The Owens Thomas House and slave quarters is a historic home museum off Oglethorpe Square in historic Savannah. This English-Regency style home was designed by the English architect William Jay. Construction on the home began in 1816 and was completed in 1819. The house was purchased by George Welshman Owens, a local attorney and politician, in 1830 for $10,000. George Owens moved his wife Sarah, their six children, and a total of 14 slaves into the home. The house remained in their family until George Owens' granddaughter, Margaret Gray Thomas, gave the house to Telfair Museums in 1951, making it the first historical home museum in Savannah.
Visiting the Home
Visitors to the home are guided through one of the best examples of Regency architecture in America. The style of architecture is common to 19th-century buildings in Britain and is recognized by entryways with columns, iron gates, and tall windows. You will also tour the original slave quarters which were designed for the women, men, and children who took care of the home and of George Owens children. This tour will lead you through the lives of the powerful Owens family and of the enslaved people who worked to take care of the household, including their cook Diane, their nannies Emma and Kate, and an enslaved child named Franny.
Each tour lasts from 45 minutes to an hour and takes you through each room telling you the purpose of the room and who used it. The tour also shows you some of the homes exceptional features, including Savannah's earliest indoor plumbing system, an indoor bridge, and a balcony where Major General Marquis de Lafayette addressed a crowd in 1825.
The inside of the house is decorated with the family's collection of furniture and decorative arts from the English Regency period as well as early Savannah textiles, silver, porcelain, and 18th- and 19th-century artwork. There is also a courtyard with a small parterre garden.
Take a Tour of the Owens Thomas House
Tours are given daily at the house and start every 20 minutes. Tickets to the Owens Thomas House are $20 for adults and children 12 years and younger are free. Admission to the Owens Thomas House also includes a visit to the Telfair Academy or the Jepson Center and tickets are valid for one week.
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