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All the United States Georgia Savannah The Bonaventure Jogger

The Bonaventure Jogger

An eerie smiling woman looms above the granite tombstones.

Savannah, Georgia

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Derek Maxfield
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About

If you're wandering amongst the Spanish moss and live oaks of Savannah's historic Bonaventure Cemetery at dusk, a grinning green woman with sunken eyes might jump out at you from behind a corner. Don't worry–you're not the first to be spooked by the bronze jogger.

The unusual monument is dedicated to the memory of Julia Denise Backus Smith, a prominent member of Savannah society, who died by suicide in 2003. As her epitaph indicates, she worked with compassion for the less fortunate of Savannah as a Chatham County commissioner. She was also the first woman from her city to compete in the Boston Marathon and went on to win races in Georgia.

While it's a touching memorial to a woman doing what she loved, the statue's bronze skin has now oxidized to an eerie shade of green and her eyes have gained a blackened shadow, so it can give quite the start to those unaware.

Related Tags

Graveyards Gravestones Cemeteries Tombs Monuments Statues Graves

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Added By

ddmaxfield

Edited By

Silent Doug, Molly McBride Jacobson, linkogecko, rcorn79135...

  • Silent Doug
  • Molly McBride Jacobson
  • linkogecko
  • rcorn79135
  • alysonsousa1
  • hfloccari
  • Collector of Experiences
  • sugarbomb
  • PushingUpDaisies
  • JohnLikes2Travel
  • dperkins
  • blackstar91177
  • mdm335
  • matthewglaser
  • nicolemiller01970

Published

October 5, 2016

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Sources
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bonaventure_Cemetery
  • https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/savannah/obituary.aspx?n=julie-backus-smith&pid=1727094
The Bonaventure Jogger
Bonaventure Cemetery
315 Greenwich Road
Savannah, Georgia
United States
32.043951, -81.047063
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