The Eliza Thompson House

After Joseph's death in 1855, Eliza was left a widow to raise their children, five daughters and two sons. Being a strong, independent woman, Eliza did not turn Joseph's investments over to a banker or lawyer to manage, but managed them herself and kept her beautiful mansion on Jones Street. She loved to entertain and did so frequently in her courtyard. She usually had a staff of 5 to 7 servants.

The Main House was built in two stages. The original structure was built in 1847, with a second section, consisting of what is now the front parlor, the Chatham and the J. Stephens rooms added around 1870.

The front door, which is original to the house, was moved when the new addition was built. Additional changes included the front porch, which originally had columns flanking either side of the landing and a second set of stairs leading up to the front entrance. The Admiral Turner room was used as the front parlor originally, with the St. Julian room being used as the dining room. The bathroom in the Admiral Turner room is located where the original entrance to the home was. The bathroom in the St. Julian and the Lindsey rooms are located in the old rear staircase shaft. The closets in both of these rooms are in the old dumbwaiter shaft of the building. The Carter and Johnston rooms are both enclosed side porches that were screened in at one point. The Carter room, in fact, served as the waiting room for the doctor's office for most of the year, with the door being located where the front desk is now. The entryway into the hallway from the current foyer is one of the original window openings from the 1847 structure. Here you can see how thick the original walls of the home were.

The J. Stephens room became the master bedroom after the 1870 addition was completed and the Lee room served as a nursery. The R. Bruce and Lindsey rooms were the original bedrooms in the house. The female servants would have used what is now the Savannah and Telfair rooms as their sleeping quarters. The Oglethorpe room was the original kitchen for the property. The Chatham room was a summer sitting room and dining area used by all members of the household.

The original carriage house was about to fall apart in 1980 so the Widmans had it raised and built the current thirteen-room structure based on the French Quarter style of New Orleans. The back section of the current carriage house stands on the foundation for the original structure and is only about 5 1/2 inches taller than its predecessor. The top story was originally used for sleeping quarters for the one male indentured servant. The second floor housed a hayloft, granary, storage room and laundry and had a balcony made of wood. There were no openings on the ground floor into the courtyard; entry for the horse was from the lane only. Laundry was hung overhead between the two buildings and the courtyard was used for entertaining as well as a vegetable garden.

In 1995 an extensive renovation was done to the property, painting all the rooms in historically correct colors and refinishing room floors. A 40-foot container of antiques was brought back from England for the furnishings. HLC Hotels purchased the Eliza Thompson House in February 2002 and added it to its historic collection of Savannah Inns. Today, Eliza Thompson House maintains its place of honor on Jones Street, which Southern Living Magazine calls "the most beautiful street in Savannah."

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