Phase I Cultural Resource Survey of the York Street Bridge Replacement Project, City of Aiken, Aiken County, South Carolina

Summary

"New South Associates, under subcontract to Davis & Floyd, conducted a Phase I Cultural Resource Survey of the proposed replacement of the York Street (S-2-31) bridges over the Norfolk Southern Railroad cut in response to a request by the South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT). The proposed project, located within the Aiken Winter Colony Historic District II, would remove the existing low profile pair of wooden bridges and replace them with a one, two-lane concrete and masonry bridge (Figure 1). Since the proposed replacement concrete bridge will have a deeper structure depth than the existing paired bridges, the existing grade will be need to be raised in order to provide proper vertical clearance over the railroad. The proposed design of the single bridge replacement allows for the grade to be raised without obtaining additional right-of-way (ROW) and impacting adjacent property owners. As a result of the change to a single bridge concept, York Street and its medians on either side of the existing bridges will be reconfigured in order to route traffic over the new bridge (Figure 2). The project area extends approximately 1,000 feet to the north and south and approximately 75 feet to the east and west. The existing bridges, constructed in 1993, while not historic, reflect the construction method and materials of previous bridges as well as the road improvements to York Street that were completed in the mid1950s."

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Aiken County

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Jonathan Leader; South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of South Carolina

Contributor(s): Valerie Davis; Summer Ciomek; Jackie Tyson; David Kelly; South Carolina Department of Archives and History; Chad Long; Kristen Puckett; David Diener; Tom Quinn; Jennifer Wilson

Principal Investigator(s): Natalie P. Adams

Sponsor(s): South Carolina Department of Transportation

Prepared By(s): New South Assoicates

Submitted To(s): Davis and Floyd, Inc.

Record Identifiers

New South Associates Technical Report(s): 2044

Notes

General Note: "In summary, the project's preservation concerns stem from changes that will adversely affect the setting of the NRHP-Iisted historic district and physical impacts that will adversely affect the recommended NRHP-eligible railroad cut. If these effects cannot be avoided or further minimized, consideration should be given to a mitigation plan with a strong public outreach component that documents and presents the history of Aiken's development that is inexorably linked to the railroad and the construction of the railroad cut. Through this over-arching theme, a narrative outlining the planning and development of Aiken can be told, starting with its inception as a railroad town in the 1830s, the establishment of the Winter Colony, and the rapid population influx during the 1950s. The construction of the railroad cut, which helped to shape the landscape of Aiken, and its use of I slave labor should be further researched and highlighted. The narrative can be presented through interpretive panels along pedestrian corridors by the railroad cut and York Street, as exhibits at the Aiken Visitors' Center and Train Museum or Aiken Public Library, or as lectures or presentations. I Through such measures, the history of Aiken's landscapes will remain despite any unavoidable adverse effects from project implementation."

File Information