Archeological Survey and Site Testing for the Proposed Replacement of the State Route 372 Bridge over the Etowah River, Cherokee County, Georgia

Southeastern Archeological Services, Inc conducted an archeological survey within the project corridor for a proposed State Route (SR) 372 bridge replacement over the Etowah River in Cherokee County, Georgia. The survey was designed to locate and evaluate archeological sites that could be adversely affected by the proposed project. Five archeological sites were identified within the area of potential effect (APE). Three of these sites are recent historic period sites, representing demolished houses from the late nineteenth or early twentieth centuries. These sites have been recommended as ineligible to the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). Another site is a sparse prehistoric artifact scatter of unknown age in an eroded area, also recommended as ineligible to the NRHP. To the north of the existing bridge and on both sides of SR 372, survey identified site 9CK1, the Long Swamp Site, a well-known Mississippian, Late Woodland, and Historic Cherokee village site that appeared eligible to the NRHP. Excavations at the site by Wauchope (1939) had already demonstrated the existence of significant archeological deposits that warranted avoidance, but the exact location of these deposits was uncertain. Due to limited project alternatives, the location and extent of significant deposits within site 9CK1 needed to be determined. The portion of site 9CK1 within a revised, narrower APE was evaluated through Phase II testing. Through Phase II evaluation, the portion of site 9CK1 within the APE was found to be well preserved and to contain significant archeological deposits. Therefore, we have recommended it as eligible for listing on the National Register of Historical Places (NRHP). The site should be avoided to prevent any adverse effects from the proposed project, or any adverse effects to the site will need to be mitigated by intensive archeological data recovery guided by a robust research design.