CULTURAL RESOURCE SURVEY PROPOSED CELL TOWER SITE Trileaf# 639075 / “Mt Carmel” McIntyre, GA

In July 2018, Trileaf Corporation (Trileaf) performed a cultural resource inventory survey for a proposed raw land guyed telecommunications tower site located at 1740 Mt. Carmel Rd, McIntyre, Wilkinson County, Georgia, at coordinates 32°54’03.49” N, 83°12’40.63” W. The proposed project area consists of a lease area, proposed access/utility easement, and three guyed anchor easements currently occupied by woodland and dense shrub.

Tillman Infrastructure proposes the construction of a new guyed telecommunications tower with a total height of 335 feet (102 meters). The new tower and associated equipment will be located in a proposed approximate 100-foot by 100-foot (31-meter by 31-meter) cell tower lease area. A proposed approximate 30-foot by 450-foot (9-meter by 137-meter) access/utility easement will connect the proposed lease area to Carl Smith Road to the north- northwest. Three 30-foot (9-meter) wide guy anchor easements, approximately 175, 225, and 228 feet (53, 69, 70 meters) in length, will extend from the lease area to the east- northeast, southwest, and northwest respectively. The new tower and accompanying easements will occupy approximately 0.97 acres (0.39 hectares) of land.

Under the direction of Trileaf, Staff Archaeologist Andrew Wright, MA, RPA performed this survey in response to the planned use of the above-described parcel and the potential impacts that such use might represent to archaeological and architectural cultural resources. The Phase I cultural resource survey was designed to discover all cultural resources that might be present within the project area.

Trileaf requested information concerning previously discovered archaeological sites within the direct area of potential effect (APE) and the ¾-mile APE for visual effects from Georgia Archaeological Site File (GASF). A records search indicated there were no previously recorded archaeological sites or archaeological surveys located within the tower’s visual or direct APE.

The field survey of the project area, which included pedestrian survey and visual inspection, found no evidence for the presence of archaeological or architectural properties in relation to the current project area or within a 30-foot (9.1-meter) boundary within the direct area of potential effects (APE).

A search of Georgia’s Natural, Archaeological, and Historic Resources Geographic Information System (GNAHRGIS) and the Georgia Historic Preservation Division (GAHPD)’s archives revealed no properties listed or designated as eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic places within the ¾ -mile visual APE. No NRHP listed or eligible properties were identified within the direct APE.

In keeping with GAHPD’s request that resources lacking formal determinations of eligibility be evaluated in the field, Trileaf identified one site, Mt. Carmel Cemetery (GNAHRGIS ID#239586) without a formal determination of eligibility within the visual APE. Mt. Carmel Cemetery may be eligible for inclusion on the NRHP under Criteria A and C as it documents the spatially-defined de jure racial segregation in the American South as it existed prior to the 1964 Civil Rights Act as well as high rates of infant mortality in the region prior to widespread industrialization. The cemetery also contains a surviving 19th century example of a grave house.

As the cemetery is adjacent to mid to late 20th century structures and is surrounded by modern chain-link fencing, the construction of the proposed tower will not adversely affect its setting, nor will it impact the characteristics that make it potentially eligible for the NRHP.

Based on the results of this survey, Trileaf recommends a finding of No Historic Properties in the direct APE and No Adverse Effect to Historic Properties within the visual APE. It is recommended that project clearance be granted with no further investigation or evaluation of the project area.