Addendum Phase I Archaeological Survey of Proposed Changes to SR 72 Corridor

The Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) is in the planning stages for a proposed widening and realignment project to improve State Route (SR) 72 in Madison County under PI Nos. 122100 and 122650, Project No. EDS00-072-00(028) and EDS00-072-00(39). While three previous archaeological surveys have been conducted as part of this GDOT project based on former configurations, recent revisions to the layout added 18 new easement locations that required an archaeological survey. New South Associates conducted an archaeological survey of these proposed easements along the SR 72 corridor in response to a request by the HNTB Corporation, on behalf of the GDOT. These 18 new easement locations, referred to herein as Area of Potential Effect (APE) sections, are located along the original SR 72 corridor; the combined acreage of all of the APE sections is 11.25 acres. The western end of this corridor is located at the intersection of SR 72 and Zetta Lee Johnson Road, and the eastern end terminates where SR 72 crosses the Broad River approximately 0.37 miles, or 600 meters east of River Road. The work for this survey was conducted per Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended (36 CFR 800) and was intended to determine the presence of significant archaeological resources at specific locations within the project's APE sections. As a result of the survey, one previously recorded archaeological site and one new isolated find were identified. The previously recorded site, 9MD122, was documented in 1999 during the survey of the original layout of the project corridor (Pluckhahn 1999). This site was originally recorded as a middle to late nineteenth-century house site and precontact lithic scatter; the site was recommended as not eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) at that time. During the current survey, the site was relocated in APE Section M and based on the data recovered, New South Associates concurs with the not eligible recommendation. The isolated find (Find 1) consists of a glass insulator recovered from the surface within APE Section B. This isolated find does not meet the requirements to be defined as an archaeological site and is therefore considered not eligible for listing in the NRHP. Based on the current investigation, the proposed activities will not have an adverse impact upon any NRHP eligible or potentially eligible archaeological resource. New South Associates recommends that no additional archaeological investigations be conducted and that the proposed undertaking proceed upon concurrence with these findings by the State Historic Preservation Office.