Lake Pleasant and New Waddell Dam

In December 2008, Archaeological Consulting Services, Ltd. (ACS) re-visited 16 sites in Lake Regional Park to assess their condition. ACS archaeologists documented the sites and evaluated their current state of preservation. This project contains photo documentation of the assessment work. The site cards were updated, but no report was produced.

In November of 1992, at the request of the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), Archaeological Consulting Services, Ltd. (ACS) conducted an evaluation of a portion of AZ T:3:79(ASM). Subsurface testing was performed because proposed road modifications had the potential to impact the cultural resources present. Testing was limited to a 5 m right-of-way on either side of the existing road. The objectives were to define the nature and extent of any buried cultural material and make recommendations...

In the mid-1990s, the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) completed a survey of Lake Pleasant Regional Park. The survey was undertaken to identify all cultural resources within the Park, which was acquired by Reclamation as part of construction of New Waddell Dam. In the intervening years, the Park has seen continued and increasing recreational use. In the 11 years since it completed the survey of the Park, Reclamation has monitored activity at nine of the 183 sites in the Park with the...

In October 2007, Archaeological Consulting Services, Ltd. (ACS) re-visited 39 known archaeological sites in the Agua Fria Conservation area within Lake Pleasant Regional Park to conduct condition assessments. ACS archaeologists documented the sites and evaluated their current state of preservation. This tDAR project contains photo documentation of the assessment work.

Maricopa Parks and Recreation Department (MCPRD) contracted SWCA Environmental Consultants (SWCA) to conduct a cultural resources inventory of the area of potential effects (APE) for the project area within Lake Pleasant Park, managed by the MCPRD on behalf of the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR). The project is located near Peoria, Maricopa and Yavapai Counties, Arizona and consists of a combined 0.2 acres. A Class III Survey was conducted on April 7th, 2023, and no archaeological sites or resources...

The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) reported a violation of the Archaeological Resources Protection Act (ARPA) in April 2003 when a petroglyph boulder was removed from Reclamation land. The boulder was located on a terrace edge overlooking the Agua Fria River north of Lake Pleasant, within archaeological site AZ T:4:157(ASM). A criminal investigation followed. The petroglyph boulder was recovered in September 2003. Subsequent to the investigation, Mr. Jon Czaplicki, Reclamation...

The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) identified the need for an in-depth study of ranching and homesteading in Lake Pleasant Regional Park (LPRP). At Reclamation’s request, Archaeological Consulting Services (ACS) undertook this current study, which builds upon previous research and investigations sponsored by Reclamation that indicated that the ranching history was an important historic context for the area. This project includes: (1) archival research into the history of ranching in the...

In the summers of 1979 and 1980, Arizona State University (ASU) conducted a cultural resources survey of Lake Pleasant Regional Park (LPRP) (Rice and Bostwick 1986). The completion of New Waddell Dam in 1993, increasing recreational development, and new park boundaries spurred the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) to survey the park. Reclamation performed the new survey on their land to fulfill their Section 110 requirements of the National Historic Preservation Act. Upon completion of the...

In August and September 2010, Archaeological Consulting Services, Ltd. (ACS) re-visited 52 sites in Lake Pleasant Regional Park. ACS archaeologists relocated the sites and site boundaries, and documented the sites' conditions. This project contains select photographic documentation of the relocation work.

In January 2012, Archaeological Consulting Services, Ltd. (ACS) re-visited 8 sites in Lake Pleasant Regional Park. ACS archaeologists relocated the sites and site boundaries, and assessed the sites' current conditions. This project contains a select photographic record of the relocation work.

In November and December 2009, Archaeological Consulting Services, Ltd. (ACS) re-visited 41 sites in Lake Pleasant Regional Park. ACS archaeologists documented the sites and assessed their current state of preservation. This project contains photo documentation of the assessment work.

In the early 2000's, Lake Pleasant Regional Park (LPRP or the Park) was in an undeveloped portion of Maricopa County, Arizona. Population growth in the greater Phoenix metropolitan area over the past 30 years, however, resulted in the expansion of new housing developments along the edges of the city. It was increasingly clear that the park was becoming part of an urban landsape, and that the park's resources were experiencing increased impacts. In 2004, Archaeological Consulting Services,...

At the request of the Bureau of Reclamation–Phoenix Area Office (PXAO), ACS conducted Phase 1 cultural resource assessments and investigations at AZ T:4:150(ASM), a multicomponent rockshelter site in Lake Pleasant Regional Park, in 2008. The site was being impacted by increased visitation and Reclamation is seeking to mitigate those impacts. ACS archaeologists completed surface collection, mapping, and soil coring at the site. These investigations confirmed that the site held the potential to...

In 2008, at the request of the Bureau of Reclamation–Phoenix Area Office (PXAO), Archaeological Consulting Services, Ltd. (ACS) conducted Phase 1 cultural resource assessments and investigations at AZ T:4:150(ASM), a multicomponent rockshelter site in Lake Pleasant Regional Park. These investigations confirmed that the site held the potential to yield important information about the Prehistoric, Protohistoric, and Historic period occupations of the Lake Pleasant area. Please see...