Archaeological Survey of Alternative Eastern Routing of the Proposed Ellijay-Roundtop 230 kV Transmission Line Across the Ridgeway Picnic Area, Gilmer County, Georgia

On July 21 and July 22, 2014, Southeastern Archeological Services, Inc. (SAS) archeologically surveyed a 2.74 km (1.7 mi) length of proposed transmission line corridor on either side of Carters Lake in Gilmer County, Georgia. This survey covered an alternative route for a portion of the 17-mile long Ellijay to Roundtop transmission line, surveyed by SAS in late 2011 and early 2012 (Ledbetter 2012). The present survey of the alternate route revisited five previously recorded sites, all of them possible rock shelters, and resulted in the discovery of thirteen additional possible rock shelters. All of the possible rock shelters were located on US Army Corps of Engineers property on the north and south sides of Carters Lake. None of the 18 possible rock shelters produced artifacts or showed evidence of prehistoric or historic Native American use or modification. Since none of the newly discovered possible rock shelters had evidence of human use older than50 years, none were considered to be archeological sites. Two sites, 9GI23 l, a late nineteenth to middle twentieth century house site, and 9GI232, a low density prehistoric lithic scatter, were discovered by the survey on privately held land on the south side of the lake. We recommend that neither site and none of the possible rock shelters are eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places because of the lack of further research potential. Therefore, we conclude that the proposed undertaking, the construction of a transmission line within a 100-ft wide cleared corridor in the eastern alternative, will not affect any significant (eligible) archeological sites.