PHASE I CULTURAL RESOURCES SURVEY PROPOSED SINCLAIR PLANTATION DEVELOPMENT SITE ST. SIMONS ISLAND, GLYNN COUNTY, GEORGIA

R.S. Webb & Associates conducted a Phase I cultural resources survey for the proposed 23.8-hectare (58.9-acre) Sinclair Plantation site on St. Simons Island, Glynn County, Georgia. The study area is located in the central portion of St. Simons Island, approximately 13 kilometers (km) northeast of Brunswick, Georgia, and approximately 1 km due west of the Hampton River/Village Creek confluence. The purpose of the study was to locate and identify cultural resources within the project Area of Potential Effects (APE), and to assess resource significance based on National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) criteria [36 CFR Part 60.4]. Given the proposed residential and commercial nature of the project and mature vegetation, the project APE for indirect impacts was set at 30 meters (m) beyond the physical project boundaries. This project was conducted in compliance with the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, to meet the conditions of United States Army Corps of Engineers wetlands permitting under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. In addition, the study follows guidelines set by the Georgia Council of Professional Archaeologists (GCPA) (2014) and the U.S. Secretary of the Interior (Federal Register 1983, 1999).

Methodology

Literature Review: A literature review was performed to determine if previously recorded cultural resources are located within or adjacent to the project area.  Documents and files reviewed included the NRHP, the Georgia Archeological Site File (GASF), county historic structure files, compliance and research reports, historic maps, and early aerial photographs. 

Phase I Archeological Resources Field Survey: The field team surveyed the project area along transects spaced not more than 30 m apart, using surface and subsurface techniques.  Exposed surfaces within the project area were inspected for artifacts and surface features; landscapes were scanned for historic vegetation and constructions.  Subsurface techniques included the excavation of 30-by-30-centimeter screened shovel tests taken to sterile substrate.  Shovel tests were excavated across the project area at 30-m intervals unless standing water or saturated wetlands were encountered; standing water and saturated wetlands were avoided. Shovel test soil profiles were recorded for each shovel test.  The boundaries of archeological sites were delineated by shovel tests excavated at 15 to 30-m intervals (depending on site size), or landform termination.

Historic Resources Survey and Viewshed Analysis: During the pedestrian field survey, the project area and the APE for indirect impacts were visually inspected for historic structures or other above-ground historic features that could be more than 50 years old.  As encountered, structures in the APE were assessed for age, condition, and style. Structures and various aspects of the viewshed were photo-documented.

Results

Archeological Survey: One archeological site was recorded within the current project area during the study. Site 9GN441 is a small, light Middle Woodland ceramic scatter located in the south-central part of the project area. Previously recorded archeological site 9GN72 is located along the eastern boundary of the project area and consists of the Sinclair Plantation house tabby ruins, associated historic archeological deposits, Mackintosh Cemetery, and a prehistoric shell midden. Based on negative shovel testing along the eastern project boundary, 9GN72 does not intrude into the project area.

Historic Resources Survey and Viewshed Analysis: There are no above-ground historic resources within the project area. GNAHRGIS Resource No. 225562 is mapped as a point, the location of an historical marker for Sinclair Plantation and Mackintosh Cemetery in the Lawrence Road right-of-way on the west side of the project area. However, the remains of the plantation (9GN72) are actually located more than 200 m east of Lawrence Road along the eastern project boundary; Mackintosh Cemetery is located within 9GN72, approximately 12 m east of the eastern project boundary. The Sinclair house tabby foundations are more than 50 m east of the eastern project boundary. These resources are outside the project APE for direct and indirect effects and are in moderate to thick vegetation. Both resources will be protected as part of a conservation easement managed by Atlantic Coast Conservancy, Inc. NRHP and Management Recommendations Archeological Resource Recommended Ineligible for the NRHP:  Applying NRHP eligibility Criterion (d) in 36 CFR Part 60.4, archeological site 9GN441 is recommended ineligible for the NRHP. This resource has a low artifact density and retains little or no research potential the regarding settlement and use of St. Simons Island during the Middle Woodland period or possibly other prehistoric periods. No additional cultural resources work is recommended for this site.

Project Effects and Management Recommendations: The proposed project will have no adverse effect on properties eligible for or listed in the NRHP. No additional work is recommended for this project.