With a background in journalism and a passion for history, hosting National Geographic’s America’s Lost Treasures is a dream job for Kinga Philipps. “My father is a geologist. History, culture and travel are ingrained in me,” Philipps explains. “Broadcast journalism gave me the opportunity to go out and explore the world.”

Filmed in museums in 10 different cities, the America’s Lost Treasures program gives locals an opportunity to bring family heirlooms, garage sale bargains and found objects to be evaluated by Philipps and co-host Curt Doussett. Philipps says Savannah was one city everyone from the show agreed on visiting. “We were really looking for the flavor of the country. Each city is a representative of the country as a whole while having a distinct character of its own. Savannah is one of the few places that exist in real life exactly the way I envisioned.”

The episode filmed in Savannah last December airs August 29. “This show is as much about the artifacts as it is about the stories behind them, the places they come from and the people who have them,” says Philipps. “Sometimes people bring in things that they think have value and don’t, but the story behind it moves you to tears. Sometimes people bring things that have been passed down that they think are junk and are real American treasures.”

Once they’ve seen everything that the participants have brought to show, Philipps and Doussett each pick one item to investigate further. Working with museum curators, appraisers and antique experts, they build a case for why National Geographic should select the item to be displayed in a special exhibition in Washington, D.C. The owner of the object is awarded $10,000, and gets to share their story with the nation.

Everything from a Civil War drum to a collection of letters has been brought for consideration. “Sometimes it’s a simple item like a spoon that someone brings, and then they tell you it belonged to a key figure in American history and that person becomes real,” she said.

Already known for history and antiques, filming in Savannah made sense, but no one expected what they would find here. “There are things you expect from a historic town, and we were ready for some real Civil War heirlooms. Instead we got to see an iron bench from the SS Savannah, the first steamship to cross the Atlantic. Talk about a lost piece of history, but we got to see that by doing this show.”

America’s Lost Treasures unearths links to our history every Wednesday night, at 9 p.m.