Archaeological Survey of Selected Areas in Ft. Benning, Chattahoochee and Muscogee Counties, Georgia: Victory Focus Area 1, 2, and 3; South Harmony Church; and Two Parcles Within Lawson Army Airfield

Panamerican Consultants, Inc. (PCI), performed an intensive archaeological survey of 1,983.8 hectares (ha), or 4,900 acres (ac) within Ft. Benning Military Reservation in Chattahoochee and Muscogee Counties, Georgia. The fieldwork took place between December 27, 1993 and March 31, 1994. The goal of the survey was to make a complete inventory of all cultural resources in Areas 1, 2, and 3 of the Victory Focus military training exercise area, in the South Harmony Church parcel, and in two parcels in Lawson Army Airfield. The survey scope of work called for intensive pedestrian coverage using 30-meter (m) shovel test intervals along parallel transects also 30 m apart. In all, 8,523 shovel test locations were documented. Of this number, 3,911 shovel tests were excavated, including 266 shovel tests that produced cultural materials and 3,645 shovel tests with negative results. There were 4,612 documented shovel test locations where excavation was inappropriate due to standing water, extreme slope, or subsoil at ground surface. A total volume of 149.42 cubic m (m3) is estimated to have been excavated by shovel testing. The average shovel test depth for the five areas combined was 42.4 cm. The survey produced 89 newly recorded sites and 64 isolated finds. One site, 9Ce524, had been documented earlier in the South Harmony Church portion of the survey area. Another site, 9Ce433, had been recorded earlier in Victory Focus Area 2. Of the newly recorded archaeological sites, 28 are historic, 39 have both prehistoric and historic materials, and 22 have only prehistoric materials. Previously recorded 9Ce524 and 9Ce433 were both prehistoric and historic. Prehistoric evidence among the sites spans the Early Archaic through Mississippian times. Historic sites tend to be minimal scatters of African/EuroAmerican home sites occupied in the 1800s or early 1900s. The historic sites are heavily damaged and lack standing structures. No sites are recommended eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). Nineteen new sites are recommended potentially eligible for listing in the NRHP: 9Ce616 (prehistoric), 9Ce655 (prehistoric), 9Ce657 (historic), 9Ce668 (prehistoric), 9Ce672 (prehistoric/historic), 9Ce673 (historic), 9Ce674 (historic), 9Ce678 (prehistoric/historic), 9Ce683 (historic/prehistoric), 9Ce684 (historic/prehistoric), 9Me124 (prehistoric), 9Me125 (historic), 9Mel39 (historic/ prehistoric), 9Mel42 (historic), 9Me148 (historic), 9Me152 (historic/prehistoric), 9Me154 (historic), 9Mel58 (historic/ prehistoric), and 9Me163 (historic). Previously recorded 9Ce524 (prehistoric/historic) and 9Ce433 (historic/ prehistoric), are recommended potentially eligible for the NRHP. Seventy sites are recommended ineligible for listing in the NRHP.