Nathanael Greene Monument
Beneath the monument in this Square repose the remains of Maj. Gen.
Nathanael Greene, of Rhode Island, who died near Savannah on June
19, 1786, at Mulberry Grove Plantation which had been granted to
him by this State in appreciation of his services in the Revolution.
The 50 foot, white marble obelisk, designed by the well-known
architect, William Strickland, was completed i 1830. The original
cornerstone was laid here on March 21, 1825, by Greene's old friend,
the Marquis de Lafayette. At the dedicatory ceremony General
Lafayette said:
"The great and good man to whose memory we are paying a tribute
of respect, affection, and regret, has acted in our revolutionary
contest a part so glorious and so important that in the very name
of Greene are remembered, all the virtues and talents which can
illustrate the patriot, the statesman, and the military leader..."
General Greene's remains were originally interred in the burial
ground now known as Colonial Cemetery. His exact resting place was
a matter of doubt and speculation for many years. The remains of the
famed Revolutionary hero were found in the Graham vault in 1901,
and were reinterred beneath this monument the following year.
