Due to the economic renaissance brought on by the exportation of cotton, residents built lavish homes and churches throughout the city that reflected the wealth of the times. With the growth of trade, especially after the invention of the cotton gin on a plantation outside of Savannah, the city became a rival of Charleston as a commercial port. Many of the world's cotton prices were set on the steps of the Savannah Cotton Exchange; the building is still in existence today. (source:riverstreetsavannah.com)