Between West Bryan St. & West Congress St. at Barnard St.
Ellis Square was the site of Savannah's City Market beginning in the eighteenth century. For decades Savannahians bought and sold goods of daily life such as produce, cottage industry products like baskets and other domestic items in the building called City Market, and the shops that operated around it. City Market/Ellis Square sits next to the Montmollin building where the third floor was used to auction slaves. In 1954, in the face of the ubiquitous use of automobiles, the City razed the City Market building to provide a parking garage. In 2006 the decision was made to raze the parking garage to reclaim use of the site as a square serving the community as it did as City Market. The result is a modern open space with a central fountain, wide sidewalks and benches and tables. In 2011 the surrounding area is still known as City Market and is a tourist destination for the shops that continue to operate in the area. The Montmollin building is used commercially with no acknowledgment of its former use. The City of Savannah is reviewing a proposal for a large private building to be built just east of the square for mixed use of the Federal Government and retail businesses.
