Haunted Buildings: Moon River Brewing Company
Written by Anna Porter. Illustration by Anna Porter.
While taking a walk down Bay Street in Savannah’s Historic District, you may stumble across Moon River Brewing Company– a unique southern restaurant and bar. The building dates back to 1821 when it was constructed as a hotel, then became a warehouse, a post office, a civil war hospital and a bank until it became Moon River Brewing Company in 1999.
Named after a song by Savannahian musician Johnny Mercer, Moon River has a vibrant atmosphere along with an interesting, spooky history. In fact, many agree that it is one of the most haunted locations in Savannah. The restaurant has been featured on tv shows like “Ghost Hunters” and internet series “Buzzfeed Unsolved,” where people have explored the building and tried to find out more about the spirits that may reside there.
The first time I visited Savannah with my family, we ate dinner at Moon River Brewing Company. I was enjoying the restaurant’s environment and music when our waiter came to our table and gave us a brief history of the building, mentioning the haunted basement and second floor. When we finished our food, we took a peek at the basement for ourselves. The brick walls and barrels along the floors added to the creepiness of the large, empty space. According to the building’s lore, the back room of the basement is reported to have a spirit whom the Moon River staff call “Toby.”
One of the main ghost stories of Moon River revolves around James Stark, a man who was in an ongoing feud with the town doctor, Philip Minis. After accusing Minis of being a coward, Minis killed Stark. Since then, people have experienced sensations of being pushed around by what many people believe is the ghost of James Stark. Other reported experiences include silverware and cups falling off of surfaces and sightings of apparitions.
Due to Moon Rivers’ growing popularity among tourists, the restaurant recently expanded, adding an outdoor patio area for more customers to enjoy the pleasant Savannah weather. There are also plans of expanding to the second floor, however an increase of paranormal activity has prevented the plans from moving forward.
Moon River Brewing Company has an abundance of ghost stories to tell and lives on as one of Savannah’s most popular historical restaurants. Stop by sometime and grab a burger or shrimp and grits, check out the basement for yourself and enjoy Savannah’s haunted history.
