An Archaeological Survey of Four Tracts for Proposed Land Swap, Rabun County, Georgia

In May 2007, Southeastern Archeological Services conducted an intensive, Phase I archeological survey of four tracts of U.S. Forest land that are proposed to be transferred from the U.S. Forest Service to the Rabun County Board of Education, the Rabun County Board of Commissioners and the Economic Development Authority of Rabun County. The tracts are 3, 20, 70 and 100 acres and are located in the southern portion of the county. Section 106 of the Historic Preservation Act of 1966 requires that federal agencies consider the effects of federal undertakings (such as this transfer of land) on significant cultural resources, which are those eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. Our survey is one step in meeting that requirement. Archival research at the Georgia Archaeological Site Files and the U.S. Forest Service headquarters in Gainesville showed that several archeological surveys had been conducted in and around the project areas, and that two sites were likely to exist in two of the subject tracts. Our field survey conducted from May 8 through May 18, 2007 located and recorded eight sites, including the two previously recorded ones. In addition to these sites, we noted the location and condition of the bed of the long abandoned Tallulah Falls Railroad, which has been judged to be eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. We understand that the railroad bed forms the western boundary of two of the tracts (the 20 ac and 3 ac tracts) and thus lies just outside of the area of potential effect for the proposed land transfer. We recommend that only one of the eight sites is potentially eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. We recommend that either the site area be avoided by any ground disturbing activities (that is, the site be preserved in place) or that the site be archeologically tested to determine its significance in terms of eligibility to the National Register. Provided that the site can be avoided and preserved in place, or that it is archeologically tested and dealt with in accordance with the testing results, and provided that the land swap does not include the bed of the Tallulah Falls Railroad, we conclude that the proposed land swap of the four tracts will not adversely affect significant archeological resources.