Remembering Savannah: A Hometown Trivia Hour

Shared by Mathew

A custom hometown trivia and reminiscence activity for a senior living community where 17 residents grew up in or around Savannah, Georgia. The activity is designed to spark shared memory among the Savannah residents while remaining warm and accessible to residents from elsewhere, who participate as listeners and contributors with their own hometown memories alongside. Runs 60 to 75 minutes. Combines facilitated trivia, group reminiscence, sensory elements, and a closing reflection. PRE-SESSION PREPARATION The facilitator should meet briefly with two or three of the Savannah residents in advance to gather any shared local touchstones (specific schools, churches, soda fountains, swimming spots, radio stations, teachers, neighborhood names) that can be woven into a personalized closing round. Everything else can be drawn from the city's well-documented public history below. ACTIVITY STRUCTURE OPENING (5 to 10 minutes) A warm welcome that names the occasion. Acknowledge openly that 17 residents in the community share a hometown, and that today's trivia is built around their city. Invite residents from elsewhere to share their own hometowns briefly so the room knows the day is about home stories, not just one city. TRIVIA ROUNDS (35 to 45 minutes) Six rounds of five questions each. Mix multiple choice and short answer. Each round should include questions of varying difficulty and provide an answer key. Generate questions from the following Savannah-specific categories: ROUND 1: Savannah's Beginnings Founded by General James Oglethorpe in 1733, Georgia's first city. The first 113 colonists arrived aboard the ship Anne. Welcomed by Yamacraw chief Tomochichi. Mary Musgrove served as interpreter between the colonists and the Native peoples. Savannah was the first planned city in America, with a grid of squares Oglethorpe laid out on a bluff above the Savannah River. Possible questions: In what year did General Oglethorpe found Savannah? What was the name of the ship that brought the first colonists from England? Which Yamacraw chief welcomed Oglethorpe? ROUND 2: The Squares and the Park Savannah's famous urban plan: 22 historic squares (originally 24), still anchoring the historic district today. Forsyth Park, completed in 1851, covers about 30 acres and features the iconic cast iron fountain installed in 1858. Chippewa Square holds the bench from Forrest Gump (the bench seen in the film was a prop; the location is the square). Monterey Square contains the Mercer-Williams House made famous by the book and film "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil." River Street's cobblestones came as ballast in the holds of European ships and were laid as paving when the ships unloaded their cargo. Possible questions: How many historic squares does Savannah have today? Which square is associated with the bench from Forrest Gump? In what year was the Forsyth Park fountain installed? ROUND 3: Famous Savannahians Juliette Gordon Low founded the Girl Scouts of America in Savannah in 1912. Johnny Mercer, born in Savannah in 1909, co-wrote the lyrics to Moon River (with Henry Mancini) and over a thousand other songs across his career. Flannery O'Connor was born in Savannah in 1925 and spent her childhood years on Charlton Street, across from Lafayette Square. Conrad Aiken, also born in Savannah, won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1930. Charles Coburn won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar in 1944 for "The More the Merrier." Possible questions: Who founded the Girl Scouts of America, and in what year? Which Savannah-born songwriter co-wrote the lyrics to Moon River? Which celebrated American novelist and short story writer was born in Savannah in 1925? ROUND 4: Landmarks and Beautiful Places The Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist, with its twin spires (current building completed in 1896). Bonaventure Cemetery, made famous by John Berendt's 1994 book. The Mercer-Williams House on Monterey Square, built in the 1860s by Johnny Mercer's great-grandfather. The Tybee Island Lighthouse, one of the oldest in America (the current structure dates to 1773 with later modifications). Wormsloe Plantation and its avenue of about 400 live oaks stretching more than a mile and a half. The Pirates' House restaurant, occupying buildings that date to 1753. Leopold's Ice Cream, founded in 1919. Possible questions: In what year did Leopold's Ice Cream open? What two prominent features distinguish the Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist? Approximately how long is the avenue of live oaks leading to Wormsloe? ROUND 5: The River, the Coast, and Local Life The Savannah River forms the border between Georgia and South Carolina. The Port of Savannah is one of the busiest container ports in the United States and was a leading cotton port in the nineteenth century. Tybee Island is Savannah's beach, about 18 miles east of downtown. Skidaway Island and Wilmington Island are nearby. The marshes, the live oaks, and the Spanish moss define the coastal Georgia landscape. Possible questions: What river forms the border between Georgia and South Carolina at Savannah? Which barrier island is known as Savannah's beach? Spanish moss is not actually moss; it is a member of which plant family? ROUND 6: Local Memories (personalized round) This round draws on the specific shared memories the facilitator gathered in pre-session interviews. Build five questions around the local touchstones the Savannah residents remember together: specific drugstores, soda fountains, ice cream