Phase I Archeological Survey of the Woodruff Tract 740 Acres in Harris County, Georgia

Southeastern Archeological Services, Inc. (SAS) of Athens, Georgia, contracted with Nutter & Associates, Inc. of Athens, Georgia, conducted a cultural resources survey of approximately 740 acres in Harris County, Georgia. The primary goal of the survey was to locate all cultural resources that could be adversely affected by any potential ground disturbing activities from land development by the George C. Woodruff Company of Columbus, Georgia. The survey was conducted to satisfy a requirement of the Corps of Engineers 404 permitting process. Once the 404 permit is acquired by the Georgia C. Woodruff Company, the planned development of the 740 ac tract may begin. Cultural resources were recorded and evaluated under National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) criteria. Archival research was conducted prior to commencement of field work in September, 2007. We conducted fieldwork with two, two-person survey crews and completed surveying the 740 ac tract during the first week of October, 2007. The field survey required 55 person-days to complete. We recorded 58 archeological sites and 16 occurrences (isolated artifacts with no archeological research potential) within the project area (Table 1). None of the archeological sites were previously recorded. Archeological site density was approximately one site per 5 hectares (12.8 acres), and cultural resource density (sites and occurrences combined) was one cultural resource per 4 hectares (10 acres). By area, archeological sites and occurrences cover approximately 3.1 percent (23 acres) of the project area. Decisions on eligibility recommendations for each archeological site were guided by general physical characteristics of sites and respective artifact collections in comparison with other potentially eligible sites in Georgia and the Southeast. Site type (rare or ubiquitous), site preservation integrity, variation in artifact types, clinal artifact density, presence or absence of features, and a general potential for addressing pertinent theoretical issues were factors implemented in our decisions. All archeological sites were placed into one of three eligibility categories as follows: Eligible-Listed in or determined eligible for listing on the NRHP; Unknown-Potentially eligible for listing on the NRHP, further testing required; Ineligible- Not eligible for listing on the NRHP. Eleven sites are recommended for additional study or require special consideration. One (9HS358) is an abandoned church cemetery located at the south margin of the Woodruff property. It needs to be protected. Two (9HS396 and 9HS400) contain possible human burials. If burials are indeed present, the state regulations concerning their disposition need to be followed. The remaining sites (9HS377, 9HS378, 9HS382, 9HS387, 9HS389, 9HS391, 9HS400, 9HS403 and 9HS407) may contain significant archeological information, thus they are potentially eligible to the NRHP. Phase II archeological testing is recommended to resolve their status. For most of the remaining 47 NRHP ineligible sites, preservation is poor, largely due to post depositional land use and eroded soils. These 47 archeological sites, in addition to the 16 archeological occurrences, require no further protection against ground disturbing activities.