Museum. Medieval-styled architecture with unusual oriel windows.

St. John's Episcopal Church -- Bull Street on Madison Square. Gothic church with connecting garden to parish house.

Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) -- 342 Bull Street. Romanesque red brick with up-ended cannon flanking the entrance, built as the Savannah Volunteer Guards Armory.

Eliza Jewitt House -- (1843), 326 Bull Street, on Madison Square. Classical residence with bookstore on street level.

Green-Meldrim House -- (1864). General William Tecumseh Sherman was headquartered across from the square at the Green-Meldrim House in 1864.

Scottish Rite Temple -- On the corner of Charlton and Bull, there is the Scottish Rite Temple designed by Hyman Witcover who was also the architect for the present Savannah City Hall.

Location:

Madison Square is located on Bull, between Harris and Charlton Streets.

The Squares of Savannah Georgia:

Savannah was originally laid out around four open squares. The plan anticipated growth of the city and thus expansion of the grid; additional squares were added during the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries, and by 1851 there were twenty four squares in downtown Savannah. Three of these have been demolished or altered beyond recognition, leaving twenty-one squares at the present. One of those, Ellis Square, is currently being rebuilt. Most squares are named in honor or in memory of a person, persons, or event, and many contain monuments, markers, memorials, statues, plaques, and other tributes. The first squares were originally intended to provide colonists space for military exercises. All of the squares are a part of Savannah's historic district and fall within an area of less than one half square mile. Savannah's city plan was designed by General James Oglethorpe, and his layout has been hailed as the most intelligent grid in America. The American Society of Civil Engineers has honored Oglethorpe's plan for Savannah as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark, and in 1994 the plan was nominated for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List. The squares are a major point of interest for millions of tourists visiting Savannah each year, and they have been credited with stabilizing once-deteriorating neighborhoods and revitalizing Savannah's downtown commercial district.