Phase II Archaeological Testing at 9SU270, Sumter County, Georgia

Edwards-Pitman, Inc. (EP) conducted Phase II archaeological testing at site 9SU270 in advance of a proposed bridge replacement on County Road (CR) 313/Salters Mill Road over Pessell Creek in Sumter County, Georgia (Georgia Department of Transportation [GDOT] P.I. No. 0015640) in April 2021. The work was completed under contract with Jacobs Engineering Group, Atlanta, Georgia.

The proposed project intends to replace the bridge (Structure ID 261-5034-0) on CR 313/Salters Mill Road over Pessell Creek. CR 313/Salters Mill Road is a two-lane minor collector surrounded mostly by undeveloped woodlands and farmland. The existing 33.5-meter (m) (110-foot [ft]) long bridge is composed of steel, timber, and concrete and has a deck width of 9.2 m (30.3 ft) with two 3 m (10 ft) lanes. The existing right-of-way (ROW) is approximately 21.3 m (70 ft) in width. The proposed project will construct a 36.6 m (120 ft) long bridge with one 3.4 m (11 ft) lane in each direction. The bridge approaches will consist of one 3.4 m (11 ft) lane in each direction with rural shoulder. The bridge will be raised 1.2 m (4 ft) above the existing roadway surface to provide adequate clearance over the 100-year flood elevation. The proposed ROW is expected to be approximately 30.5 m (100 ft) in width. The project is approximately 0.21 km (0.13 mi) long. An off-site detour is anticipated.

As a result of Phase I archaeological survey for GDOT P.I. No. 0015640, three cultural resources were identified, 9SU270, 9SU271, and 9SU272. Site 9SU270, at which EP recommended additional Phase II testing to further evaluate its National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) eligibility under Criterion D, was the only identified site that was to be potentially impacted by the proposed project. Therefore, in coordination with the GDOT’s Office of Environmental Services (OES) EP designed a Phase II Testing Plan of 9SU270 which included 5 m (16.4 ft) close interval shovel tests and hand-excavated test units sufficient to ascertain the site’s eligibility for the NRHP (Appendix E).

In accordance with the Environmental Procedures Manual (EPM) and in consultation with GDOT, only those portions of the site that fell within the Area of Potential Effect (APE) based on the August 2020 plans are considered the Area of Interest (AOI) for the purposes of this Phase II archaeological investigation. The results of the research performed for this report do not apply to any area outside the Phase II AOI, unless otherwise specifically indicated.

These investigations have revealed that 9SU270 is a Late Archaic campsite with a minor Middle Archaic and Woodland and/or Mississippi period components. The site also contains a Historicera late nineteenth to early- to mid-twentieth century component; however, the historic component of the site is minor, and it is not a contributing factor to the site’s NRHP eligibility. The AOI portion Phase II Archaeological Testing at 9SU270, Sumter County, Georgia of the site does contain partial vertical integrity, with horizontal distribution hinting at the possibility of discrete activity areas. Despite the inability of the Phase I survey to establish a northern boundary for the site, EP recommends site 9SU270 as eligible for the NRHP under Criterion D.