Archeological Survey and Testing Wilkerson Dam and Lake

In October of 1990 torrential rains washed out several dams in the Augusta area, among them the dam at Wilkinson Pond on Fort Gordon, Georgia (Figures 1 and 2). Wilkinson Pond is located on McCoys Creek, a tributary of Spirit Creek. It is about an eight acre impoundment. The Army plans to rebuild the dam, but construction has the potential for impacting significant cultural resources such as old mill remnants, associated historic remains, or prehistoric archeological sites. Therefore, in compliance with federal regulations (Army Regulation 420-40; the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended; Executive Order 11593; and the Archeological and Historic Preservation Act of 1974) the U.S. Army and Fort Gordon sponsored an intensive cultural resources survey of the dam, lake bed and environs. The goal of the survey was to locate and evaluate the significance of all cultural resources in the project area. The project area is defined as the eight acre lake bed, the earthen dam, terraces bordering the lake, and downstream from the dam. A management summary was submitted to Fort Gordon and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers shortly after the fieldwork was completed (Braley 1991). The work was conducted by a four person crew from Southeastern Archeological Services, Inc. in February and March, 1991. The work included a background and literature search, a survey of the drained lake bed, dam, and adjacent land, and deep testing using a backhoe to verify that the dam did not cover previous structures or mill remnants (as in the case of Boardman Lake, also on Fort Gordon, the topic of a recent study (Froeschauer, in progress).