A Preliminary Site Report for Archaeological Salvage Undertaken at 9Ge175

9Ge175 is located on the east bank of the Oconee River at the southernmost end of Riley Shoals. The site is on a low, very narrow floodplain with a broad, flat terrace beginning a few meters to the east. Approximately one hundred and fifty meters east of the river, the slope to the upland ridges begins.

The site itself is naturally bounded on the west by the Oconee River and on the east by a series of large tors. The site was first discovered by DePratter's 1976 survey, and was recognized due to the presence of archaeological materials on the surface. The area bounded by tors displays a pronounced slope downward toward the river (Fig. 3). It is likely that the surface materials eroded from the areas of the site where some midden lies exposed to the surface. 

A 1x1 meter test pit was excavated near the central area of the site by Rudolph in February, 1978. Profiles from that test show a complex stratigraphy of alternating layers of loam and black midden to a depth of approximately 1 meter below the surface. The entire site, including Rudolph's filled-in test pit, was overlain by a tan sand layer of approximately 2cm thickness. Apparently, clearing of the area upslope from the site resulted in a greatly accelerated deposition of course sand. 

Portions of the site nearer than 2 meters from the river appear to have been scoured away by the river's action. In this area, midden tapers out and is replaced by a red alluvial loam which contained both historic and aboriginal artifacts. Although a few historic artifacts appear on the surface of the site, the 8 subsurface deposits (with the exception of the red alluvial loam mentioned above) appear to be exclusively Lamar.