10 East Oglethorpe Avenue (also known as the Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace and the Wayne–Gordon House) is a home in Savannah, Georgia, United States. Located on East Oglethorpe Avenue, it was built in 1820 and is part of the Savannah Historic District and of the Juliette Gordon Low Historic District.[1] Juliette Gordon Low, the founder of the Girl Scouts of the USA, was born in the home in 1860.[2] The house was Savannah's first registered National Historic Landmark.
| 10 East Oglethorpe Avenue | |
|---|---|
 Pictured in 2019 | |
 | |
| Alternative names | Wayne–Gordon House |
| General information | |
| Location | Savannah, Georgia, U.S. |
| Address | 10 East Oglethorpe Avenue |
| Coordinates | 32°04′38″N 81°05′33″W / 32.0771°N 81.0924°W |
| Completed | 1820 |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 3 |
History
editThe home was built for James Moore Wayne, then-mayor of Savannah.[3][4] In 1831, Wayne sold the house to his niece, Sarah Stites Gordon, and her husband William Washington Gordon, the first of four generations of Gordons to live in the house.[4][5] Sarah and William Gordon were Low's paternal grandparents.[4][6]
Low's parents, Eleanor Kinzie and William Washington Gordon II, purchased the house after the death of her grandparents and made significant changes to the house in 1886, including adding a third storey.[4] Low lived there until she married William Mackay Low in 1886 and moved to the United Kingdom in 1887, although she visited her parents in Savannah every year.[4]
The Girl Scouts of the USA purchased the Wayne–Gordon House from the Low family in 1953 and began an extensive renovation of the dilapidated building.[7] In 1956, Savannah landscape architect Clermont Huger Lee created a courtyard and garden design for the site in the style of a Victorian parterre garden.[4][7][8] Opened in 1956 as a historic house museum, the home features many original Gordon family furnishings, including art by Low. The museum interprets Low's life and the history of the Girl Scouts.[4]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Historic Building Map: Savannah Historic District – Historic Preservation Department of the Chatham County-Savannah Metropolitan Planning Commission (November 17, 2011)
- ^ Historic American Buildings Survey. "Wayne-Gordon House, 10 East Oglethorpe Avenue, Savannah, Chatham County, GA". Library of Congress. Retrieved 2023-09-19.
- ^ "About the House | Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace". www.juliettegordonlowbirthplace.org. Retrieved 2023-09-19.
- ^ a b c d e f g Gerdes, Marti; Blythe, Robert W.; Henry, Patty (March 21, 2005). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Juliette Gordon Low Historic District (Revised Documentation) / (1) Wayne-Gordon House (also known as the Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace), (2) First Girl Scout Headquarters (Andrew Low Carriage House), (3) Andrew Low House, National Park Service". National Archive. p. 2. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
- ^ Historic American Buildings Survey. "Wayne-Gordon House, 10 East Oglethorpe Avenue, Savannah, Chatham County, GA". Library of Congress. Retrieved 2023-09-19.
- ^ "About the House | Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace". www.juliettegordonlowbirthplace.org. Retrieved 2023-09-19.
- ^ a b "About the House | Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace". www.juliettegordonlowbirthplace.org. Retrieved 2023-09-19.
- ^ Historic American Landscapes Survey. "Juliette Gordon Low Birthplace, Garden, 10 East Oglethorpe Avenue, Savannah, Chatham County, GA". Library of Congress. Retrieved 2023-09-19.