Echo Square | Savannah GA

A walk along River Street in Savannah GA is wonderful, but did you know that in one spot in Rousakis Plaza, you can find a rare phenomenon – a perfect echo! What’s extra noteworthy is that, when you stand on the spot, you can hear your echo, but others around you can’t. Jamie tested it. Stick around to the end of the episode and see if it really works!

Fun Echo Facts

1 Echo was a nymph in Greek mythology who was given a speech impediment by Hera. She could only repeat what others had said.
2 The word “echo” is actually derived from the Greek language. It means “sound.”
3 Bats, whales and dolphins use echo for navigation and location sensing.
4 If the delay is more than 1/10 of a second, the human ear cannot distinguish an echo from the direct sound.
5 Some of the most common settings in nature for echoes are rock cliffs that face water and canyon walls.

What to Eat: The Shrimp Factory

While walking from shoot to shoot on Historic River Street in Savannah GA, we stopped to chat with a friendly hostess outside of The Shrimp Factory. We were so thrilled with her friendliness that, after completing our shoots in the area, we went back there and had lunch. It turns out that The Shrimp Factory is a locally owned restaurant (since 1977!) that serves up not only warm hospitality but delicious food, too, from Lowcountry Boil to shrimp and grits and everything in between. Of course, we also had a helping of warm peach cobbler topped with vanilla ice cream and whipped cream. We’ll have to go back and investigate, too, because, apparently, it’s a well-known haunted spot. We experienced weird magnetization of one piece of silverware, and that, according to our hosts, is just the tip of the iceberg!

Read the Transcript of This Stories, Secrets & Sagas Episode

I love coming to River Street in Savannah, Georgia! The beautiful river, tug boats and giant ships along with the brick and cobblestone streets make this place a unique escape anytime of the year. But, at one spot on the river walk is something very unexpected -- a place where there is a perfect echo and a phenomenon that is a noteworthy!

An echo is defined as “a sound that is heard again after it has been reflected off a surface such as a wall or a cliff.” In Greek mythology Echo was a nymph given a speech impediment by Hera, so that she could repeat only what others had said. Alas, she fell in love with Narcissus, which was a bad move, for he left her and did not show her love in return. She withered away until all that was left was her voice.

And here in Savannah, in one of the most traveled parts of town, Rousakis Plaza on

River Street, at Echo Square you can experience the anomaly first hand. It is a unique spot where the surrounding buildings act as the walls of reflection.

What is really strange about this spot is the fact that if you stand on the center, designated by an X, you can speak and hear the unusual echo. But, this sound cannot be heard anywhere else nearby, only in this spot. Around the world there are many notable places for hearing a sound repeat: Hamilton Mausoleum in Scotland, Grand Central Terminal in New York City and the temple of Heaven in China, but Riverwalk, Savannah? This is a new one!

So, next time you’re here in Savannah, take some time to hear your own voice. We’ll be sure to see and hear you next time on Stories, Secrets and Sagas!

Visit Echo Square in Rousakis Plaza Savannah GA

Rousakis PlazaEcho SquareSavannah GA

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