The Savannah History Museum has so much potential. Savannah is the first city in Georgia, the first capital of Georgia, the first planned city in America, the site of Georgia's largest revolutionary war battle (Siege of Savannah), the terminus of General Sherman's Civil War March to the Sea, the birthplace of famous Americans like Juliette Gordon Low, Clarence Thomas, and Flannery O'Connor, the site of over 2500 historically significant properties, and is an American cultural staple (Forrest Gump, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, ghosts, etc.). Strangely enough, the museum instead chooses to lead with exhibits like "1920s dentistry," "wildlife of the barrier islands," and "steam locomotives." When patrons finally get to the Savannah exhibits, the confusion intensifies. The exhibit on Savannah in WWII predeceases the exhibit on Savannah in the Civil War, and Savannah's revolutionary war history is told out of order. Perhaps the worst curation atrocity is that the museum's most famous piece, the "Forrest Gump bench," is behind a glass case. Really? The whole point of museums is interacting with history, and something as sturdy and repairable as a steel bench is a perfect "interactive exhibit" piece. Imagine how much more museum goers would enjoy their experience if they could get their photo taken on Forrest Gump's bench (perhaps even with a wax Tom Hanks sitting on it too!). Forrest Gump was released in 1994 and that bench won't be worth more than the steel its made with in 40 years--no reason to keep it behind a glass case. America is teaming with museum curators desperate for employment. The average SCAD Museum Studies major would froth at the mouth for an opportunity to curate a history museum for such a storied city like Savannah. Please bring in a professional to renovate this museum and have it live up to its true potential. read more

Savannah History Museum - Battle of Savannah Exhibit - Museums Near Me - Savannah, Georgia

While a nice little museum, i was hoping/expecting more, especially for something titled the "Savannah History Museum." Most exhibits contain basic factoids with a few "lesser known" facts sprinkled in. If you're looking for something to do that won't take up much of your day (this would be a perfect stop to get out of the rain or heat) this is a great place to stop. Pricing is relatively cheap as far as museums go and they offer discounted tickets for other museums/tours affiliated with them if you're looking to do more than just the museum. Parking is on site and super cheap! read more

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What a great museum! To truly understand the history of Savannah and the progression it made over the decade. Great presentation on the city. I also love that it's at the visitor center. What a beautiful building. read more

Savannah History Museum - Museums Near Me - Savannah, Georgia

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This museum is located at the Savannah visitor center. I was told it had Forrest Gump's bench from the movie inside and some other interesting historical pieces. The cost was $12 and unfortunately it was not really worth the price. I know $12 isn't too much, but it felt like a lot for what was here. The Forrest Gump is a replica that is behind a "fence". There were other pieces that were also just replicas. I did enjoy the Juliette Gordon Low exhibit and the jazz exhibit. If you have extra time and don't mind the price, it's not bad. read more

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Novel museum ! They have the actual bench from the Forest Gump movie. Also, they have a great section on Julia Gordon Lowe. You can cover the museum in about 45 minutes to an hour. Great local history information. read more

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Waste of money . Can't even sit on the replica forest gump bench. Most of the exhibits you can see other places. I think it was $12 a person maybe it's worth $5 read more

Savannah History Museum - Museums Near Me - Savannah, Georgia

Excellent experience. Housed inside this historic mansion are beautiful ship models that span over 200 years. Many of them have cross sections and are built to the same scale. Recommended read more

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It was a good overview of the area and had lots of history of the local area. Reading material provided a good detail of the area. If you go on the tours you will get some of the same details. read more

Excellent for holidays! Wonderful pictures, easy to learn history. We enjoyed each exhibition.

This has been on my list of things to do in Savannah for a while. We finally made it to see the Forest Gump Bench. There is also some good local history and artifacts here. The tickets were $9. Pretty reasonable to keep it running. It's located inside the same building as the visitor center. read more

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I'm usually a big fan history and of museums, but not the Savannah History Museum. None of the exhibits seem to be in any order or fit together in any sequence or pattern I could determine or make sense of. There's an old locomotive, an antique dental office, three uniformed soldier mannequins being one French, one of the Georgia Militia, and one of the 2nd South Carolina Regiment, and then a weaving loom. It all just doesn't seem to connect. As it is in the back area of the Visitors Center, it might be worth seeing if you happen to stop in at the center, otherwise I wouldn't recommend going out of your way to see it. read more

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Really disappointed in the museum. There was more gift shop than museum. There was no flow/rhythm to the exhibitions (chronologically out of order, random exhibits about dentistry and hats) and the museum acted as though slavery and the civil war didn't happen. It would have been much more appreciated to see the museum engage with and more seriously consider Savannah's past, including the more challenging parts. Overall it felt a bit slapped together like an end of semester middle school history class project. Would not recommend. read more

Highly recommend this museum if you want to learn more about Savannah's history!!! Make sure you go with the guide!! I can't remember his name but it was so interactive and he shared so much with our group!!! He kept us engaged and interested!!! You can also walk around the museum on your own, but the guide was definitely more informative!! read more

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This was one of the most fun museums to go to to begin our experience of Savannah. My two boys love the history and all the information. After several hours, I was dying to get out, but they kept me there. What can I say? They love history. It is worth coming to to get a good taste of what Savannah offers. read more

Nice little museum, but what really made the experience was the Loyalist and Liberty tour. The guide did a great job of re-creating the battle in Savannah and was informative and funny. This made the visit, so if you're going, try to time it on the weekends to see this presentation which is included and starts within the museum. read more

In the interest of full disclosure, the ONLY reason me and my nephew went here was to see the Forrest Gump bench. We were HOPING to go sit on it in the park with a box of chocolates, but as it turns out, too many tourists were trying to steal it, which is why it ended up the museum. Thanks a lot, you clearly bad thieves. Because of you, I had to PAY to go see it. But only $7. If you have to decide between this and the Georgia State Railroad Museum, pick this. The discounted bundle they talk you into for both museums only saves you $.95/ticket. Hours Mon.-Fri. 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Sat & Sun 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Admission: $7 per adult $4 per child (ages 2-12) read more

Savannah History Museum - Forrest Gump bench. - Museums Near Me - Savannah, Georgia

I was so excited about seeing this museum, but "disappointed" doesn't begin to adequately describe my reaction after visiting. How could this space--so central to visitors' experience of this historic city--whitewash its history to this extent? I didn't take notes, but I will visit again for just that purpose. My feeling upon leaving was that i was in a time-warp, and had just experienced a presentation from mid-century. Not even in one exhibit did slavery and its crimes and victims figure prominently. There was one exhibit where it was stated that there weren't many people living in the environs before 1500. Surely The Coastal Heritage Society can do better: as it stands, the museum as a whole is remiss in its mission. In glossing over slavery--both in terms of its perpetrators and the effect on its victims and their progeny--the museum is failing in telling a story that is desperately needed if we are ever to acquire our goal of being a country that is equitable for all its citizens. read more

Wanted to see some Savannah history after taking the trolley tour and wanted to see Forest Gumps bench. $10 will get you in from 9-4. Interesting display and a soldier guide gives you a great history lesson then took us outside and actually had us March and hold a pretend wood rifle and let us practice like it was the real thing. Great gift shop here too! read more

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My 9 year old son and I were visiting Savannah for a few days. We visited this museum that is located in the visitor center. My son loved the scavenger hunt, and that really got him excited about the exhibits. Our admission fee was good for 3 days which was great as we were able to return and experience the Loyalists and Liberty tour. The tour included musket firing, but we also gained a wealth of information about an important battle on Savannah's soil. read more

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Staffing needs updated and would have been a better visit if there had been more friendly faces. Was worth the $9 fee for the Forest Gump bench alone but that was about it. read more

The history museum is small but it is still charming and interesting. You can see everything in under an hour. It is very child friendly and my son loves going here. They have a annual "Night in the Museum" event which is wonderful and geared to families. It is in the same building as the Savannah Visitors center and the Whistle Stop Cafe. It is also across the street from the Roundhouse Railroad Museum and the Savannah Children's Museum. We buy a yearly pass that gets us into the Roundhouse, Children's Museum, History Museum, and Fort Jackson every year and it is well worth the money. read more

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If you are interested in experiencing the most bland account of civil war events then go here. When the gift shop is THE best part of a museum experience then there isn't much more to say. This is also where the Savannah visitors information center is and also the place where you catch some of the trolley tours. Price was $5 per ticket and $2 per hour for parking. I did learn a few new facts about Savannah's civil war history but not enough to be even slightly impressed. read more

Hello. The bench Forrest Gump sat on is here. Ok, there's more, like women's fashions (how did they breathe in corsets?), guns, carriages, old spoons and whatnot. The place is housed in an old railway station and there's also a restaurant inside an old railway car. I never ate there. The only eating I did was at a private function when I was admitted to Phi Alpha Theta. (That's not a sorority, for those of you whose eyes glaze over at the mention of history). We grazed the cheese trays, wandered the museum and tried to look attentive while socializing with our professors. The artifacts are cool, the museum itself is standard, not really outstanding in any way except that they have FORREST GUMP'S BENCH. That alone is worth the $4 to get in, don't you think? read more

Savannah History Museum - Forrest Gump's Bench - Museums Near Me - Savannah, Georgia

This was our first hop off on our trolley tour. It was $7 per ticket. They also have a combo ticket for $17 where you can visit 3 different sites, but pay attention because some of the sites have limited days of operation. Most of the exhibit here was about military and war history. The rotating exhibit was about Juliette "Daisy" Gordon Low, the founder of the Girl Scouts and a small section about knitting. Overall the ticket counter attendant was friendly and the museum is a good way to spend an hour out of the rain! read more

Whenever I travel, I love learning the history about where I am and Savannah is jam packed with history. This place can be a little hard to find because it is in a city building but the museum was great! Very interesting and informative. read more

As a visitor to Savannah-I was expecting a pretty informative museum and visitors center. The visitors center was pretty good and the bathrooms were actually really clean and nice. Walking over to the museum I was pretty exited and then major fail. The museum is held in a room and had a few exhibits but reminded me of the country fair. It looks like it has potential but just didn't quite get there. There is also the whistle stop cafe at the back end with a real train car that seemed pretty good. If we had more time we probably would have gone for lunch. TIP: at the end of the day, getting out of the parking lot is a mess and it took us 45 minutes due to a back up! read more

Savannah History Museum - 45 minute delay - Museums Near Me - Savannah, Georgia

Being a lifelong railfan, but only having a morning off on my tour of Savannah, I elected to go only to the Georgia State Railroad Museum. Fortunately, the cashier/host sold me on attending the Revolutionary Reenactment with (I believe) Mr. Aaron Bradford. (I did spend about 20 minutes at the very enjoyable old railroad shops site). I came to the South, in part, to learn and see the Revolutionary and Civil War eras' history. I thought the cashier was exaggerating when he called Mr. Bradford, "the best Revolutionary War Reenactor on the East Coast!" The cashier was right! Mr. Bradford took our group back in time to feel what it was like during that period, to be a regular soldier in the Continental Army and the deadly Battle of Savannah. It was a highlight of my visit to Savannah. read more

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I'll be honest I'm not a huge fan of museums, but this one was enjoyable and educational. I learned a lot about Savannah's history including the start of the city and the war. When you come into the building it was a little difficult to figure out where to get to the museum vs the tourist center. Also then they send you back to the front to watch a movie. Not a huge deal but it's a little awkward. read more

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Pretty terrible museum with no order to the exhibitions. Also they seemed to miss out a lot about the civil war and any reference to slavery, which i understand is a huge part of Savannah's history. Pretty shocking that they are burying this part of their past. read more

This was a welcomed respite from the heat. My daughter got a scavenger hunt to complete throughout the museum, which she enjoyed. She got a small prize at the end. This is not a big museum, but worth the price. Interesting and informative displays gave a good overview of the history of Savannah. read more

I think I was a bigger fan of the bus tours of historic Savannah, instead of the museum. I kind of prefer to have someone that is giving me a play by play of where I am and what I'm seeing. This was fine, but it felt like the most important part was the gift shop and it really had a dirty, under construction feel, even though I don't think they were really doing much inside. The men's restrooms were the most disgusting restrooms I've ever seen in my life and I would opt for portable restrooms over using what they had to offer. This stop was only because out tour bus stopped here. I wouldn't recommend this as 'must see' Savannah. read more

A welcome surprise was the guided tour at 2:30 where we headed outside and became the militia for the Battle Of Savannah. The passionate and friendly tour guide was amazing. Recommend to anyone who likes to get their learn on! Congress and Liberty!! read more

The museum is not set up in any sort of chronological order. They just threw exhibits together and many items are not labeled or explained. I also noticed spelling and grammar errors in the placards. The actual pieces in the collection are minimal. They try to make up for this by having more placards but they are small and printed on what appeared to be regular copy paper. They also have cheesy, dated mannequins on display. The part that was most well done was the Girl Scouts section--it looked like it was done by a professional curator rather than an amateur like the rest of the museum. read more

You can do this in just over an hour. Some well written storyboards. The Baldwin Locomotive was the centerpiece and informative. Great paid parking next door. The only negative was there isn't a AAA discount. read more

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I've been to Savannah many times and never knew this museum even existed. So glad we decided to stop in. As we were about to purchase our tickets, a drummer came through asking for "recruits" to join the Patriot cause. We quickly got tickets and we able to join in on a reenactment of the 1779 attack. Our group charged the hill with flags and bayonets. Even though it was cold, old and young had a blast! The tour guide was awesome and really made history come alive for all involved. We then went through the museum. Although I do agree that the flow of it is off, it has lots of variety and was very educational!! They are currently working on getting a grant to make improvements so we will def visit again to see what's been added. read more

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Came in to check out the museum and even tho we were late, we got to join a guided tour. It was EPIC! We reenacted the attack on Spring Hill in 1779 with flags and fake bayonets outside, charged the hill & everything. The tour guide was very passionate and cast vision for Independence Day, he really believed it! The museum has lots of variety and needs support so we'd definitely come back. Super cool! read more

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To top off a fantastic trip to Savannah, GA, we headed to the Savannah History Museum to get a quick history lesson. Little did we know that the experience would be the highlight of our trip. We found ourselves transported back in time by a marvelous reenactment of the Siege of Savannah. Mr. Aaron Bradford led us through an interactive rendition of the battle. His enthusiastic stewardship left us with a fantastic memory and great appreciation for the event. Very family friendly and would recommend to visitors of all ages! read more

This museum has a lot of potential, but needs to take it to the next level. We arrived at 8:30AM when it was supposed to be open only to find the gate open, the ticket meter for the parking lot to be off, and the front door locked. We patiently waited outside of the entrance for a couple of minutes, watching a woman knock on the door for a good five minutes before they opened. The woman at the ticket desk was a little befuddled, getting all flustered when I asked about AAA and later asking me for a white ticket for the orientation video she never gave me when she was the one who rang me up. The museum itself is a pretty decent overview though of the development of Savannah over time. The orientation video is decent enough and the exhibits trace the history of the city from its colonization through the 20th century. I'm particularly a Revolutionary War history "buff" and it was great that they gave so much attention to that time period, which is often lost in the South in favor of talking about the "late unpleasantness". While they only talked about the 1779 siege while ignoring the 1778 capture of the city, there were good displays, reproduction uniforms, and even a reconstruction of the Spring Hill Redoubt across the street. Compare this to Charleston which repulsed a British fleet in 1776 and a major siege in 1780, but the majority of the history pushed is related to the Civil War. While the exhibits give an adequate telling of Savannah's history, it seems like they did the best they could with the funding they had. For instance, there was an exhibit sign where a typo seems to have been made and it was crossed out and corrected with ball point pen by hand. There are visitor services on the premises, but one thing I found lacking in Savannah was a good comprehensive explanation of what's available to see and do. For instance, a consolidated list of what historic homes are available to tour would be nice...maybe there was one, but I didn't see it. I also would have liked to have seen less Paula Deen in the gift shops and more books on the history and culture of the city. It's a good way to get started on a visit to Savannah, get your bearings, and gather some information, but they need to get their act together a little bit more and continue to build on the foundation they started. One last hint...if you decide to take one of the bus/trolley tours, don't park at the museum. Only the first hour is free and all of the tours seemed to have free offsite parking for their patrons near the museum. read more

Very small! Not worthy the money at all. Things are oddly placed, barely anything is original, and most things have no description. I love museums but this was just a huge disappointment. Barely any history actually there. Most things we read about can easily be found on the internet. read more

Small museum but still you get see a lot history here. They even have the bench they used in the Forrest Gump movie. One thing that did suck is they didn't offer a military discount like most museums do. read more