Phase I Archaeological Survey of the Mystic Substation, Irwin County, Georgia

On January 31, 2018, Brockington and Associates, Inc. (Brockington) completed a Phase I archaeological survey for the proposed expansion of the Mystic Substation located in Irwin County, Georgia (Figures 1 and 2). The current substation facility (approximately 1.03-acres) is located northwest of the community of Mystic, between Irwinville and Ocilla, and lies north of Mystic Highway (GA Hwy 32), and west of Warren Street. Proposed expansion of the substation consists of approximately 2.52-acres, extending 100-feet (ft) west, 200-ft north, and 100-ft east of the current facility. The archaeological Area of Potential Effects (APE) for this investigation is defined as the approximately 2.52-acre proposed expansion area. Our archaeological survey was carried out as part of the Programmatic Agreement between the Georgia Transmission Corporation (GTC) and the Georgia State Department of Natural Resources, Historic Preservation Division (HPD). Though this a due diligence project, all activities described herein have been carried out in accordance with the stipulations of Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) (per 36 CFR Part 800, as amended through 2016) and by personnel qualified under 36 CFR Part 61. This project included a literature review and archaeological field investigations conducted to determine if the proposed project will impact archaeological resources that are eligible for the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). This letter report includes a description of our methods, the results of our background research and survey, and our recommendations for the proposed project. Background research was conducted through Georgia’s Natural, Archaeological, and Historic Resources GIS (GNAHRGIS) online to determine if previously recorded archaeological sites are located within the APE or a one-mile (1.6 kilometer) radius surrounding the APE. The research recovered current information on previously recorded cultural resources (i.e., archaeological sites, buildings, structures, districts, objects, and sites of traditional/cultural importance) that might be eligible for the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) and could be affected by the proposed project. Our research revealed that one previous archaeological survey was conducted within the research radius (Entorf and Higginbotham 1996), but no previously recorded archaeological sites are within the research buffer (Table 1; see Figure 1). No other previously recorded cultural resources are located within the APE or within one-mile.