Archaeological Survey of a Proposed Parking Lot in the City of Thomson, McDuffie County, Georgia

Southeastern Archeological Services, Inc. conducted archival research and completed an archeological survey of a proposed parking lot to be located in the southwest quadrant of a block of downtown Thomson north of 1st Avenue and west of Main Street. This block is in the Thomson Commercial Historic District, which was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. Federal Highway Administration (Transportation Enhancement Act) funds are being sought to construct the paved and landscaped parking lot, and thus compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act is required. The quadrant is presently devoid of structures and mostly consists of a deteriorating paved parking lot. Archival research (mainly through cartographic sources) and fieldwork was conducted by the author in mid-January, 2005. In compliance with Section 106, the goals of the survey were to locate, delineate, describe and evaluate archeological resources in the area of potential effect for the project. Evaluation was made in terms of whether any resources would contribute to the eligibility of the existing National Register district.

The quadrant under consideration, which is the back portion (that is, away from Main Street) of the block, never contained substantial dwellings or buildings. A series of Sanborn Insurance maps from 1895 to 1930 show a few small dwellings replaced by a livery stable and a few wooden stores or storage buildings. By 1930, there was only one small store (of brick) on the comer of the tract, and this was razed in the late 1960s or 1970s. Since almost the entire tract is asphalted today, we were able to excavate only five shovel tests. All five revealed several layers of fill/rubble containing small bits of glass and metal. One yielded an 1893 dime. The quadrant has several feet of relief and several storm water drains.

We conclude that this quadrant of the block, the area of potential effect for the proposed undertaking, does not contain significant archeological deposits, artifacts or sites. The project area never contained important or substantial buildings and the physical integrity of the tract has been significantly compromised by grading and paving, especially that which was related to storm water run-off. Therefore, we recommend that, in regard to archeological resources, this quadrant of the block does not contribute to the significance of the Thomson Commercial Historic District and that the proposed undertaking, the construction of a parking lot, should be granted clearance to proceed.