Archeological Testing Site 9GW308 and Site 9GW311 Sugarloaf Farm Country Club Gwinnett County, Georgia

R.S. Webb & Associates conducted evaluative testing excavations at Sites 9GW308 and 9GW311 located on Sugarloaf Farm. Sugarloaf Farm is southeast of Duluth, Georgia in Gwinnett County. Sites 9GW308 and 9GW311 were detected during a cultural resources survey of Sugarloaf Farm conducted by New South Associates. Site 9GW308 is a 20th century house site midden and Site 9GW311 is a late 19th to 20th century farmstead with a standing house, an associated yard midden and a barn. Archeological testing was recommended for these sites to determine if archeological remains are eligible for the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). An architectural evaluation was recommended for Site 9GW311 (and three other sites with standing architecture) to determine if the structures at Site 9GW311 are eligible for the NRHP. The architectural evaluation was conducted by Greenhorne & O'Mara, and the findings of this evaluation are presented in a separate report. Archeological testing was conducted by R.S. Webb & Associates. Archeological testing at Sites 9GW308 and 9GW311 was conducted during the period of January 30, 1995 to February 3, 1995. Site plans were prepared, followed by the re-examination of survey shovel tests and the excavation of additional shovel tests to determine where test units would be located. Four, 7 by 7 foot test units were excavated at each site. Testing at Site 9GW308 revealed a disturbed midden containing artifacts dating from the early 20th century to the 1960s or 1970s. Two modern features were detected in the subsoil and recorded. One of these features, Feature 1, contained post-1950 glass artifacts. The function of Feature 2 could not be determined. These findings indicate that the deposits retained at Site 9GW308 are less than 50 years old and quite common in the region. For this reason, Site 9GW308 is recommended as ineligible for the NRHP. Excavations at Site 9GW311, show that the house was occupied from the late 19th or early 20th century until the 1990s. Two minor prehistoric components (Early Archaic and Late Archaic) are also present. A late historic discard midden and four 20th century features were exposed during testing. The discard midden is dominated by middle to late 20th century artifacts. These items are mixed with a low frequency of late 19th century, early 20th century and prehistoric artifacts. Features included three late 19th century or 20th century post features and a middle to late 20th century drain pipe. The mixing of the artifacts, the common nature of the site and the domination of the assemblage by middle to late 20th century artifacts indicate that the midden deposits are unlikely to yield significant archeological information. In fact, a significant amount of the deposits appear to be less than 50 years old. Given these findings, Site 9GW311 is recommended ineligible for the NRHP.