Archaeological and historical investigations were conducted in the area of Underground Atlanta to evaluate and determine the National Register of Historic Places eligibility for two trash middens dated to the late nineteenth century. These trash middens had been located during reconnaissance phase investigations conducted for the Underground Festival Development Company. The archaeological research during the testing phase focused on determining the extent, content, and integrity of these midden deposits, while the historical research attempted to construct an ethnographic view of this area, known as the "Heart of Atlanta", as it appeared in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The trash middens were not determined to be significant resources. One was apparently an alley midden with an uncertain sociocultural affiliation, while the other had been impacted by storm sewer construction and also by severe erosion. The research conducted during this phase did reveal the quantity and nature of geophysical alteration which had occurred in this area, as well as identify causes for the decline of the Heart of Atlanta.
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