Cultural Resource Heritage Report: Hillsboro Lake Timber Sale, Oconee Ranger District, Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests, Jones County, Georgia

The Oconee Ranger District of the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests has again prepared a timber sale project at Hillsboro Lake in Compartment 121, just east of the community of Hillsboro, in Jasper County1, Georgia (Figs. 1 and 2). This is essentially the same as that planned in 2005 (Wettstaed), with slightly different configurations to the sale units. The 2005 sale never went to auction. The 95 acres of proposed cutting units had all been previously surveyed to standard, although the historic Uncle Remus Ranger Station remained unrecorded and in 2010, two more sites were noted by a timber trainee when flagging the boundaries of the cutting units (which, as noted above, have changed). All three have been recorded for the current project, as have two more sites noted during the course of the fieldwork. One previously recorded, unevaluated site was revisited for this project, while two other sites, previously determined not eligible, were not. Please see Table 1, below. Sites marked in bold are those visited for this project. Sites flagged for avoidance include 9JO223, the previously recorded lumber dry kiln, and 9JO329, the newly recorded cemetery. The remaining sites, newly recorded 9JO380, 9JO381, 9JO382, and 9JO383, were either not flagged because they were determined not eligible in this report, or because they lay outside the sale units, and therefore the Area of Potential Effect. Fieldwork was conducted over five days in March, April, and May, 2012, by the District Archaeologist and author of this report, assisted by Silviculture Trainee Denise Bailey. The project has been determined no effect for historic properties according to implementing regulation 36 CFR 800.4(d)(1).