Welcome to the Savannah Sideways Podcast - Season One - The Strange Story of Savannah's Ancient Roman Statuary.

EPISODE 4 – Ossabaw Coincidences & Connections: In this fourth episode, host Jessica Leigh Lebos follows the Torrey family’s journey from the ashes of their Greenwich mansion to the wild beauty of Ossabaw Island, uncovering how loss, legacy, and a touch of magic intertwined to shape one of Georgia’s most fascinating conservation stories.

Meet Eleanor “Sandy” Torrey West, the indomitable woman who turned her family’s Gilded Age retreat into a crucible for art, science, and spiritual exploration. From the ruins of Greenwich Place to the pink stucco mansion on Ossabaw, Sandy’s life bridges eras—where ancient myths meet modern activism and coincidence feels more like cosmic choreography.

Through conversations with Elizabeth DuBose of the Ossabaw Island Foundation and a deeply personal story of discovery, Jessica traces how statues, stories, and serendipity connect Savannah’s past to its present. Along the way, we meet a cast of visionaries—artists, philosophers, conservationists—and a woman whose 108 years embodied the spirit of the island she fought to save.

This episode is about more than marble and memory. It’s about meaning: how we follow signs, find purpose in patterns, and keep listening for the gods—Hermes included—who travel beside us.

SHOW LINKS:

Meet Jessica Leigh Lebos

Check out Savannah Sideways Substack

Check out Jessica's books

Meet the Producers: Dee Daniels Media

THANKS TO THOSE WHO MADE THIS SHOW POSSIBLE:

Dr. Erika Morrow and the team at ForSight Unique Eye Care & Eye Wear

Bubba Gumbo's Tybee Island

Tybee Island Marina

BG’s Seafood Co-Op

Bonaventure Don

The 5 Spot

Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum

Shot By Somi

SIXBY

Lone Wolf Lounge

Over Yonder

Celebritees

FIND A FAVORITE SPOT IN THIS EPISODE:

00:00 Introduction: Ossabaw Coincidences and Connections

00:13 The Torrey Family's New Beginning on Ossabaw Island

00:37 The Rich History of Georgia's Barrier Islands

01:26 Ossabaw Island Through the Ages

03:18 The Torrey Family Legacy and the Pink Mansion

05:49 Sandy West: The Woman Who Saved Ossabaw

08:55 The Ossabaw Island Project and Genesis Project

10:02 The Fight to Preserve Ossabaw Island

12:38 Sandy West's Final Years and Legacy

16:15 The Author's Personal Journey and Connection to the Story

22:25 The Auction and the Photograph

28:10 Conclusion: The Strange Story of Savannah's Ancient Roman Statuary

Welcome to the Savannah Sideways Podcast - Season One - The Strange Story of Savannah's Ancient Roman Statuary.

EPISODE 3 – In Turpentine We Trust: In this third episode, host Jessica Leigh Lebos traces Savannah’s rise from post–Civil War hardship to Gilded Age opulence through an unlikely source—turpentine. As the longleaf pine forests fueled a booming naval stores industry, fortunes were made, ecosystems were destroyed, and entire communities were bound to brutal labor and debt.

Meet Spencer Shotter, the magnate whose pine-scented empire made him one of Savannah’s richest men—and ultimately led to his downfall under America’s first antitrust prosecutions. Along the way, historian Dr. Drew Swanson sheds light on the environmental legacy of the longleaf pine, and we follow the thread from the Gilded Age to the Progressive Era, where unchecked capitalism finally met reform.

The story culminates in fire and renewal— and the extraordinary life of Sandy West, whose legacy transformed Georgia’s conservation movement.

This episode uncovers how pine sap, power, and progress shaped Savannah’s fortunes—and how one man’s empire helped set the stage for the city’s most enduring mysteries.

YOUTUBE VIDEO MENTIONED: Greenwich At Bonaventure Cemetery-Savannah GA's Own Biltmore House-Forgotten No Longer

SHOW LINKS:

Meet Jessica Leigh Lebos

Check out Savannah Sideways Substack

Check out Jessica's books

Meet the Producers: Dee Daniels Media

THANKS TO THOSE WHO MADE THIS SHOW POSSIBLE:

Dr. Erika Morrow and the team at ForSight Unique Eye Care & Eye Wear

Bubba Gumbo's Tybee Island

Tybee Island Marina

BG’s Seafood Co-Op

Bonaventure Don

The 5 Spot

Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum

Shot By Somi

SIXBY

Lone Wolf Lounge

Over Yonder

Celebritees

FIND A FAVORITE SPOT IN THIS EPISODE:

00:00 Introduction to Savannah's Ancient Roman Statuary

02:12 The Rise of Savannah's Naval Stores Industry

04:16 Environmental and Social Impact of Turpentine Production

10:30 The Decline of the Naval Stores Industry

17:44 Spencer Shotter's Legal Troubles and Legacy

24:06 The Tragic Fire at Greenwich Place

25:51 Sandy Tory West and the Preservation of Ossabaw Island

26:35 Conclusion and Sponsor Messages

Welcome to the Savannah Sideways Podcast - Season One - The Strange Story of Savannah's Ancient Roman Statuary.

EPISODE 2 - If the Land Could Talk: In this second episode, host Jessica Leigh Lebos recounts the enigmatic history of Greenwich Cemetery, once the site of an opulent estate filled with 2000-year-old Roman statues.

From General Oglethorpe's founding of Savannah to the tragic fate of the Yamacraw people, we explore the multifaceted narratives woven into this land. Learn about the mysterious burial of Revolutionary War Hero Casimir Pulaski, the grandeur of the Greenwich Place mansion, and the Shotters' extravagant art collection, including a shipment of ancient statues that took nearly five years to arrive.

This episode delves deep into Savannah's historical layers, touching on both well-documented facts and unresolved mysteries.

SHOW LINKS:

Meet Jessica Leigh Lebos

Check out Savannah Sideways Substack

Check out Jessica's books

Meet the Producers: Dee Daniels Media

THANKS TO THOSE WHO MADE THIS SHOW POSSIBLE:

Dr. Erika Morrow and the team at ForSight Unique Eye Care & Eye Wear

Bubba Gumbo's Tybee Island

Tybee Island Marina

BG’s Seafood Co-Op

Bonaventure Don

The 5 Spot

Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum

Shot By Somi

SIXBY

Lone Wolf Lounge

Over Yonder

Celebritees

FIND A FAVORITE SPOT IN THIS EPISODE:

00:00 Introduction to Savannah's Ancient Roman Statuary

01:40 The Origins of Greenwich Cemetery

05:46 The Revolutionary War and Kasmir Pulaski

19:26 The Civil War and Its Aftermath

24:50 The Gilded Age and Spencer Shotter's Mansion

30:29 The Arrival of the Roman Statuary

30:48 Conclusion and Sponsor Messages