An Intensive Cultural Resource Assessment Survey of the Golden Isles R-4 Tract Glynn County, Georgia

This report presents the findings of a cultural resource assessment survey of the 730 acre Golden Isles R-4 tract, Glynn County, Georgia. The archaeological and historical assessment was performed in June, October, and November 1997, by Environmental Services, Inc. (ESI) of Savannah, Georgia for the Branigar Organization, Inc. The goals of the investigation were to locate all cultural resources within the project area, and to assess their significance and potential eligibility for listing in the National Register of Historic Places, as mandated by federal laws and guidelines (Code of Federal Regulations [CFR], Title 36, Chapter VIII, Part 800 [36 CFR 800]). Prior to the intensive survey a reconnaissance assessment of the property was conducted in June 1997. A pedestrian inspection at that time verified USDA soil data, which documents that the tract consists of very poorly drained, poorly drained, and somewhat poorly drained land. Standing water throughout much of the tract clearly obviated the need for testing in certain areas during the intensive survey. As a result of the preliminary reconnaissance, a project scope of work for an intensive survey was formulated that focused on testing the better drained (non-inundated) portions of the property. The scope of work was submitted to the SHPO and approved prior to fieldwork. Prior to fieldwork, an extensive analysis of historic maps and documents was undertaken by archaeologists and a historian in an attempt to identify the applicable contexts of the State Preservation Plan and to determine where historic site components could be expected within the Golden Isles R-4 tract. Special emphasis was placed on historic plantation boundaries, free black settlements, and historic roadways. County records, historic maps, and other documentary resources were consulted in Brunswick, Savannah, and Athens. Historical research was conducted at several local and regional repositories, including the Brunswick Public Library, Fort Frederica National Monument, Georgia Historical Society, Glynn County Courthouse, Hofwyl-Broadfield Plantation, the Map Library at the University of Georgia, and the U.S. Geological Service. In addition, state records in Atlanta and federal records from Washington were consulted. An effort was made to determine whether the boundaries of the plantations overlapped with those of the study tract, and also whether any historic communities originally lay within the tract boundaries. The field study was conducted in October and November 1997 by a crew of four under the direction of Marsha A. Chance, Principal Investigator. During fieldwork one site (Freedman Cemetery, 9GN225) was recorded, a twentieth century cemetery originally located several miles to the south that was relocated into the area during World War 11. The cemetery is on &west side of Petersville Road, a dirt road that fell partially into disuse at about the time Freedman Cemetery was relocated. The cemetery will remain preserved in place. No prehistoric sites or isolated finds were recorded, and no historic sites or structures were found archaeologically or on historic maps of the area. Historical research indicated that substantial nineteenth century agricultural development occurred outside the project area to the east and north at Elizafield, Hofwyl-Broadfield, and other river plantations. African American settlements appeared to the north, east, and south during the nineteenth century. The project area contains part of New Hope Plantation property and the Carteret, Darnell, Lamb, and Needwood tracts dating to a later period; but, other than the planting of pine trees no agricultural or residential development was documented for the project area prior to the nineteenth century. Petersville Road is the only historic roadway in the tract and can be documented to the late nineteenth century. Historic activities in the project area included the construction of several historic transportation arteries including the Brunswick-Altamaha Canal, the Georgia Coast & Piedmont Railroad, Petersville Road, and U.S. Highway 17. However, no building activity was documented along those routes within the specific project area, and archaeological testing in non-inundated areas produced negative results. Historically the area appears to have remained undeveloped and forested. The Golden Isles R-4 tract is bounded on two sides by historically significant sites. The Brunswick-Altamaha Canal, on the western boundary, has been determined eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. It was constructed in the early nineteenth century and abandoned in 1860. )While the canal will be affected indirectly by the project, due to its proximity, the project will have no adverse effect. Green spaces will be maintained between the canal and the project elements, which will all be located outside the Area of Potential Effect (APE). On the northwest side of the project area lies Hofwyl-Broadfield Historic Plantation, a state site open to the public and managed by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. It contains a number of historic structures and archaeological sites, as well as a visitor center and picnic facilities. However, these site elements are all located at least one mile from the Golden Isles boundary line. At the south end of the historic site property is a managed longleaf pine plantation maintained by the Nature Conservancy on behalf of the State of Georgia. ""le the t')ine Wantation will also be affected indirectly by the project due to proximity, there will be no adverse effect on the historic site. The project will result in the establishment of house lots along the pine plantation boundary each intended to support a single family home, and all development will occur one mile or more ftom the structural elements of the historic site. On the basis of historical and archaeological research conducted for the Golden Isles R-4 project, it is recommended that the project proceed as planned