Archaeological Survey Proposed Transmission Line Relocation Corridor (G.P.C. Location H-327), Oconee National Forest, Greene County, Georgia

The survey area is located in Greene County, Georgia, approximately 7.6 miles northwest of Greensboro, Georgia and approximately 1.3 miles south of the intersection of U. S. 278 (Ga. 12) and timber access road, which crosses the survey area at GPC survey point 450+46. The Apalachee River flows to the southeast, approximately 500 feet southwest of the survey area's western end. The survey was conducted to locate, identify, and access all cultural resources present in a transmission line relocation corridor. The transmission line relocation was made necessary by activities connected with the Georgia Power Wallace Dam Project, including the flooding of the Apalachee River basin. The method chosen for the field survey depended to a great extent on the poor ground visibility within the area. Three transects were run the entire length. of the corridor. One on each boundary of, the transmission right-of-way and a third down the surveyed center line (Fig. 2). This line was well flagged and the stations marked and easily visible. Because of this it was relatively easy for the crew to locate itself in the field. Beginning at the access road (Fig. 2) the crew first followed the corridor on the west side and later surveyed the corridor to the east. Shovel cuts were made along each transect at 10 meter intervals to sterile red clay subsoil. Because of the shallowness and at times absence of topsoil it was deemed more efficient to use shovel cuts rather than hand auger borings. There appear to be several reasons which could explain the apparent absence of cultural resources within the study area. First, the area has been disturbed in the recent past by lumbering activities as indicated by the occasional patches of eroded soil and old logging roads. Second, the poor quality of the soil indicates the probability that the area was used for field crops, possibly cotton, in the more distant past. Third, the higher parts of the area, above the interface between the Apalachee River and the uplands, are relatively far from a permanent water source (over 500 meters), making the uplands an unlikely area for prehistoric habitation. We are confident that no sites are present within the study area. We are also certain that no sites meeting the minimum criteria for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places are present.