Unitarian Universalist Church of Savannah, Savannah

Savannah has a rich history of Catholic, Baptist, Episcopal, and Anglican worship, but, for many years, had no church that liberal worshipers could call home. When a group of New Englanders migrated to Savannah to pursue the cotton trade, they found themselves without a religious base. Pooling their resources, they petitioned the city for a lot upon which to build a new church- the Unitarian Universalist Church of Savannah.

In 1834, the church itself was built and dedicated. Being a liberal worshiper was no small feat in the American south at the time, and the church saw more than its share of problems. There were two attempts to burn the building down in in the mid 1800s, and the church ran into serious financial problems. Finally, the Unitarian congregation was forced to sell their original building to a Baptist church.

Through the generosity of donors and sheer tenacity, the Unitarians were able to build the Eastman Church, after a bequest by Eliza M. Tuthill Eastman, widow of silversmith Moses Eastman. They lost the church after more financial difficulties, and freed slaves rolled it through the streets to Troup Square, where it sits today. For years, it was the first African Episcopal parish in Georgia, until the Unitarians were able to reclaim it in 1997.