Early History of the Site
The site at 119 Bull Street has roots in Savannah’s earliest years. In the 1730s, Savannah’s first courthouse and jail – simple wooden structures – stood at the northwest corner of Wright Square, roughly where the CVS building sits today. Public executions were carried out on the live oak trees at the north end of Wright Square, earning it the nickname “Hanging Square” in local lore. One infamous case was Alice Riley, an indentured servant convicted of murder in 1735; according to legend, she was hanged in Wright Square and her restless spirit still wanders the area searching for her infant child. While such ghost stories endure, they are part of local folklore – the real historical basis is that the square hosted colonial-era executions, which explains why tales of hauntings later clustered around this site. After the colonial period, the old wooden courthouse and jail were removed, and by the 19th century the lots around Wright Square held other buildings (one nearby structure from 1824 still survives on West State Street). These older buildings were eventually cleared to make way for new development at the turn of the 20th century.
Construction and Original Use (1907)
he present building at 111–119 Bull Street was constructed in 1907. It was built as a three-story brick commercial building spanning several storefronts along Bull Street, directly facing historic Wright Square. (Today’s street address “119 Bull Street” refers to this property, which actually includes multiple combined lots and storefronts.) The original 1907 structure likely featured retail space on the ground floor with offices or residences above, as was common in that era. Contemporary records from 1907 indicate this was a substantial new building for the downtown area, though the specific architect or builder is not readily documented in public sources. In the early 20th century, the building hosted various businesses. One source suggests that Levy Jewelers – a prominent Savannah jewelry retailer founded in 1900 – operated in this building for many years. (However, Levy Jewelers’ official history notes their flagship store was established elsewhere by 1937, so if they were at 119 Bull, it may have been as an early location or a branch store.) What is well documented is that the ground-floor retail spaces saw continuous use: shops and offices came and went as downtown Savannah evolved. The upper floors, facing the lovely Wright Square, likely served as professional offices or even apartments during this period, taking advantage of the central location by the courthouse and government buildings on the square.
Mid-20th Century Tenants and Changes
By the mid-1900s, the building remained a downtown fixture and underwent some changes in appearance and use. In the 1960s, a portion of the structure (especially along West State Street) was either rebuilt or significantly remodeled, resulting in a “non-historic” extension adjacent to the original 1907 building. This mid-century renovation gave the building a more modern façade on the State Street side and possibly consolidated the interior for new uses. Through the 1960s and 70s, the property housed a mix of retail and dining. A longtime tenant was Debi’s Restaurant (originally known as Debbie’s Diner), a beloved diner that became a local institution. The diner served comfort food to Savannahians for decades and even gained fame on the big screen: in the 1994 film Forrest Gump, the character Jenny is shown working as a waitress in this very restaurant, watching Forrest run across America on a TV news broadcast. Fans of the movie still recall the scene, and the diner’s role gave the building a pop-culture moment. Another long-term occupant has been a pharmacy: a drugstore opened in the building roughly in the late 1970s or early 1980s. That pharmacy eventually became the CVS Pharmacy that anchors the building today – CVS and its predecessors have operated at this location for over forty years. As downtown Savannah’s fortunes ebbed and flowed in the late 20th century, the building at 119 Bull Street remained in continuous use, its ground-floor shops (jewelry, diners, pharmacies and more) serving residents and visitors in the heart of the city.
Recent Renovations and Current Use
In 2019, the property was sold to a development firm for $4.8 million as part of a plan to revitalize the aging structure. A major renovation ensued, carefully overseen by Savannah’s historic preservation authorities since the Bull Street façade is protected within the Historic District. The project, designed by a local architecture firm, included constructing a new fourth story (with loft-style residential units) and a mezzanine level atop the old building, and a complete interior remodel. The 1960s-era section on West State Street received a new facade more in keeping with the historic character, and the entire complex was configured for mixed-use: retail/restaurant space on the ground floor and apartments above. Notably, the developers took care to leave the CVS Pharmacy in place and undisturbed during construction, since it continued operating throughout the renovation. By 2020–2021, the refurbished building was completed, now offering 33 residential units and three updated retail spaces in a seamless blend of old and new. In early 2023, after the renovation, the property changed hands again – Chicago-based investor Northpond Partners acquired 119 Bull Street in March 2023 as part of its portfolio. Today, the building stands fully leased and active: a CVS Pharmacy anchors the Bull Street frontage, other retail tenants (such as an incoming bagel café) occupy the remaining shopfronts, and residents live in the loft apartments upstairs. The exterior retains its early-1900s grandeur with restored brickwork and new upper-floor additions that blend into the historic streetscape. Across from the live oaks and monuments of Wright Square, the 1907-built structure continues its life as a centerpiece of downtown activity, over a century since it first rose on that storied corner.
Local Legends and Paranormal Claims
Like many old buildings in Savannah, 119 Bull Street comes with its share of ghost lore. Given the site’s history as the city’s colonial hanging ground, it’s perhaps no surprise that ghost stories have attached themselves to the modern building. Tour guides often point out the CVS on Wright Square during nightly ghost tours, claiming that strange occurrences have been reported inside. (Some CVS employees have supposedly witnessed unexplained phenomena such as flickering lights or items moving on their own after hours, though these anecdotes are hard to verify.) The Savannah ghost tour guides routinely include the “haunted CVS” as a stop, noting that even a brightly lit pharmacy can house spirits. The legend of Alice Riley is frequently retold here: Alice was one of the first women executed in Georgia, hanged at Wright Square in 1735, and “many say her spirit never left the square, still haunting pregnant women and mothers with infants”.. Another story recalls how an old jailer from the 18th-century may linger in the spot where the jail once stood, or how the souls of those executed under the oak trees now “walk the aisles” of the CVS at night.