The 260-year-old institution, established by the Church of
England during America's Colonial era, marks the city's
birthplace along the Savannah River. St. Paul's first building
was constructed in 1750 at the site of Fort Augusta, a British
military outpost. The present-day building, a Georgian colonial
design by renowned Augusta architect H.T.E. Wendell, was
completed in 1919, replacing the building lost in the great fire
of 1916. St. Paul's historic graveyard is a must-see for many
visitors. Sixty-five tombstones date back to 1783. Remains of
well-known people resting in St. Paul's churchyard include
Georgia Gov. George Matthews, who held office in the 18th
century; William Few, who signed the U.S. Constitution; and
inventor William Longstreet, who developed a steamboat engine
nine years before Robert Fulton's Hudson River experiments in
New York.