Editing Tybee Island, Georgia (section)

==History==

[[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]], using dugout canoes to navigate the waterways, hunted and camped in Georgia's coastal islands for thousands of years. The [[Yuchi|Euchee]] tribe likely inhabited the island in the years preceding the arrival of the first Spanish explorers in the area in the 16th century. ''Tybee'' is the Euchee word for "salt".

In 1520, the Spanish laid claim to what is now Tybee Island and named it ''Los Bajos''. It was at the northern end of the [[Guale]] missionary province of [[Spanish Florida]]. During that time the island was frequented by [[pirate]]s who used the island to hide from those who pursued them. Pirates later used the island's inland waterways for a fresh water source. After the founding of [[South Carolina]] in 1670, warfare increased between the English and their pirate allies and the Spanish and their Native American allies. In 1702, [[James Moore Sr.|James Moore]] of South Carolina led an invasion of Spanish Florida with an Indian army and a fleet of militia-manned ships. The invasion failed to take the capital of Florida, [[St. Augustine, Florida|St. Augustine]], but did destroy the Guale and [[Mocama]] missionary provinces. After another invasion of Spanish Florida by South Carolina in 1704, the Spanish retreated to St. Augustine and [[Pensacola, Florida|Pensacola]]; the [[Sea Islands]] were depopulated, allowing the establishment of new English settlements such as the [[Province of Georgia|colony of Georgia]].

===Lighthouse===
[[File:Historic Tybee Island (GA) Light Station July 2012 (7803503984).jpg|thumb|upright|Tybee Island Light Station]]
{{main|Tybee Island Light Station}}

Tybee Island's strategic position near the mouth of the [[Savannah River]] has made the island's northern tip the ideal location for a lighthouse since Georgia's early settlement period. First built in 1736, the lighthouse was made of [[brick]] and [[wood]], and stood {{convert|90|ft|m}} tall, making it the highest structure in America at that time. The original lighthouse has been replaced several times. The second lighthouse was built in 1742 when [[beach erosion]] threatened the first. Part of the third lighthouse at the site, built in 1773, still stands as the bottom {{convert|60|ft|m}} of the present lighthouse. The top {{convert|94|ft|m}} of the current lighthouse were added in 1867.<ref>"[http://www.cityoftybee.org/Assets/Files/BeachTaskForce/Beachplan.pdf Tybee Island Beach Management Plan] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120305011744/http://www.cityoftybee.org/Assets/Files/BeachTaskForce/Beachplan.pdf |date=2012-03-05 }}."  Page 3.  Retrieved: September 9, 2008.</ref>

Today, the Tybee Lighthouse is a popular tourist destination, having all of its support buildings on the {{convert|5|acre|m2|adj=on}} site historically preserved. The current black-and-white tower markings are a reversion to its fourth day mark, first used in 1916. The Tybee Island Light Station is one of just a handful of 18th-century lighthouses still in operation in North America.

===Civil War===
[[Image:FortPulaskiMap.jpg|thumb|upright=1.25|[[Robert K. Sneden]] map showing Union batteries on Tybee Island]] {{Main|Battle of Fort Pulaski}}

During the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], the [[Union Army]] placed siege batteries along the north coast of Tybee Island that aided in their successful bombardment and capture of [[Fort Pulaski]] on April 10–11, 1862. This was the first significant use of [[rifled]] [[cannon]]s against [[masonry]] [[fortification]]s and demonstrated that masonry fortifications were obsolete. Recently, the City of Tybee Island has taken action to commemorate Tybee's historic significance in the Civil War. In 2005, the city obtained a federal grant to acquire two tracts of land where Union soldiers launched their attack against Fort Pulaski.<ref>Mary Landers, [http://old.savannahnow.com/stories/071405/3161550.shtml City wants to buy two Civil War battery sites].  Retrieved: January 22, 2009.</ref>

===Fort Screven historic district===

Fort Screven was first commissioned in 1898<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |url=https://www.cityoftybee.org/DocumentCenter/View/1036/Tybee-Island-Phase-II-report-final_confirmed-by-HPD-7-28-17?bidId= |title=CITY OF TYBEE ISLANDHISTORIC RESOURCES SURVEYPHASE II |last=Quatrefoil Consulting |date=June 2017 |website=City of Tybee |access-date=February 16, 2020 |archive-date=September 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200929041308/https://cityoftybee.org/DocumentCenter/View/1036/Tybee-Island-Phase-II-report-final_confirmed-by-HPD-7-28-17?bidId= |url-status=live }}</ref> and named for Brigadier General James Screven, a [[American Revolutionary War|Revolutionary War]] hero killed in action near [[Midway, Georgia]], in 1778. The fort served as a valuable part of coastal defense until it was decommissioned in 1947. Fort Screven is most notable for one of its former commanding officers, [[General of the Army (United States)|General of the Army]] [[George C. Marshall]], later the architect of the [[Marshall Plan]] that helped rebuild Western Europe after [[World War II]]. Approximately 70 fort buildings still remain. The entire Fort Screven district was placed on the National Historic Register in 1982. One of the most important remaining structures is the [[Tybee Post Theater]], constructed in 1930. It was one of Georgia's first theaters to have sound features and was the highlight of the fort's recreational activities. Other remaining buildings include the recently restored guard house, the bakery (now a private home), and barracks (now apartments). The ruins of the beach fortifications are also extant, and of the six original batteries, Battery Garland (built in 1899) is accessible to the public. Battery Garland houses the Tybee Museum. Another remaining area is Officer's Row, a group of original homes with a sweeping ocean view, one of which is now a [[bed and breakfast]].

===Resort period===

During the late 19th century, at the height of the [[Industrial Revolution]], residents in large, polluted cities frequently sought out remote beaches for summertime getaways. Clear, saltwater breezes were thought to be remedies for numerous ailments, including [[asthma]] and certain [[allergy|allergies]].<ref>Adrienn Mendonca, "[http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/ArticlePrintable.jsp?id=h-2967 Tybee Island] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021111844/http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/ArticlePrintable.jsp?id=h-2967 |date=October 21, 2012 }}."  ''New Georgia Encyclopedia''.  Retrieved: July 9, 2011.</ref> Steamships began carrying patients and tourists to Tybee Island just after the Civil War.<ref name=mgmtplan /> In 1887, the [[Central of Georgia Railway]] completed a [[Tybee Railroad|rail line to Tybee Island]] from downtown Savannah, opening the island to waves of summertime visitors.<ref name=mgmtplan /> The railroad built the Tybrisa Pavilion in 1891, and by the end of the decade, several hundred summer cottages dotted the island's Atlantic coast.<ref name=mgmtplan>"[http://www.cityoftybee.org/Assets/Files/BeachTaskForce/Beachplan.pdf Tybee Island Beach Management Plan] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120305011744/http://www.cityoftybee.org/Assets/Files/BeachTaskForce/Beachplan.pdf |date=2012-03-05 }}."  Retrieved: September 9, 2008.</ref>

In the 1920s, [[U.S. Route 80]] was completed, connecting Tybee Island via road with the mainland. The Tybrisa Pavilion became a popular stop for [[big band]] tours and performers included [[Bing Crosby]], [[Tommy Dorsey]], and [[Blue Steele]]. The pavilion also housed a bowling alley and roller skating rink.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tybee Pier and Pavillion[sic] |url=https://www.filmsavannah.org/locations/location-highlights/tybee-pier-and-pavillion/ |access-date=September 13, 2023 |website=Film Savannah |language=en-US |archive-date=November 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231103071939/https://www.filmsavannah.org/locations/location-highlights/tybee-pier-and-pavillion/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Development continued to push toward the island's southern tip. By 1940, the island had four hotels, including the Desoto Hotel and Hotel Tybee, and numerous smaller lodges. The Tybrisa Pavilion burned down in 1967, and was replaced by the Tybee Pier and Pavilion in 1996.<ref>[http://www.tybeeisland.com/tybee-island-pier-pavilion.shtml Tybee Island Pier & Pavilion] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081022102245/http://www.tybeeisland.com/tybee-island-pier-pavilion.shtml |date=October 22, 2008 }}."  Retrieved: September 9, 2008.</ref>

[[Cecil B. Day]] opened the first [[Days Inn]] on Tybee Island in 1970.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8TfhLiBMFEYC&q=%22days+inn%22+%22tasty+world%22 |title=Day by Day: The Story of Cecil B. Day and His Simple Formula for Success |last=Day |first=Cecil Burke Jr. |date=2000 |publisher=Jonathan David Publishers, Incorporated |isbn=9780824604257 |language=en}}</ref>

===Tybee Bomb===
{{main|1958 Tybee Island B-47 crash}}
On February 5, 1958, a [[U.S. Air Force]] [[B-47 Stratojet]] from [[Homestead Air Force Base]], Florida, jettisoned a [[nuclear weapon]] (specifically, a [[Mark 15 nuclear bomb|Mark 15]] [[hydrogen bomb]]) off the coast of Tybee Island while conducting training exercises with a USAF [[F-86 Sabrejet]]. The aircraft collided, with the pilot of the fighter ejecting and the crew of the bomber making an emergency landing at nearby [[Hunter Air Force Base]]. The lost weapon, known popularly as the "Tybee Bomb", remained a security concern for several years, although the Air Force claims the bomb lacks a nuclear capsule and poses no serious threat.<ref>Air Force Nuclear Weapons and Counterproliferation Agency, "[https://web.archive.org/web/20040211070726/http://www.af.mil/library/posture/savannah.pdf Air Force Search & Recovery Assessment of the 1958 Savannah GA-B47 Accident]." April 12, 2001. Retrieved: September 11, 2008.</ref> In 2004, retired U.S. Air Force lieutenant Colonel Derek Duke took part in a private search for the bomb. According to an article in the ''Savannah Morning News'', Duke found that there were "high levels of radiation and unusual magnetometer readings" at a specific point in the [[Wassaw Sound]], just off the Tybee coast.<ref name="savannahnow1">{{cite web |url=http://old.savannahnow.com/stories/061705/3107403.shtml |title=SavannahNOW &#124; Air Force: Duke found dirt - 06/17/2005 |publisher=Old.savannahnow.com |access-date=May 8, 2010 }}{{Dead link|date=April 2025 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> He concluded from these readings that the bomb might be present "at a point just off the southern tip of Little Tybee",<ref name="savannahnow1"/> an undeveloped barrier island 
adjacent to Tybee Island. In response, the Air Force launched a nine-month search for the Tybee bomb in 2004. The search team specifically investigated the area of the Wassaw Sound where Duke had found high radiation levels. The Air Force reported to the media in 2005 that the source of the high radiation was likely [[monazite]], a mineral naturally high in radiation. The ''Morning News'' headline at the time said, "Duke Found Dirt".<ref name="savannahnow1"/>

===Shark attacks===

On June 15, 2016, the Tybee city council voted 4–1 to withhold shark attack numbers where the attacks did not result in loss of life. According to the ''Savannah Morning News'', the vote was a direct result of pressure from local businesses that had seen a decline in tourism due to recent reported shark activity.<ref name="savannahnow2">{{cite web |url=http://old.savannahnow.com/stories/061705/3107406.shtml |title=SavannahNOW &#124; Sharks bad for business - 06/17/2016 |publisher=Old.savannahnow.com |access-date=May 8, 2010}}{{Dead link|date=August 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>