Weird history: This Brit built Georgia’s first flush toilets then disappeared forever

William Jay’s Revolutionary Savannah Architecture Revolution (1817-1822)

William Jay never set foot in America when he drew plans for the Owens-Thomas House in 1816. Yet at just 24, this English architect sailed to Savannah in 1817 to build what would become an American first.

His design shocked the South with indoor plumbing, cast-iron balconies, and Regency style no one had seen before. Rich cotton merchants rushed to hire him until the Panic of 1819 crashed their fortunes.

The stunning Owens-Thomas House still stands in Georgia, where you can touch the innovative details that made Jay a revolutionary figure in American architecture.

From Bath Stonemasons to London Architect Training

William Jay was born in 1792 in Bath, England, to a family of stoneworkers. His father later became a well-known Congregationalist minister.

At 15, William started learning to be an architect with David Riddall Roper in London. He spent six years studying Greek Revival and Gothic Revival styles, which were very popular in England at the time.

His talent showed early when the Royal Academy displayed his designs for Surrey Chapel Almshouses in 1814.

By 1816, he finished the Albion Chapel in London, with its fancy neoclassical style and dome that looked like the Pantheon.

Family Connections Landed Him an American Job Sight Unseen

Family ties got Jay work across the ocean. His sister Ann married Robert Bolton, whose sister Frances was married to Richard Richardson, a rich Savannah cotton merchant and bank president.

Richardson wanted a modern house and hired Jay in 1816 to design it, even though Jay had never been to America. Jay drew the plans in Bath and mailed them across the Atlantic.

Workers started building in November 1816 on a lot facing Oglethorpe Square, using Jay’s detailed drawings as their guide.

He Arrived in Savannah at the Perfect Moment

Jay got off the ship Dawn in Savannah on December 30, 1817, at just 24 years old, ready to oversee the Richardson house construction. His timing was perfect.

The cotton trade was booming after the War of 1812, creating huge wealth among Savannah merchants. Sea Island cotton prices reached 75 cents per pound in summer 1818, making cotton traders incredibly rich.

As one of the first trained architects in America, Jay had no real competition in Savannah. The wealthy merchants loved his English background since they looked to England for the latest styles.

His Designs Brought Revolutionary Features to American Homes

Workers finished the Richardson House in 1819, packed with new ideas nobody had seen before in America.

It had the first complete indoor plumbing system in the country, with water from attic and basement tanks that even included flush toilets.

The fancy cast-iron balcony, shipped from England, was one of the first major uses of structural cast iron in American building.

Inside, Jay created unusual room shapes with column screens, oval layouts, and spiral staircases. His Regency-style design with curving walls looked nothing like typical Southern buildings.

Savannah’s Rich Cotton Merchants Lined Up for His Services

Within months of arriving, Jay got jobs from the richest people in town.

He designed the William Scarbrough House in 1819 for a top shipowner, using early Greek Revival style that was brand new to the American South.

For Alexander Telfair, he created a house in 1819 with circular, oval, and elliptical interior floor plans.

The Archibald Bulloch House from 1818-19 featured a stunning spiral staircase surrounded by columns worth $20,000.

Jay used exotic materials in new ways, making his buildings stand out from the common redbrick buildings around town.

He Wanted to Transform Savannah’s Public Buildings Too

Jay tried to create “public buildings” that showed off Savannah’s commercial and cultural importance. He designed the Savannah Theatre in 1818, though later fires and changes altered it.

He made plans for a custom house, bank, and school for poor children. His Bank of the United States from 1821 featured a six-column Doric portico in Greek Revival style.

Jay even wrote in the local newspaper criticizing existing buildings for lacking “true principles” and offered to fix the situation through his “union of taste and knowledge.

The Economy Crashed and His Clients Lost Everything

The Panic of 1819 hit the cotton economy hard. Prices dropped from 75 cents to 38 cents for Sea Island cotton and just 15 cents for Upland cotton.

British buyers started using cheaper Indian cotton, while European farms needed less American crops. Banks called in loans as the bubble burst, causing widespread foreclosures and business failures.

The cotton merchants who hired Jay watched their money vanish almost overnight.

His patron Richardson lost everything, had to sell his $20,000 mansion, and moved to Louisiana where he had family.

Yellow Fever and Fire Made Things Even Worse

A yellow fever outbreak hit Savannah in 1820 while the economy was still struggling. Then a huge fire burned through half the city that same year, making the bad situation truly awful.

The Richardson family suffered greatly, with Frances and two children dying during this terrible period. One person wrote that Savannah was left “to the reign of death.”

These combined disasters ended Savannah’s golden age that had lasted from 1790 to 1819, turning what was once “boundless prosperity” into a “smoldering ruin.

His Attempt to Expand to Charleston Failed Too

Jay opened a second office in Charleston, South Carolina around 1820 and got a job as architect of the South Carolina Board of Public Works. He created designs for courthouses and jails across the state.

But the Charleston economy got caught in the nationwide money problems that spread from the cotton collapse. By 1822, building had stopped in both Savannah and Charleston as credit dried up.

Jay’s wealthy clients couldn’t pay him, leaving the architect without work or money to keep his business going.

Back to England He Went, But Success Stayed Out of Reach

Jay left the United States in late 1822 after a failed attempt to get President Monroe’s support.

He had sent unwanted plans for Monroe’s Virginia country house, then made things worse by sending a bill, which made the president angry. Jay returned to Bath, possibly because his mother got sick.

He mostly worked in Cheltenham designing housing developments for speculators, less impressive work than his Savannah mansions.

Without connections, he couldn’t get important commissions, and his finances stayed poor despite his continued work.

A Colonial Job Led to His Early Death in the Tropics

By 1836, Jay went bankrupt and had to take a low-paying government job. He got appointed Colonial Architect and Civil Engineer in the British colony of Mauritius.

He sailed with his wife and children to the island, arriving in May 1836. During his first months there, he drew designs for a prison and chapel.

But on April 17, 1837, less than a year after arriving, Jay died of tropical fever.

He left behind his wife Louisa and their children, cutting short what had started as a promising architectural career in America.

Visiting Owens-Thomas House, Georgia

The Owens-Thomas House at 124 Abercorn Street showcases William Jay’s groundbreaking architectural work from his brief but influential American career.

Admission costs $30 for adults and includes access to all three Telfair Museums for seven days. Guided tours run every 15 minutes with groups limited to 12 people on a first-come basis.

Tours last 45-60 minutes with the final one starting at 4pm. Note there’s no elevator access due to the historic staircases.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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