The Bonaventure Cemetery: Peace Among the Graves
Traveling through the south, On The Road Less Traveled, may sometimes lead us to familiar spaces. When traveling through Savannah, Ga., there are sights that shouldn’t be missed. There are horse and carriage tours of the city and the riverfront, the Mad Hatter, selling any kind of hat you could want, E Shaver Booksellers, complete with cats, and then there’s the Bonaventure Cemetery for those in the mood for history on the more macabre side.
Take a horse and carriage ride
Even the horses fall in love in this city
Take a riverboat cruise
Quite the romantic evening on the Georgia Queen or the Savannah River Queen
There’s more than books at E Shaver Booksellers
Buy a good book, stationery, or just pet one of the dozing felines
On The Road Less Traveled steered us into the historically registered cemetery on the eastern side of Savannah, overlooking the bluff to the Wilmington River. Bonaventure is one of the centerpieces of the 1997 movie Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, and is a sight second only to Mercer House, also featured in the film.
Mercer House circa 1860
Though no Mercer ever lived there, it is still owned by the family today
Based on a true story, it was directed by Clint Eastwood and features his daughter Alison opposite John Cusack as the author of the book of the same name by John Berendt. Great story, book, and movie.
Bonaventure Cemetery is owned by the city of Savannah but started life as the Bonaventure Plantation, a six-hundred-acre parcel including the private cemetery. The first burials were in 1850 when it was sold to Peter Wiltberger. It then became the Evergreen Cemetery Company until the city purchased the “plot” in 1907 and renamed it Bonaventure. There is now a Bonaventure Historical Society dedicated to the conservation and preservation of the special lands.
The dirt paths of Bonaventure
Six hundred acres of raw beauty and history situated on the Wilmington River
Today’s Bonaventure Cemetery is still available for burial and is popular with visitors due to the winding dirt roads and ghostly ancient oaks interspersed amongst the markers. A meander through the paths will showcase beautiful statuary, old and new. Some of the more notable interments include singer and producer Johnny Mercer, famous for hits such as Moon River, Skylark, and Baby It’s Cold Outside. Also occupying quarters in the historical yards are Photographer Jack Leigh, known for his image of the “Bird Girl,” Georgia’s first governor, Edward Telfair, and General Hugh Mercer, for whom Mercer House was built. As fate would have it, no Mercer ever actually lived in the mansion designed for them. It is still owned by the Mercer family but was owned briefly by antiques dealer Jim Williams. Williams bought Mercer house in 1969 and restored it to house his vast collection of antiques. After the suspicious death of his alleged lover, Danny Hansford, Williams went on trial four times and was acquitted, but died just eight months later from a sudden heart attack.
The crossroads
The signs are as worn as the pathways of this serene landscape
Bonaventure Cemetery is known for many of its iconic features, such as the artful headstones designed by sculptor Great Uncle John Walz, the decorative ironworks, detailed marble and granite statues, and the most iconic of all, the Bird Girl statue. Bird Girl was crafted in lead and bronze and was meant to be a garden emblem for artist Sylvia Shaw Judson’s family home. It was eventually purchased by the Trosdal family as a marker for their family plot in Bonaventure. With the success of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, “Little Wendy,” as she was called, was relocated to the Telfair Museum for her safety.
“Little Wendy” or “Bird Girl”
Commissioned for artist Sylvia Shaw Judson, it was purchased by the Trosdal family for their Bonaventure plot, she is now in the Telfair Museum
The statuary here provide an art gallery of images
The oldest grave dates back to 1802 and is of Harriett Tattnall, wife of one-time Georgia governor Josiah Tattnall
A stark but beautiful reality
Family plots include all generations and are common among the oaks
Bonaventure Cemetery is located at 330 Bonaventure Road, in Thunderbolt, GA, just outside Savannah. Take in the haunting views out to the bluff, but also take plenty of sunscreen, sturdy walking shoes, water, a good camera, and a watch. The cemetery is open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to when the gates promptly close at 5 p.m.
Don’t get locked in…
The welcome gates of Bonaventure
Just make sure you’re near them when they close…
