Phase I Archaeological Resources Survey of the State Route 136 Bridge Replacement Over Lookout Creek, Dade County, Georgia

In July of 2019, Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc. (VHB) conducted a Phase I archaeological resources survey (ARS) of a proposed Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) bridge replacement along State Route (SR) 136 over a segment of Lookout Creek in Dade County, just east of the city limits of Trenton, Georgia. The proposed project (PI No. 0015542), is a part of GDOT's statewide bridge replacement program. The existing SR 136 bridge (Bridge ID 083-0014-0) over Lookout Creek was constructed in 1940 and reconstructed in 1988. The bridge would be replaced with a new bridge that meets current American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) specifications with regard to lane width, shoulder width, live load capacity, and crash worthy railing system.

As the project is currently in the concept phase of development, an Environmental Survey Boundary (ESB) was considered as the survey area in lieu of a formal Area of Potential Effects (APE) determination. The dimensions of the ESB were determined prior to fieldwork by the design team and were intended to encompass an area large enough to capture any potential variations in project design work. The ESB extends along SR 136 for approximately 3,326 feet (ft) (1 ,014 meters [m]) in length. The width of the ESB varies somewhat at West Creek Drive, Sells Lane, Lookout Creek Road, and Cherokee Trail to accommodate potential side-street tie-ins but is generally consistent between 340 and 360 ft (103.6 and 109.7 m). The total area of the project ESB is approximately 27.54 acres (ac) (0.40 hectares [ha]).

Prior to the start of fieldwork, a review of the Georgia's Natural, Archaeological, and Historical Resources Geographic Information System (GNAHRGIS) and the Georgia Archaeological Site Files (GASF) databases was completed. These sources revealed that the project ESB located immediately east of Lookout Creek along SR 136 had been the partial subject of a previously conducted archaeological survey conducted by GDOT in 1995 (Duff and Higginbotham 1995). The survey was performed in support of a 2-mile (3 kilometer [km]) long project within the existing ROW along SR 136 to add passing lanes. No archaeological resources were identified as a result of the 1995 survey. The background review also revealed that no archaeological sites have been recorded either within the limits of the project ESB or within a 1 km radius of its boundaries.

Site 9DD109 is a localized scatter of lithic materials identified through the subsurface recovery of approximately 40 non-diagnostic chert (Ridge and Valley) artifacts of mostly debitage. One projectile point/knife (PP/K) of indeterminate type was also recovered. While the recovered data set lacks diagnostic examples, the total deficiency of ceramic artifacts represented in the assemblage, and the similarity of the recovered PP/K fragment to Early Archaic Period Kirk Stemmed/Serrated examples recovered from northwest Georgia, indicates that a preceramic phase of the Archaic, such as the Early and Middle Archaic Periods, is possible. The site was not fully delineated due to the limit of the project ESB.