Fort Hawkins: 2005-2007 Field Seasons

This report documents the archaeological investigations conducted from 2005 to 2007 at Fort Hawkins (913i21) in Bibb County, Georgia. The LAMAR Institute's study of Fort Hawkins began in partnership with The Society for Georgia Archaeology, the Fort Hawkins Commission, and many interested volunteers. During the 2005 and 2006 excavation seasons archaeologists discovered two distinctive building episodes for Fort Hawkins and explored several substantial buildings, midden deposits, seven palisade lines, and other features associated with the U.S. Army fort. The excavation team recovered nearly 37,300 artifacts and well over 4,000 food bones from the site. The study also included extensive research of primary documents and a thorough review of secondary histories pertaining to the site. The historical and archaeological data gathered in 2007 are integrated into an earlier edition of the Fort Hawkins site report that described the findings from the 2005-2006 investigations (Elliott 2007) to produce this current, revised and updated report. Together, the history and archaeology are combined to tell the "real" story of Fort Hawkins. This report addresses the importance of Fort Hawkins as a U.S. Army Command, Indian Trade factory, U.S. Army garrison (1806-1819), and troop staging area. This revised report corrects many errors and clears up many misconceptions about Fort Hawkins and it provides recommendations for future management of this unique cultural resource. The main goal for the October 2007 excavation project was to excavate the East Palisade Number 1 and portions of South Palisade Number 1, or two walls of the outer compound at Fort Hawkins so that reconstruction of the palisade in these areas could begin. The research team achieved these two goals and discovered much more, including three additional palisade walls on the southeast side of the fort that were previously unknown. New historical research revealed that the outer compound and these newly discovered palisade walls were probably constructed in 18091810 by the U.S. Army's Regiment of Rifles. These new data force a reinterpretation of the fort's configuration and of the research potential surrounding its blockhouses. The report concludes with recommendations for its future management.