Addendum Phase I Archaeological Resources Survey of the Proposed West Lake Avenue Bridge Replacement Over the CSX/MARTA Railroad, Fulton County, Georgia

This document addresses new changes to Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) PI No. 0015298, the proposed West Lake Avenue bridge replacement located in Fulton County, Georgia within the city limits of Atlanta. As part of a statewide bridge replacement effort, GDOT proposes to improve the safety and functionality of the roadway by replacing the existing bridge structure carrying West Lake Avenue over a segment of the CSX/Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (CSX/MARTA) railroads.

The existing bridge is 172 feet (ft) (52.4 meters [m]) long and 42 ft (12.8 m) wide. The existing right-of-way (ROW) along this portion of West Lake Avenue is 50 ft (15.2 m) and the proposed ROW would be between 50 and 220 ft (15.2 and 67.1 m). The total length of the project is approximately 0.24 miles (0.39 kilometers [km]). This project was initially surveyed for archaeological resources in 2018 by VHB, with the results of the survey concurred with by the Georgia State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) in 2020 (Welch O’Connor 2019).

Since the time of the initial 2018 archaeological survey, GDOT Project PI No. 0015298 has undergone additional project design modifications. At the time of the initial survey, the project was in a preliminary concept phase, thus the survey area was defined as the total length and width of an Environmental Survey Boundary (ESB) provided by the design team. Since that time, the APE has been defined and reflects current design plans.

Segments of the 2021 project APE extend outside of previous archaeological survey coverage provided by the 2018 VHB survey effort (Welch O’Connor 2019). The portions of the project APE that have not been previously surveyed are the subject of this addendum and will be referred to as the Addendum Survey Area. The Addendum Survey Area measures 593 ft (181 m) in length by 49 ft (15 m) in width, for a total area of 0.54 ac (0.21 hectares [ha]).

Prior to the start of fieldwork, a review of Georgia’s Natural, Archaeological, and Historic Resources Geographic Information System (GNAHRGIS) and the Georgia Archaeological Site File (GASF) databases was completed. These sources revealed seven previously recorded archaeological sites located within 1 km of the 2021 Addendum Survey Area: 9FU83, 9FU96, 9FU97, 9FU715, 9FU716, 9FU720, and 9FU721. Three of these sites are associated with the Civil War battlefield for the Battle of Ezra Church (9FU83, 9FU96, and 9FU97). Site 9FU721 is recommended eligible for the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP); Sites 9FU83, 9FU96, 9FU97, 9FU715, 9FU716, and 9FU720 are of unknown eligibility for the NRHP. Site 9FU96 falls within the current Addendum Survey Area. One previous archaeological survey has been conducted within the Addendum Survey Area. A revisit of site 9FU96 was conducted, during which no new archaeological materials were identified within the site limits.

During the course of survey, a total of five shovel tests were excavated within the Addendum Survey Area. A total of two shovel tests were recorded as “No Digs” due to a paved path. Locations of no digs were subjected to pedestrian visual inspection in lieu of shovel testing. Metal detecting was also conducted due to the high probability of Civil War artifacts within the area associated with the Battle of Ezra Church Battlefield, located within the limits of the Addendum Survey Area. There were no positive metal detector hits for historic materials within the Addendum Survey Area.

Site 9FU96 is a multi-component site consisting of artifacts related to the Civil War, twentieth century historic materials, and modern materials. The site was originally recorded as severely impacted by grading and construction activities during a survey conducted for the MARTA north-south lines (Carnes and Dickens 1979). As the site demonstrated poor preservation and limited artifact recovery from a shallow stratigraphy, the site was recommended ineligible for the NRHP. VHB conducted a revisit of 9FU96 in 2018, which resulted in two positive shovel tests and 10 positive metal detector hits for twentieth century materials (Welch O’Connor 2019). No evidence of Civil War-era military activity was identified within the 2019 project area. Due to past infilling, grading, and modern disturbance throughout the portion of the site in the previous survey area, the site was found to lack integrity of location, design, setting, and association. The site did not appear to have significant data potential under Criterion D and no change was offered to the previous ineligible recommendation for the NRHP. As no additional materials were identified within the Addendum Survey Area during this 2021 revisit, site 9FU96 remains ineligible for the NRHP.