Ossabaw Island is the third largest of Georgia’s Sea Islands and lies along the Atlantic Ocean about 20 miles south of Savannah. The island encompasses over 16,000 acres of tidal marshes and 9,000 acres of high ground. Ponds, salt water creeks, one river and many sloughs, inlets, and beaches make the high ground of Ossabaw a complex of small islands. Broad flat ridges and shallow depressions comprise the western part of Ossabaw (Pleistocene soils), while steep, parallel dune ridges mark the eastern part (Holocene soils).
After passing through many private owners, the State of Georgia acquired Ossabaw in 1978 through a gift/sale agreement from the Torrey family and the efforts of Eleanor Torrey West. At the time of the sale, it was stated under an Executive Order by Governor Busbee “that Ossabaw Island be dedicated as a Heritage Preserve to protect, conserve, and preserve the natural and cultural resources of this Island for the benefit of present and future generations, and that Ossabaw Island shall only be used for natural, scientific, and cultural study, research and education, and environmentally sound preservation, conservation, and management of the Island’s ecosystem, under conditions carefully monitored and controlled by the Department of Natural Resources.”

The GADNR has coordinated a loggerhead turtle conservation program on Ossabaw Island since 1981. The goal of the project is to monitor and protect loggerhead turtle nests in accordance with the Recovery Plan for the U.S. Population of Loggerhead Turtles and the Management Plan for the Protection of Nesting Loggerhead Sea Turtles and Their Habitat in Georgia.

Ossabaw Island is divided into 4 contiguous sections of beach including Bradley (North), North Middle, South Middle and South beach. Ossabaw Island’s beach habitat is relatively undisturbed with no permanent structures or lights. Based on a 1999 - 2004 GADNR statewide nesting habitat assessment, Ossabaw Island is considered a high-quality nesting beach with only a small portion of the nesting habitat categorized as erosional.