Tybee Island Strand Cottages Historic District

Along Butler Avenue between 12th and 14th Streets on Tybee Island, a row of wooden summer cottages survives from the island's years as a seaside resort. Built mostly between 1895 and 1930, the houses sit on raised wooden piers with hipped or gabled roofs, wrap-around porches and tall floor-to-ceiling windows. The ground level held servants' quarters and changing rooms. Later cottages, built after Tybee Road opened in 1923, are smaller and square, with garage space added beneath. The cottages occupy long narrow lots laid out in an 1873 subdivision, with coastal vegetation along the lot lines and walkways linking each house to its neighbors and the ocean. Tybee is described as the only Georgia barrier island developed as a resort for the general public, with middle-class families using these seasonal homes. Later development removed much of the original Strand, leaving these cottages as what remains of that resort community. The district is recognized for its role in resort development and for its architecture and landscape.