Addenendum Phase I Archaeological Survey: SR 9 Bridge Replacement Over the Chestatee River

New South Associates, Inc. (New South) has completed fieldwork and laboratory analysis for an addendum Phase I Archaeological Survey of the proposed bridge replacement along State Route (SR) 9/US 19 at its intersection with US 129/SR 11/Turners Corner Road at the Chestatee River crossing in Lumpkin County, Georgia (GDOT PI No. 0015556). The addendum survey took place in the project’s revised Environmental Survey Boundary (ESB), referred to herein as the Addendum ESB, which extends the area to be surveyed by approximately 150 meters to the north and 150 meters to the south of the original ESB. The survey was completed pursuant to Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, as amended (36 CFR 800), and was intended to identify and preliminarily evaluate the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) eligibility of archaeological resources in the project’s ESB.

One previously recorded archaeological site, 9LU3, was relocated on the terrace of the Chestatee River. Previously documented only in site file data, this resource had not been precisely mapped and its components, chronology, and function were not known. Artifacts recovered by New South, local lore, and private collections identify Site 9LU3 as a late eighteenth-early nineteenth century American Indian site. Portions of its archaeological deposits are deeply buried beneath alluvial soils. Site 9LU3 is spatially extensive, moderately dense in artifacts, and attributed to the Cherokee just before Removal on the basis of several lines of evidence. The key unanswered question for the portion of 9LU3 in the ESB is integrity. It is unclear if the thick A-horizons are natural or have been thickened during road construction activities. It is also unknown if earlier components may be present beneath the reach of the shovel tests. The few shovel tests excavated during the Phase I survey do not represent an adequate sample size or soil exposure to confidently reconstruct site formation processes.

It is New South’s opinion that additional data would be necessary before offering a NRHP recommendation for Site 9LU3 under Criteria A and D. New South recommends that Site 9LU3 be avoided during construction through the establishment of an Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) and placement of orange barrier fencing (OBF). If the site cannot be avoided, Phase II evaluation is recommended in order to definitively determine the NRHP eligibility of the site.