An Archeological Reconnaissance Survey of the Proposed Sawgrass Cove Apartment Complex, Darien Lower Bluff, McIntosh

The purpose of this report is to present the findings of a recently conducted archeological reconnaissance survey of a parcel of land in McIntosh County, Georgia tentatively scheduled for development as the Sawgrass Cove Apartment Complex. A Gainesville, Florida construction firm, Davis and Sons Construction Company, retains option to construct a multi-unit residential apartment complex on some 2.5 hectares (6.3 acres) of land located approximately 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) east of Darien, Georgia (Figure 1). Fieldwork was conducted from February 18, 1983 to February 25, 1983 and required approximately 200 man hours for completion by a survey crew of four. The proposed construction site lies adjacent to and in the vicinity of several National Register properties including Fort King George as well as Darien National Register District, and appeared to retain a high probability of containing archeological and/or historical sites. Although no extant structures were reported to exist on the survey tract, the likelihood of occurrence of archeological materials or sites associated with the known and varied occupation of nearby Fort King George seemed high. The purpose of this reconnaissance survey was to determine the presence or absence of such materials or sites on the proposed construction area as well as to make recommendations for the manipulation of those sites should they occur. The following report details the research strategy utilized to conduct the survey of the Sawgrass Cove tract as well as its findings. A systematic sampling procedure, in the form of screened subsurface shovel tests, was employed to establish the presence or absence of archeological or historic materials or sites on the project area. Test excavations were also conducted in four selected areas of the survey tract. Secondary or intense testing of discovered sites was not undertaken at the present level of investigation.