Beautiful Georgia knows how to protect her barrier islands, and Ossabaw is one of the loveliest.
Pottery shards unearthed there confirm that it was inhabited at least 4,000 years ago. Eventually, it passed from the Guale Indians to the Creeks, who sold it to King George II in 1758.
The island was purchased in 1924 by the Torrey family of Grosse Pointe, Michigan. Their daughter, Eleanor “Sandy” Torrey West, inherited life estate in 1960, and since 1978 has been the only permanent resident. That same year the island was sold to the State of Georgia as its first “heritage preserve,” set aside in perpetuity for scientific, educational, and cultural uses only.
One of the largest of Georgia’s barrier islands, Ossabaw has wooded uplands with freshwater ponds, marshlands threaded by tidal creeks, and a long stretch of pristine, white sand beach. It is accessible only by boat, a half-hour trip I have made a number of times.
Click to enlarge.
I’ll be making that trip again next week to participate in the island’s first four-day Writers’ Retreat. Can’t wait to sleep with the whisper of wind in the pines and awaken to the sight of free-range donkeys, wild hogs, and maybe an alligator or two.
Click to enlarge.
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