"Phase I Cultural Resources Survey of the Fawcett Tract"

Brockington and Associates, Inc. (Brockington) conducted an intensive Phase I cultural resources survey of the Fawcett Tract between November 29 and December 3, 2021 in Chatham County, Georgia. This investigation was carried out on behalf of Center Point Properties in partial fulfillment of guidelines established for Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. This survey follows standards and guidelines that are in compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) of 1966 (as amended) and its implementing regulations (36 CFR Part 800) by personnel qualified under the Secretary of the Interior’s (SOI) Standards (36 CFR Part 61) as well as in accordance with the standards set forth by the Georgia Standards and Guidelines for Archaeological Surveys (Georgia Council of Professional Archaeologists [GCPA] 2019) and the National Register Bulletin 24, Guidelines for Local Surveys: A Basis for Preservation Planning (Parker 1985).

The proposed project consists of constructing two warehouse buildings which will include utilities, paved parking lots, and access roads. Proposed development will directly impact soils that will be mechanically graded, cut, and filled. Secondary impacts will occur primarily from the movement of heavy machinery in the tract. Types of impacts may include removal and relocation of soils, clearing of vegetation, and filling activities.

The 68.3-acre project tract is located on the west side of Savannah near the boundary of the City of Savannah and Garden City to the west of SR 21 and north of US Hwy 80. The tract is bounded to the north by the Chatham City Trailer Park, to the west by the CSX railroad Central Junction, to the east by the Savannah State Farmers Market and private land, and to the south by US Hwy 80. The tract is bisected east and west by an access road off Davis Avenue that leads to two standing residential structures in the southern portion of the tract. A series of canals also bisect the tract north and south, entering from the western boundary and exiting the project tract to the east, north of the farmer’s market. For this project, we defined the archaeological Area of Potential Effects (APE) as the entire 68.3-acre project tract. We defined the architectural resources APE as the 68.3-acre project tract, as well as the immediate viewsheds. Figures 1.1 and 1.2 show the location of the project tract. Figure 1.3 presents a plan of the current project design.

Our project goals included the identification of all cultural resources located within the APE boundaries and to provide a definitive NRHP evaluation for each resource. Archival research revealed that one previously recorded archaeological site, 9CH1191 (Brampton Plantation Battlefield), is eligible for the NRHP and located partially within the project tract. We incorporated a detailed metal detection survey in our Phase I cultural resources investigation to comply with current (2019) GCPA Standards and Guidelines due to the presence of the previously recorded battlefield site.

Our cultural resources investigations consisted of background archival research to locate previously identified cultural resources and to assess the potential for new sites, as well as the completion of associated fieldwork and report production. Chapter 2 describes the methods of investigation. The environmental and cultural background of the project area is discussed in Chapter 3. Chapter 4 presents the results and management recommendations of this investigation. The artifact catalog is presented in Appendix A, an updated site revisit form for 9CH1191 is presented in Appendix B, and resumes of key personnel are presented in Appendix C.