Cultural Resources Survey of the Proposed Coastal Georgia MegaPark West Tract in Liberty County

Brockington and Associates, Inc., conducted a cultural resources survey of the western portion of the proposed Coastal Georgia MegaPark West in Liberty County, Georgia. This survey was undertaken to provide information concerning the kinds of cultural resources present in and near the proposed industrial park, and how the proposed project may affect these resources. Construction of the park will require a US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) wetlands permit, necessitating compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended. The Liberty County Development Authority sponsored the investigations of the proposed industrial park. During this investigation, archaeologists revisited two previously recorded archaeological sites (9L1295 and 9L1296), and discovered 18 previously undocumented archaeological sites (9L11145-9L11162) and 33 isolated finds (Isolates 1-33). No historic architectural resources are located within the project tract. We recommend sites 9L1295, 9L1296, 9L11145-9L11158, 91,11162, and the 33 isolated finds not eligible for the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). Further management consideration of these sites and isolated finds is not warranted. Archaeological site 91,11160 is recommended potentially eligible for the NRHP. This site is located on the edge of the project tract and could not be fully investigated during this investigation due to a lack of landowner permission. However, the portion of site 91,11160 that lies within the project tract does not contain significant deposits of cultural material, and does not contribute to the NRHP eligibility of the site. Thus, the proposed project will not affect site 9LI1160. Further management of the portion of site 91,11160 located within the project tract is not warranted. We recommend archaeological sites 9LI1159 and 91,11161 potentially eligible for the NRHP. Site 9LI1159 is a multi-component Pre-Contact Mississippian (ca. AD 900 to 1,700) and Deptford (ca. 600 BC to AD 500) base camp/village site. Archaeological site 9LI1161 is a razed Post Contact rice plantation dating from the mid-to late nineteenth century; evidence of sparse Pre-Contact Mississippian and Middle Woodland occupations also is present. Each of these sites may contain significant subsurface archaeological deposits. Construction activities within the Coastal Georgia MegaPark West should be designed to avoid these two sites. If land disturbing activities cannot avoid 91,11159 and 91,1161, further archaeological investigations should be undertaken to determine definitively the NRHP eligibility of these two sites. The Riceboro and Sunbury Road (now Cay Creek Road) is recommended eligible for the NRHP under Criterion A (Transportation) as a historic landscape feature. The Riceboro and Sunbury Road is an important component of Liberty County's history as a part of the early and vital transportation network that connected inland towns with the coast. Moreover, the Riceboro and Sunbury Road has retained its integrity of location, setting, and materials. We recommend incorporating the Riceboro and Sunbury Road into the project design so as to maintain its present condition including its present route, the unpaved dirt surface, and the existing vegetation buffer. If the project cannot be designed to avoid adverse effects to any of these contributing factors, a suitable mitigation plan must be negotiated with the Georgia SHPO. We recommend documenting the road according to Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) Level II standards as mitigation for any adverse effects. HAER Level II standards may include photographic documentation using a view camera with large format negatives, reproduction of historic maps and documents, and compilation of a written history and description of the road. Additional documentation may include a plan of the grade and course of the road, and the location of important vegetation (i.e., large trees) along the road. Given the above stipulations - avoidance/protection of sites 91,11159, 91,11161, and incorporating the Riceboro and Sunbury Road in its present condition into the project design, the proposed Coastal Georgia MegaPark West will not adversely affect significant cultural resources. Further management of the remainder of the project tract with regard to cultural resources is not warranted.