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Among those resting for eternity in Savannah GA’s beautiful Bonaventure Cemetery is a little girl named Gracie Watson. Gracie was a beloved fixture at the Pulaski House during the late 1800s. She passed away at age six, just two days before Easter in 1889. Her grave marker is one of the more visited spots in Bonaventure. Visitors marvel at the life-like sculpture commissioned by her father. Little Grace is also rumored to still be seen playing in Johnson Square in downtown Savannah. Grab a tissue for this latest episode of Stories, Secrets and Sagas.
EPISODE TRANSCRIPT
Sometimes with almost the blink of an eye life can change abruptly. A once happy family, prosperous in business, can end up destitute and heartbroken with loss. This story -- one of a little girl living in Savannah, Georgia during the 1800s fits that scenario. Come with me, back in time to learn her story.
As the calendar of time slips back through the years, back to a time before automobiles, airplanes and telephones, back to a world of carriages and buggies, sailing ships and the date of July 10th, 1883 when a little girl named Gracie Watson was born in Savannah, Georgia.
Gracie was born the only child of W.J. and Frances Watson, a very happy couple who managed the well-known Pulaski House. The inn was popular, but even more popular amongst the guests was endearing little Gracie. Legend has it that she was the unofficial greeter at the hotel, and I can only imagine this little angel laughing with joy as she played in and around the inn.
Up until the 20th Century, the childhood mortality rate was very high. There were no vaccines or antibiotics, and sadly, in the early spring of 1889, Gracie became sick. What probably started as a bad cold got continually worse. Eventually, it became full-blown pneumonia. The doctor was called, and I am sure he tried everything in his power, but there was nothing to do but pray she would survive.
Sadly, just two days before Easter in 1889, Gracie passed. Having a daughter of my own, I cannot imagine the trauma and sorrow this must have caused her parents. I am sure they were devastated.
To help immortalize the tragic loss her father hired a well-known sculptor to create a life-sized, visually accurate grave marker of Gracie in Bonaventure Cemetery. Today the beautiful memorial sits quietly, frozen in time, a time when Gracie was alive and all was good for the Watson family. Adding even more to an already sad story, Gracie’s father eventually quit his job at the Pulaski Hotel. It could have been from the constant reminders of his little girl playing in the hotel or maybe he just needed a change, but whatever the case, he and Frances left Savannah for their original home in New England and never returned.
Gracie is all alone here, and it has been said that on some quiet evenings around Johnson Square in downtown Savannah, a spirit of a little girl can be seen walking around and playing in the square. In her mind, the hotel and her parents are still there. In her mind, she is probably looking for new guests to greet, but she waits, caught between time for those who will never come. We’ll see you next time on Stories, Secrets and Sagas.
LOCATION
www.bonaventurehistorical.org/
Bonaventure Cemetery
330 Bonaventure Road
Thunderbolt, GA 31404
Latitude: 32.045373
Longitude: -81.051114