Hutchinson Island, Georgia
| Hutchinson Island, Georgia | |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| State | Georgia |
| County | Chatham County |
Hutchinson Island is a river island in the Savannah River, north of downtown Savannah in Chatham County, Georgia, United States. The island is formed where the Back River breaks off to the north from the Savannah River. Historically, Hutchinson Island's land use has been primarily industrial, much of which supported the Port of Savannah, one of the busiest containerization cargo ports in the world. The island is roughly 7 miles (11 kilometres) long and 1 mile (1.6 kilometres) wide at its widest point.
Hutchinson Island also played a major role in the capture of Savannah during the American Civil War. After capturing Atlanta, Union Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman turned his army east and south, toward the Atlantic Ocean, and arrived in Savannah in December 1864. Rather than destroying Savannah, Sherman elected to demand the city's surrender. Confederate Gen. William J. Hardee led his troops, under cover of darkness, across the Savannah River on a makeshift pontoon bridge, across Hutchinson Island and into the South Carolina wilderness.
On the Back River, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers formerly maintained a tidal control system that slowed the natural filling-in of the main river's shipping channel. The tide gate was abandoned after studies showed that it had increased saltwater intrusion into the upriver freshwater Savannah National Wildlife Refuge.
Totaling approximately 2,000 acres (8.1 km2), Hutchinson Island was targeted as the site for a public-private partnership to build a convention center and hotel. Chatham County voters approved spending $63 million in public special-purpose local-option sales tax money for the trade center and $10 million for the road system on the island. The Savannah International Trade and Convention Center and the Westin Savannah Harbor Resort were built. In addition, the state of Georgia provided $18 million, and former land owner CSX railroad donated 25 acres (100,000 m2) for the public trade center.
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