Summary Report of Four Vining Phase Excavations in Central Georgia

The Vining Archaeological Phase for Central Georgia was first proposed in 1938 by A.R. Kelly, and was subsequently subsumed into a larger, earlier phase. Recent test excavations of four sites: Guthrie, Passport, Fant-Davis, and Elliott, by the U.S. Forest Service on the Oconee National Forest are reported here. These projects reveal that this phase may be crucial to understanding the cultural chronology of central Georgia. The Vining phase is defined by the co-occurrence of simple stamped pottery and Mississippian triangular points. It has been tentatively dated to 900-1000 A.D., and it is indicative of a Late Woodland/Emergent Mississippian population. Vining sites are located on ridge tops, and these cultures do not appear to have practiced intensive corn agriculture. The results of testing at these four sites indicates that the Vining phase does exist, and that variation within this phase, especially in terms of its settlement patterns, is apparent. Continued research on Vining phase sites should focus on the similarities and variations apparent in this phase, and further define this culture. All four sites included within this report were excavated with the aid of Forest Service volunteers, and through the Forest Service's national volunteer cultural heritage program, called Passport in Time. Efforts such as these demonstrate that important sites in Georgia can be excavated and preserved in a timely manner using volunteer labor, while at the same time increase public awareness of the archaeological resources on federal lands for the public benefit. All four sites are considered eligible for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places, as they meet criterion (d), containing data important to the understanding of prehistory in central Georgia.