A History of the House
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In 1818, Savannah Mayor James Moore Wayne (1790-1867) purchased a double house lot on the northeast corner of Bull and South Broad streets. The architect for the English Regency townhouse is unknown. The house constructed for Wayne, at a cost of $6500, consisted of a two-story, double town house over a raised basement. A double house has a center hall flanked by rooms on both sides, instead of the two rooms and side hall of a single house. Houses of this type were frequently contractor built from plan books without benefit of architects on site.
Many single and double houses built in Savannah from the 1780s through the 1870s share a basic floor plan that differs only in details such as fireplaces, cornices etc., are referred to locally as "Savannah boxes." This simple, practical floor plan was expanded and transformed through choices of building materials, architectural details, and millwork, into a Regency townhouse of imposing proportions. The overall four-square quality of the floor plan, given a Regency veneer by the addition of the two curved bays at the rear of the house and the clever use of decorative elements resulted in a surprisingly sophisticated house.
The exterior was faced with stucco scored to simulate costlier stone blocks. Recessed elliptical arches around the second floor windows gave interest to the two street facades. These shallow arches created the illusion of an elegant arched second story without the expense of true arched windows. This detail was not used on the garden side and the rear of the house where the luxury would be wasted on family and servants.
