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The Savannah Sideways Podcast

The Savannah Sideways Podcast

De: Dee Daniels Media Podcast Network
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Savannah Sideways, Season 1: The Strange Story of Savannah's Ancient Roman Statuary is a ten-episode journey into one of the South’s strangest true stories — the saga of ancient Roman statues hidden in plain sight. When marble relics resurfaced in a Savannah, Georgia City Council meeting nearly a century after being unearthed in a cemetery, writer Jessica Leigh Lebos got obsessed and started digging. What she found spans continents and centuries: Gilded Age tycoons, Revolutionary War heroes, vanished mansions, Georgia’s longleaf pine forests, barrier-island battles, Gullah Geechee heritage — even a cameo from James Brown. History, mystery, and Southern Gothic collide in this unforgettable deep dive into Savannah’s secrets.

Copyright 2025 All rights reserved. Ciencias Sociales Mundial
Episodios
  • Episode 8: The Bridge to Sapelo

    Episode 8: The Bridge to Sapelo
    Nov 20 2025
    Welcome to the Savannah Sideways Podcast - Season One - The Strange Story of Savannah's Ancient Roman Statuary. In this eighth episode, host Jessica Leigh Lebos follows the unexpected trail of Savannah’s ancient statuary all the way to Georgia’s barrier islands—revealing a sweeping story of wealth, land, loss, resilience, and one of the most culturally important communities in the United States. Beginning with the Greenwich estate’s original owners, Jessica traces how industrialist Spencer Shotter and later the Torrey family shaped both Savannah and the coastal islands through their lavish mansions, art collections, and Gilded Age pursuits. Their legacies intertwine with other elite landowners of the era, ultimately leading to Sapelo Island and the enigmatic Reynolds Mansion—one of the last surviving Gilded Age estates in Georgia. Jessica explores how tobacco heir R.J. Reynolds transformed Sapelo into his own secluded retreat, even adding surreal features like circus murals and a life-sized menagerie painted by an Italian muralist. But her journey into the mansion’s faded opulence becomes a pathway to a deeper story: the history and present struggles of Sapelo’s Gullah Geechee residents, descendants of enslaved West and Central Africans who cultivated rice, cotton, indigo, and sugar along the coastal lowlands. Their agricultural expertise was foundational to the region’s wealth, yet their cultural identity has remained remarkably intact through centuries of isolation and community strength. Listeners are introduced to Sistah Patt Gunn, Savannah’s internationally known Gullah Geechee storyteller and historian, who explains how the Geechee and Gullah identities formed across Georgia and the Carolinas. With her guidance, Jessica uncovers the legacy of Bilali Muhammad, the highly educated and devout Muslim enslaved on Sapelo who managed the island’s vast agricultural operations and left behind an extraordinary Arabic manuscript still studied today. His descendants—and those of his seven daughters—helped establish vibrant Geechee settlements across Sapelo that thrived well into the 20th century. Jessica then travels to the island to meet Maurice Bailey, son of the late author Cornelia Walker Bailey and founder of SOLO (Sapelo Island Save Our Legacy Ourself). Riding with Maurice through Hogg Hummock and the historic cemeteries, she learns how Sapelo’s Geechee community has been threatened by land pressure, rising seas, political maneuvering, zoning changes, and an ongoing struggle for representation. Their challenges echo a long history of exploitation—from mid-century land seizures to recent attempts to rezone ancestral property for large-scale vacation homes. The episode also reflects on the tragic collapse of Sapelo’s ferry dock in October 2024, which claimed the lives of seven elders who had just celebrated the island’s heritage. Jessica connects this heartbreaking event to the broader theme of loss—of stories, traditions, and irreplaceable cultural memory. Through it all, Jessica discovers that the “bridge” connecting Savannah’s statues to Sapelo is not architectural but symbolic. The wealth that imported Roman art and built Gilded Age mansions came directly from the expertise and forced labor of West African people whose descendants still fight to remain on their coastal homeland. Their story is inseparable from the story of Savannah’s art, architecture, and identity. And as Jessica prepares for the penultimate episode, she reminds listeners that the history we preserve—or fail to—will shape the legacy we leave behind. 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: The Bridge to Sapelo 00:04 The Gilded Age and Georgia's Barrier Islands 03:39 The Reynolds Mansion and Sapelo Island 05:11 Exploring Sapelo Island's Gullah Geechee Heritage 11:55 Challenges Facing the Gullah Geechee Community 16:08 Current Efforts and Future Hopes 21:51 Conclusion: The Resilience of Sapelo Island
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    35 m
  • Episode 7: The Mystery of the Missing Sphinxes

    Episode 7: The Mystery of the Missing Sphinxes
    Nov 13 2025

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

    EPISODE 7 – The Mystery of the Missing Sphinxes

    In this seventh episode, host Jessica Leigh Lebos delves into one of Savannah’s most tantalizing historical enigmas: the whereabouts of the missing Greenwich Sphinxes. After tracing the 19-piece statue collection recovered from the estate, Jessica uncovers the lesser-known fragments of Greenwich — wrought iron planters, marble columns, and architectural remnants lost to fire, neglect, or rumor. But it is the pair of Egyptian Sphinxes, glimpsed in archival photographs and silent film, that sparks her obsessive quest.

    Joining Jessica is Savannah historian Hugh Golson, whose lifetime of research into the city’s architecture and antiques offers new insight into the statues’ journey. From early 20th-century newspapers to the memories of local families, Hugh pieces together a story spanning decades, revealing that these enigmatic sculptures once graced private homes long after they vanished from public view. Along the way, listeners encounter Savannah’s quirky, colorful personalities, from graveyard directors to civic preservationists, each adding texture to the Sphinxes’ tale.

    Jessica and Hugh also explore the broader cultural fascination with Egyptian motifs in America during the Gilded Age, situating the Greenwich Sphinxes within a national trend of Egyptian-inspired art, architecture, and decorative objects. Were the statues truly ancient, or beautifully crafted products of 19th-century collectors’ ambitions? Through photographs, archival research, and expert insight, the episode examines authenticity, provenance, and the ways stories of art and history intertwine with Savannah’s local lore.

    This episode invites listeners to wander the thin line between myth and reality, reminding us that history is not only about what survives — it’s about what we choose to remember, preserve, and seek out. The Sphinxes’ story is far from over, and Jessica teases the next chapter in their remarkable and mysterious journey.

    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: The Mystery of the Missing Sphinxes

    00:05 Uncovering the Greenwich Collection

    00:44 The Disappearance of the Sphinxes

    01:58 Historical Insights from Hugh Golson

    03:27 The Forsyth Park Sphinxes

    06:34 The Greenwich Sphinxes Resurface

    09:11 The Sphinxes' Journey to Augusta

    12:54 Modern-Day Mysteries and Speculations

    15:59 Conclusion: The Ongoing Mystery
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    24 m
  • Episode 6: Breaking Down the Myths

    Episode 6: Breaking Down the Myths
    Nov 6 2025

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

    EPISODE 6 – Breaking Down the Myths

    In this sixth episode, host Jessica Leigh Lebos digs deeper into the fascinating world of ancient art and modern mythmaking. Joined once again by Dr. Mark Abbe, University of Georgia professor and global expert in antiquities and art restoration, Jessica unpacks how America’s Gilded Age fascination with marble and grandeur shaped our collective imagination — and, in some ways, distorted history.

    From the lavish collections of tycoons like J.P. Morgan, Andrew Carnegie, and Isabella Stewart Gardner, to the stately Southern estates that mirrored their northern counterparts, we explore how art collecting became both a symbol of sophistication and a tool for shaping America’s cultural identity. These early art patrons saw themselves not just as collectors, but as civilizers, building museums, libraries, and institutions meant to uplift the public — even as their wealth and privilege drew scrutiny.

    Dr. Abbe also sheds light on one of art history’s biggest misconceptions: the myth of the “pure white” marble statue. Through groundbreaking scientific research, he reveals that the sculpted figures of ancient Greece and Rome were once vividly painted in lifelike colors — red lips, golden hair, and skin tones in every shade. This revelation challenges centuries of Western ideals about beauty, culture, and race, and exposes how a simple misunderstanding became an aesthetic standard with deep social implications.

    As Jessica connects Savannah’s own Roman relics to this broader narrative, she invites listeners to reconsider what authenticity really means — in art, in history, and in how we tell our stories. Were the Greenwich statues truly ancient, or clever reconstructions? And what truths lie hidden beneath their white marble sheen?

    This episode reminds us that history isn’t static marble — it’s painted in color, layered with meaning, and alive with questions.

    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

    00:57 The Rise of American Art Collecting

    04:34 Gilded Age Philanthropy and Art

    08:35 Carnegie Libraries in Savannah

    11:37 The Mystery of the Greenwich Statues

    19:09 The Truth About Ancient Roman Statuary

    24:35 Conclusion and Teasers for Next Episode
    Más Menos
    27 m
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