Historical Research and Archaeological Investigations of the Hightower Trail and Soapstone Site for the Graves Road Park Project, Gwinnett County, Georgia

This report contains the results of the historical research and archaeological reconnaissance survey conducted in November of 2002, and the results of additional archaeological work, including excavation of site 9DA411, in February of 2003. The work was carried out for Gwinnett County, through Cerulea, in advance of development of a 70-acre tract of land off Graves Road as a passive-use recreation park, in the southwestern portion of Gwinnett County, Georgia (Figure 1). In the first part of the project, TRC conducted historical research and an archaeological reconnaissance survey of portions of the Graves Road Park tract in Gwinnett County, Georgia. The purpose of the historical research and archaeological investigations of the tract was 1) determine if the Hightower Trail proceeded through this tract and to record its location; 2) to locate and record any sign of soapstone quarrying; and 3) to identify and record other significant prehistoric activity or settlement. The historical research, which included review of the original 1819 survey notes of Land Lot (LL) 193, and other previous instrumental surveys within LL 193, confirmed that the present southwestern boundary of the tract was the route of the Hightower Trail Results of the archaeological reconnaissance phase of the study, which included surface inspection and systematic and judgmental shovel testing, included 1) the location and recordation of portions of the Hightower Trail consisting of two segments of wagon road visible at the north and south ends of the western boundary of the Graves tract and, 2) recordation of a soap tone quarry site, consisting of an outcrop of soapstone that exhibits five bowl scars, three of which extend below the present ground surface. One shovel test at this site produced soapstone chips to a depth of 40 em, demonstrating the likelihood of buried deposits. TRC recommended both the Hightower Trail and soapstone-quarrying site as eligible for the National Register or Historic Places (NRHP). During the reconnaissance phase of the study, examination of three springs and several areas within the park tract for other archaeological sites yielded no additional evidence of prehistoric activity, despite reports of artifacts found in these locations by a previous landowner. Prior to fieldwork, a records search was conducted at the state archaeological site file in Athens, and primary and secondary resources related to the Hightower Trail at the Georgia Department of Archives and History, the University of Georgia, and the TRC corporate library were reviewed. In addition to the historical information collected, interviews with Mr. Fred Graves, whose grandfather, G.L. Graves, purchased 400 hundred acres here around 1886, and with Mr. Russell Graves, a great grandson of G.L Graves were helpful in locating various features on the tract, including the soapstone site and remnants of the Hightower Trail/road. Several web sites also proved helpful, particularly those of the DeKalb Historical Society, the Gwinnett Historical Society, and the Boy Scout Hightower Trail District. Based on the results of that project and the recommendations of TRC, Gwinnett County subsequently requested that TRC carry out an archaeological excavation of a portion of the Graves Soapstone quarry site (9DA411 ), exposure and mapping of the remaining portions of the Hightower Trail (9DA41 0) within the project tract (portions that were not found during the reconnaissance because of vegetation), and intensive archaeological survey of the approximately 70-acre tract to identify any additional archaeological sites not encountered during the reconnaissance. These investigations were carried out in February 2003, and resulted in the collection of considerable information about the Graves Soapstone site. However, no additional archaeological sites were found, and no other segments of the Hightower Trail were located, most likely due to erosion. During the 2003 investigations, an intensive program of shovel testing, base on a 30-m grid, was carried out in areas of 10 percent or less slope, including areas that had been shovel tested in the fall of 2002. A total of 87 new shovel tests were excavated to subsoil. The results were negative except for one shovel test location near the Graves Lane turn-around which contained historic trash. Historic features were also observed on the surface in the area surrounding Graves Lane and the turn-around, but were not recorded. These included house and outbuilding sites, a well, and the bulldozed remains of the old Graves sorghum mill (identified as such by Mr. Fred Russell). The structures had all been previously removed. The effort to expose surface features associated with the Hightower Trail/wagon road and map it more adequately, did not succeed in identifying much more of the road than was identified during the November 2002 reconnaissance. This effort also included looking for deviations from the course of the original trail as mapped by Cunningham, as a road might be expected to deviate from the trail in order to avoid steep slopes and seek convenient fords. Current investigations at the Graves Soapstone site did yield information important for the study of soapstone sites, both locally and regionally, and TRC recommends 9DA411 as eligible for the NRHP. Excavations, carried out over a period of three days, recovered information related to soapstone bowl production methods and technology, and included the discover of a cache of 8 stone tools used in the quarrying process. The remainder of this report combines the results of the 2002 and 2003 investigations beginning with a summary of the Natural Setting and Historical Background in Chapters II and III. Methods are discussed in Chapter IV, and Results are presented in Chapter V along with some preliminary conclusions regarding the results of excavation at site 9DA411 . Chapter VI presents a Summary and Recommendations, and this is followed by References Cited.