For more than fifty years, the boys of summer on the eastside gathered at the Savannah Gardens Baseball Diamond. The sports complex near the intersection of Pennsylvania Avenue and Elgin Street was a facility for the Savannah Gardens housing development but it was also used by the city recreation department as well as Pennsylvania Avenue School for a playground.
The recreation department sponsored baseball league play at the diamond shortly after World War II and, by the early 1950s, the Little League organization affiliated with the city. Savannah Gardens emerged as a Little League powerhouse owing to the combined efforts of parents, coaches, and sponsors. Edward E. Lennon Sr. of Pine Gardens was the godfather of youth baseball during the 1970s, from running the concession stand to picking up boys to take them to the game. He actively recruited players from East Savannah to integrate the white teams from Savannah Gardens.
The Savannah Gardens administration building and sports complex were demolished to make way for the new Savannah High School. The $21 million structure built on the site carried on the name and traditions of its predecessor on Washington Avenue. The new school opened its doors in 1998 and welcomed students to a learning environment enhanced with state-of-the-art technology.
The hopes invested in the new school have, as yet, been unfulfilled. From 2004 to 2009, Savannah High School failed to achieve “adequate yearly progress,” as defined by the No Child Left Behind Act, and fell into the category of “needs improvement.” However, a reorganization that divided the high school into the School of Liberal Arts and the School of Law and Criminal Justice appears to be a promising step for the future of Savannah High School.
Savannah Gardens Diamond
Courtesy of Patricia Jenkins.
On a summer afternoon at Savannah Gardens, both ball fields were in use. In the background, homes at Savannah Gardens are clearly visible.
International A’s
Courtesy of Patricia Jenkins.
The International A’s, a Little League team for thirteen- and fourteen-year-olds, played at the Savannah Gardens diamond during the 1970s.
At bat
Courtesy of Patricia Jenkins.
The team sponsored by Dial Finance is at bat in a game against the Sam Finley A’s at the Savannah Gardens diamond. In one eight year span in the 1970s, the A’s, representing the Sam Finley Construction Company, had six conference championships to its credit as well as city championships.
Cheerleaders
Courtesy of Patricia Jenkins.
The International A’s Club that was so identified with baseball at Savannah Gardens increased their impact by promoting football and cheerleading in the 1970s. The eastside girls who cheered on the Cowboys football team earned recognition on their own merit. In 1980, the girls won the City of Savannah cheerleading competition at Grayson Stadium.
Savannah High School
Photograph by Geoff L. Johnson.
Courtesy of the City of Savannah Cultural Affairs Department.
In addition to the demolition of the sports complex, roughly half of the housing at Savannah Gardens was razed to open a site of almost sixty acres for the new high school. The design of the imposing Savannah High School included red brick and white columns to echo the exterior of the Washington Avenue school.
Dr. Toney Jordan
Courtesy of the Savannah Morning News.
Dr. Toney Jordan, principal of the School of Liberal Arts, balances strict enforcement of the rules with encouragement for students. Here Dr. Jordan reminds a student to tuck in his shirttail during one of his routine walks through the halls of Savannah High School.
