On grounds that were formerly part of the Bonaventure Plantation, this cemetery gained national fame when it appeared on the cover of John Berendt’s Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. The Bird Girl statue has since been moved to the Telfair Museum of Art for safekeeping. Among those buried here are songwriter Johnny Mercer and Pulitzer prize–winning poet Conrad Aiken. Aiken, who regularly visited the graves of his parents here, had his tombstone fashioned in the shape of a bench, so visitors can rest awhile and even raise a glass, as he did, to toast his party-loving mother. The stone is inscribed with the words “Cosmos Mariner, Destination Unknown,” which he apparently read one day on a ship’s log in town.

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Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil made this the most famous house in Savannah, when its chronicle of the murder that took place here became a best seller. Antiques dealer Jim Williams, who was ultimately acquitted, has since died, but the fascination with him and his house remains. A few years ago his sister opened the main floor of the house for visits. (She resides upstairs.) The focus is on the house’s history (it was built for a relative of songwriter Johnny Mercer, although Mercer never lived there) and the stunning collection of museum-quality antiques that Williams amassed, rather than on its sordid past. Tours are led by docents between 10:30 a.m. and 3:40 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and between 12:30 and 4:30 p.m. on Sundays. Advance tickets may be purchased on line.

Tip: Don’t rush through the gift shop on your way in; it’s worth a browse.

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If you have time to tour only one of the historic houses, let it be this gorgeous example of Regency architecture, which provides a fantastic window on the city’s history through the artifacts that fill it and the tales that it recounts, of its former inhabitants’ lives. Your tour begins in the slave quarters, which contain the country’s best-preserved example of the original blue ceiling paint that slaves used to ward off evil spirits. Admission fee includes access to architect Jay Whitney’s later landmark building, the Telfair Academy. Open Sunday 1 to 5 p.m.; Monday 12 to 5 p.m.; Tuesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.