An Intensive Historical and Archaeological Assessment Survey of the JCB Property

During June 1998, an intensive cultural resource assessment survey was conducted by Environmental Services, Inc. (ESI) of a 1,052 acre tract in Chatham County, Georgia. The goal of this study was to locate, identify, delineate, and evaluate all cultural resources within the tract, including prehistoric and historic archaeological sites and historic structures, This tract is the proposed site of a JCB Special Products, Ltd. manufacturing facility, and it consists primarily of abandoned agricultural fields and a floodplain associated with Pipemaker's Creek/Canal. Only portions of the surveyed tract are now proposed for permitting. Prior to fieldwork, areas of the property were ranked as having low, medium, and high probability for containing archaeological sites based upon their environmental characteristics and the distribution of known sites in the general vicinity. The cultural resource assessment included a pedestrian inspection combined with systematic shovel testing at 30 and 15 meter intervals. A total of 433 shovel tests was excavated within the project area, resulting in the discovery of two archaeological sites (9CH883 and 9CH884) and the relocation of one recorded site (9CH 10). Extensive shovel testing of these sites demonstrated that they are not eligible for the National Register of Historic Places and they do not merit additional archaeological investigation. It should also be noted that none of the archaeological sites was found within either of the tracts for which permits are being sought. In addition to the archaeological sites, 17 structures were noted within the project tract; none of these middle to late twentieth century structures is a significant historical resource. However, portions of the southern boundary of the project tract are formed by the abandoned Central of Georgia Railroad bed; while these portions are eligible for the National Register of Historic Places, it should be noted that no portions of this railroad will be impacted by the current project. Therefore, it is recommended that the proposed project be allowed to proceed as planned without future historic preservation compliance involvement.