Archaeological Testing of 3 Cultural Properties (T) 9Ri C.p. 3, (T) 9Ri C.p. 4, and (T) 9Bur C.p. 29

Archaeological testing was conducted within Designated Work Areas (study areas) at three cultural properties within the proposed corridor of the Vogtle-Goshen Electric Transmission Line, in Burke and Richmond Counties, Georgia. Ri3 was determined potentially to be a refuse disposal area associated with an outbuilding or barn which was probably part of an early twentieth century farm complex located primarily to the east of the study area. A single ditch-like feature, possibly an old path, was recognized at Ri3, but no other features or intact foundations were discovered within the study area. Test excavations indicate that a grave marker present probably has been displaced, and that the actual grave is apparently not within the study area. No further investigation is recommended for the portion of this property within the Designated Work Area. Ri4 probably dates to the late nineteenth to early twentieth century. The portion of the cultural property tested seems to represent a front yard context associated with a probable house located immediately to the west of the study area. Artifact evidence and oral history suggest that this structure may have burned in the 1920s or 1930s. Because of previous disturbance probabilities and the lack of significant research potential within the Designated Work Area, no further work is recommended for the Ri4 study area. The study area at Bur29 yielded very small amounts of prehistoric and historic materials, almost all from the plow zone. No features were documented, and the study area is interpreted as a peripheral location with the artifacts possibly displaced by downslope movement. No further investigation is recommended for the Designated Work Area at Bur29.