Archaeological Survey of the Proposed Raccoon Creek Substation, Mitchell County, Georgia

From 2-12 January 2001, Brockington and Associates, Inc., conducted an archaeological resources survey for a proposed electrical substation adjacent to Raccoon Creek, just outside of Baconton in Mitchell County. The project area, covering approximately 83 hectares (206 acres), encompasses fallow agricultural fields, pecan groves, and densely overgrown clearcuts (Figure 1). This survey, conducted in compliance with all relevant federal cultural resources legislation and guidelines (e.g., National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA), National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), 36 CFR Part 800, consisted of background research and field survey. Background research identified one archaeological site, 9ML 123, just east of the project area. This site, a historic cemetery associated with Clements Bridge Baptist Church, appears on the Sale City, GA 1974 [1983] USGS 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle. Both the church, abandoned but standing, and the cemetery are outside of the project area and will not be affected by the proposed construction. Field survey identified four archaeological sites, 9ML124-127, within the project area. Two of these sites (9ML 125 and 9ML 126) are historic artifact scatters, likely representing a row of tenant farmhouses shown on a 1952 plat. These sites consist primarily of surface artifact scatters, with small amounts of subsurface (plowzone) artifacts present in the adjacent wooded areas. The two remaining sites (9ML124 and 9ML127) are prehistoric lithic scatters. Site 9ML127 is located in a fallow peanut field while site 9ML124 is located in a large borrow pit. Neither site yielded subsurface artifacts. In addition to these sites, six isolated finds of cultural material were also identified in the project area. All of these are prehistoric (lithic) and probably represent a larger prehistoric site(s) that has since been plowed away. Background research and field survey indicate that no significant archaeological resources will be affected by the proposed construction. We recommend archaeological resources clearance for the project.