| Chippewa Square | |
| Namesake: | Battle of Chippawa |
| Location: | Savannah, Georgia, U.S. |
| Maint: | City of Savannah |
| Coordinates: | 32.0758°N -81.0931°W |
| North: | Bull Street |
| South: | Bull Street |
| West: | West McDonough Street |
| East: | East McDonough Street |
Chippewa Square is one of the 22 squares of Savannah, Georgia, United States. It is located in the middle row of the city's five rows of squares, on Bull Street and McDonough Street, and was laid out in 1815. It is south of Wright Square, west of Colonial Park Cemetery, north of Madison Square and east of Orleans Square. The oldest building on the square is The Savannah Theatre, at 222 Bull Street, which dates to 1818.
The square is named in honor of American soldiers killed in the Battle of Chippawa during the War of 1812. (The "Chippewa" spelling is correct in reference to this square.)
In the center of the square is the James Oglethorpe Monument, created by sculptor Daniel Chester French and architect Henry Bacon and unveiled in 1910.[1] Oglethorpe faces south, toward Georgia's one-time enemy in Spanish Florida, and his sword is drawn.[2] Busts of Confederate figures Francis Stebbins Bartow and Lafayette McLaws were moved from Chippewa Square to Forsyth Park to make room for the Oglethorpe monument.[3] Due to the location of the monument, Savannahians sometimes refer to this as Oglethorpe Square, but that is located just to the northeast.[4]
The "park bench" scene which opens the 1994 film Forrest Gump was filmed on the north side of Chippewa Square.[5] The bench was a fiberglass prop, rather than one of the park's actual benches.[1] A replica of the prop bench used in the film is on display at the Savannah Visitors Center. The original prop is now kept in Paramount Studios, Los Angeles.[6]
Chippewa Square is also home to the First Baptist Church (1833),[7] the Independent Presbyterian Church and the Philbrick–Eastman House (1847).[8]
| Object | Image | Note | |
|---|---|---|---|
| James Oglethorpe Monument | James Oglethorpe Monument in the center of the square. | ||
| Historical marker | Historical marker for the monument, erected by the Georgia Historical Commission in 1957. | ||
| Historical marker | Historical marker for the square, laid in 1815. |
See also: Buildings in Savannah Historic District.
Each building below is in one of the eight blocks around the square composed of four residential "tything" blocks and four civic ("trust") blocks, now known as the Oglethorpe Plan. They are listed with construction years where known.