Archeological Survey of Two Alternative Routes for the Proposed Thompson Mill Road Distribution Line, Houston County, Georgia

This report presents the results of a Phase I archeological survey of two alternative routes of a proposed distribution line performed by Southeastern Archeological Services, Inc. in eastern Houston County, where Flint Energies, in cooperation with the Georgia Transmission Corporation, wishes to construct about 12,800 ft (2.42 mi) of distribution line along the north side of Thompson Mill Creek. In the original proposed configuration of the route, about 5,800 ft (1.1 mi) of the line traversed uplands, and the remainder skirted the edge of the Thompson Mill Creek floodplain. The entire line would be placed in conduit that will be bored about 4 ft below ground surface, within a 30-ft wide cleared corridor. About every 1,000 ft an access portal would be excavated to a depth of about 4 ft. The goal of the survey was to locate and evaluate any archeological resources that may be adversely affected by the construction of the distribution line. The survey was undertaken in compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended. The area of potential effect for the project consisted of a 30-ft wide corridor that was about 2.42 mile long. The archeological survey of this original route was conducted in late December 2016 and January 2017.

Archival research showed no previously recorded archeological sites or former houses within the original corridor. Our survey discovered and documented eight prehistoric archeological sites that will be intercepted by the original route of the proposed line. Because all of the sites are large and extend beyond the survey corridor, we cannot confidently assess the significance of most of the sites without further archeological investigation. Thus the significance of all but one of the sites, expressed in terms of eligibility for listing in the National Register of Historic Places, is unknown. Based on the high relative artifact density and the presence of pottery, we conclude that one site, 9HT250, is eligible for listing in the National Register and would be adversely affected by the originally proposed routing of the distribution line. Portions of two other sites, 9HT253 and 9HT254, have pottery and sufficient artifact density to suggest that they might be eligible. The proposed project corridor passes through the portions of these two sites with this potential, and so the project could adversely affect these two sites. At the other five sites 9HT251, 9HT252, 9HT2555, 9HT256 and 9HY257, the portions to be affected do not contribute to the site’s overall eligibility and project implementation is not likely to create adverse affects to these sites. We recommend that project implementation using the original route adjacent to the floodplain of Thompson Mill Creek is likely to adversely affect National Register eligible archeological sites (especially site 9HT250) and that either routing and plans should be altered to avoid the three possibly eligible sites, or the sites should be archeologically tested to firmly assess site significance.

When the tentative recommendations cited above were provided to Flint Energies in January 2017, they began researching alternative routes for the distribution line. An alternative route developed in February 2017 uses the same upland western half of the original route, and then routes the line along recently constructed subdivision roads for the eastern half of the project area. The new, alternative route is about 11,400 ft (2.16 mi) long. Since virtually all of the new, eastern portion of the alternative route was in graded and disturbed roadways, only a 600-ft (183-m) length of crosscountry corridor needed to be archeologically surveyed for the new, alternative route. This was surveyed on April 24, 2017 and two lithic scatter sites, 9HT258 and 9HT259, were discovered.

The alternative route intercepts three archeological sites, Site 9HT257 from the original survey and sites 9HY258 and 9HT259 from the later survey of the alternative route. Again because we have examined only a small portion of each of these sites we cannot firmly assess the eligibility of the overall sites, but we can say that the portions of each within the area of potential effect does not contribute to the eligibility of the sites. Thus, the proposed alternative route of the distribution line, mostly along roads and away from the floodplain of Thompson Mill Creek, will not adversely affect any sites eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places.

Therefore, we recommend that the alternative route for the proposed distribution line, the one that uses subdivision road rights-of-way in the eastern half, should be the route selected for the proposed distribution line. If this route is selected and is constructed as depicted on project plans provided to us in February 2017, then we recommend that no significant archeological sites will be adversely affected and that the project should be granted clearance to proceed with no further archeological investigation.