Phase I Archaeological Survey of Fifteen Intersections in Lowndes County Lowndes County, Georgia

New South Associates has completed an archaeological survey of 15 intersections in Lowndes County, Georgia in response to a request from Atkins, North America, Inc. The Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) plans to upgrade 15 signalized intersections along State Roads (SR) 7BU, 7SB, 38, and 38BU under Project PI#0012846. The proposed improvements would upgrade equipment, accommodate pedestrians, and bring the intersections to Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards. The work for this survey was conducted in compliance with 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 in the project’s area of potential effect (APE). The following table provides a list of the intersections that will be affected.

The project APE is based on the predefined spatial limits of the proposed intersection improvements provided to New South Associates by the Atkins North America, Inc. team who designed the improvements. All proposed improvements are located within the existing right of way. An area of 100 feet (30.5 m) beyond the APE was defined as the Expanded Survey Corridor (ESC) as required by GDOT in the Environmental Procedures Manual and was included in the survey.

As a result of the present survey, one new site (9LW165) was identified in the northeast quadrant of Intersection 1. Site 9LW165 is a moderately dense historic-period artifact scatter with both subsurface and surface contexts and is located immediately south of a compacted dirt and gravel driveway. The artifact assemblage includes brick fragments, container glass, porcelain, milk glass, wire nails, and assorted unidentified metal. There is also a partially buried concrete slab approximately two meters north of the site datum. All artifacts were recovered from a secondary context, within 25 centimeters of ground surface level. Road construction, buried utilities installation, and razing/house demolition have caused significant disturbance to the area. It is the opinion of New South that 9LW165 is not eligible for National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) inclusion due to a lack of depositional integrity.

The proposed intersection improvements are not likely to disturb archaeological sites on or eligible for listing on the NRHP. No further work is necessary to satisfy Section 106 requirements and the planned undertaking may proceed.