What if you could uncover hidden archaeological history without lifting a shovel — just by using your eyes, a camera, and curiosity?

In this episode of Lens on History, historian and award-winning photojournalist JD Byous takes you on a visual archaeology tour of Savannah, Georgia’s Reynolds Square, revealing how bricks, sidewalks, drains, and “ghost” architecture preserve stories from over 200 years ago.

Most visitors walk past Savannah’s history without ever seeing it. But if you know where to look, the city becomes a living archive.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

• The hidden outline of a 200-year-old carriage house
• The original 1814 garden wall behind the Oliver Sturges House
• Brick “ghosts” that reveal demolished buildings and past renovations
• 19th-century manhole covers and curb lines still in use
• Evidence of Savannah’s old trolley system beneath modern streets
• The real story behind the color of the iconic Olde Pink House

You’ll also learn how visual archaeology works — using photography, observation, and historical context to uncover the past in plain sight. These techniques aren’t just for historians. You can use them in your own hometown to spot hidden history all around you.

This season, Lens on History explores Savannah and the Lowcountry... one square, street, and story at a time.

If you love history, travel, architecture, photography, or Savannah, this episode will change the way you see historic cities forever.

LIKE, SUBSCRIBE, and SHARE to support the show and help more people discover hidden history.

Visiting Savannah? Watch this before you go. You’ll never look at Reynolds Square the same way again.

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Amazon books by JD Byous: https://shorturl.at/hliQj

Lens on History is:

Filmed on location

Research-driven, accessible history

Objects, places, and people that tell the real story

Hidden History in Savannah, Georgia

Step into the hidden battlefield beneath the quiet beauty of Savannah and uncover the untold story of Sergeant William Jasper, one of the most fearless, yet forgotten heroes of the American Revolutionary War. From the thunder of cannons at Battle of Sullivan’s Island near Charleston to the brutal chaos of the Siege of Savannah, this immersive walking tour traces Jasper’s daring raids, legendary flag rescue, and heroic final stand.

Discover the truth behind the legendary rescue at Jasper Spring, the harsh reality of guerrilla warfare in the Southern colonies, and the powerful legacy preserved today in Madison Square. This is more than history. It’s the story of courage, sacrifice, and the man who refused to let the flag fall.

If you’re searching for Revolutionary War stories, Savannah history tours, or untold American hero narratives, this is a journey you don’t want to miss. Subscribe for more deep dives into forgotten history, historic sites, and powerful stories from America’s past.

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Amazon books by JD Byous: https://shorturl.at/hliQj

This episode of Lens on History uncovers the remarkable and largely forgotten, story of Edward Greene Malbone, one of the most talented early American artists, now buried in Colonial Park Cemetery. If you’ve ever wondered how people preserved memory and identity before photography, this story of miniature portrait painting in early America reveals an intimate world few history books explore.

Working in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Malbone mastered the delicate art of watercolor on ivory, creating miniature portraits often just a few inches in size. These American portrait miniatures were not meant for museums—they were deeply personal objects, carried close to the heart, exchanged between loved ones, and treasured across distances in a rapidly changing post-Revolutionary America. His work offers a rare window into the emotional life of the early United States, capturing faces, relationships, and identity during the era following the American Revolution.

In this Savannah, Georgia history episode, we explore how Malbone’s career took him from Newport, Rhode Island to major cultural centers like Boston, New York, and Philadelphia, before ultimately bringing him to the Lowcountry. His connection to Savannah and Southern patrons placed him at the heart of elite social networks, where miniature portraits became symbols of refinement, intimacy, and remembrance.

Affiliates

AdventureToursInMotion.com (Use LOH for 10% discount at checkout)

SavannahBikeTours.com (Use LOH for 10% discount at checkout)

Amazon books by JD Byous: https://shorturl.at/hliQj