Phase I Archaeological Survey of the Proposed Boston 69/12 Kv Substation, Thomas County, Georgia

The results of a Phase I archaeological survey of a 9 acre tract of land in Thomas County are documented by this report. The research was conducted by Garrow & Associates, Inc., Atlanta, for Oglethorpe Power Corporation. Artifacts and maps attest to the presence of an early twentieth-century dwelling within the northeast comer of the project area, designated Locus 1, although no physical remains could be found. A neighboring standing structure lies abandoned just outside the project to the north. Designated Locus 2, it appears on the same 1910 map as the former dwelling at Locus 1. This outlying structure still stands, but is vacant, open, and dilapidated. A very recent cement trailer pad between them, designated Locus 3, is the only extant structural evidence remaining in place within the project boundaries. Fences, old tree lines, and contour mounding give evidence of agricultural activities throughout this century over most of the project area. Shovel tests show little topsoil remains near the east or west margins of the 9 acre tract. A small quantity of recent refuse and one glass fragment roughly datable to the first quarter of this century were found on the surface in the area of Locus 1. No subsurface evidence for this earlier site could be found; the proximity of the trailer site suggests that later occupation masked or destroyed the earlier site. Shovel tests indicate that recent plowing was conducted over most of the earlier site's extent. The rubble and other remains of Locus 2 are not seen as architecturally significant, nor do they contain buried features important to the history of the area. As measured against the criteria for eligibility to the National Register of Historic Places, no significance is seen for cultural remains within the project area and no further cultural resource investigations are recommended. Background research implied the presence of a small town referred to now as "Old Boston" in the vicinity of the project area. Since that town site may contain sealed features dating to the antebellum period, it was important to determine whether that site was located in the project area. Through interviews, the old town site was found to lie about three-quarters of a mile east of the project area.