The Waving Girl Of Savannah

Under the light of the silver moon

We two sat, when our hearts were young;

The night was warm with the breath of June,

And loud from the meadow the cricket sung,

And darker and deeper, oh, love, than the sea,

Were your dear eyes, as they beamed to me...

Florence Margaret Martus,

(1868-1943)

  is better remembered as the city of

Savannah, Georgia's legendary "Waving Girl"  for her

 steadfast devotion in waving daily to ships coming in

and out of port on the Savannah River for over 40 years.

The Waving Girl Statue

Savannah, Georgia

Common folklore surrounding Florence's daily ritual suggests that

she waved to the passing ships while awaiting the return of a long-lost love

from an overseas war, but, Florence herself claimed her aim was

much more simple.  Often lonely growing up on Elba Island, a tiny

piece of land in the Savannah River near the Atlantic Ocean,

and the busy port of Savannah, with only her brother,

 a lighthouse keeper, for company, Florence took to waving

 to the ships as they passed by the island and was delighted

 when many of the crew members would return her daily greetings.

Nevertheless, the story of the "Waving Girl" of Savannah

became an oft-repeated tale in  sea ports around the world. 

 Florence is often called,

 "the sweetheart of seafaring men of the world" 

representing the prayers and hopes, the longing and desire,

 of countless wives and sweethearts, whom over the years

have awaited the safe return of their menfolk from the sea.

My heart, like a river, was mad and wild-

And a river is not deep, like the sea:

But I said your love was the love of a child,

Compared with the love that was felt by me;

A river leaps noisily, kissing the land,

But the sea is fathomless, deep and grand.

I vowed to love you, forever and ever!

I called you cold, on that night in June,

But my fierce love, like a reckless river,

Dashed on, and away, and was spent too soon;

While yours-ah, yours was deep like the sea,

I cheated you, love, but you died for me!

"River and Sea"

A poem by Ella Wheeler Wilcox