Hanover Square

Hanover Square. . , Hanover Square, also referred to as Hanover Park, is one of the two major squares in Brunswick that retained their original size and shape. It was named to honor Britain’s ruling House of Hanover during the reign of King George II, when the Colony of Georgia was established. A center of civic and social activity in Brunswick, Hanover Square has played an important role in the city’s history. , A Monument to the Fallen , Newlyweds Confederate Adjutant General Thomas McIntosh and his bride, Maria, posed for this portrait, shortly before his death at the Battle of Sharpsburg in 1862. Maria married former Army surgeon, Dr. James M. Madden, in 1867, and moved to Brunswick. As president of the Memorial Association of Brunswick, Maria Madden worked tirelessly for years to raise money for a marble monument to the soldiers of the Confederacy, located on the north side of Hanover Park. On April 26, 1902, hundreds of Brunswick residents attended the dedication of the monument to Confederate soldiers. , World War II: The Shipyard Era in Brunswick , Shipyards in Brunswick met the challenge to build Liberty ships and other service vessels at record speed in World War II. The city's population quadrupled as desperately needed workers arrived, without a place to stay. Although it was against the law in Brunswick to sleep in a park or square, the city temporarily overlooked the rules in just one area: Hanover Square. Exhausted shipyard employees spread out bedrolls at night and washed up at the fountain in the morning before the day shift. A number of stately homes on Hanover Square took in boarders who worked at the shipyards, and other defense plants in the county. Throughout the war, the wooden bandstand in Hanover Square continued to offer patriotic concerts and other community events. , Brunswick Helps Defend the Nation , The J.A. Jones Shipyards manufactured Liberty ships (visible above on shipways in the background) while the adjacent Brunswick Marine Construction Company manufactured military service vessels such as tugboats (above, in the foreground). Navy airships from nearby NAS Glynco guarded the shipyards against German U-boat attack. Workers in Brunswick supplied Allied troops with 99 ships, including three Liberty ships that participated in the D-Day invasion. Brunswick's ability to accommodate workers let the shipyard begin production without waiting for wartime housing to be completed. The shipyard created thousands of jobs that helped pull Southeast Georgia out of the Depression. , Signature Squares of Brunswick, Inc. is a non-profit organization established in 2005 under the leadership of co-founder and Executive Director Julie Hunter Martin to restore and preserve the parks and squares within the Historic District of Brunswick. Signature Squares gratefully acknowledges the support of the following in preserving the history of Hanover Square: City of Brunswick; Friends of Coastal Georgia History; Jekyll Island Authority; The Garden Club of Georgia, Inc. and Garden Clubs of Glynn County for financial and in-kind contributions; Jerry Spencer, ASLA, Landscape Architect; and Mia Knight Nichols for research support..