Archaeological Reconnaissance of Six Road Relocation Areas in Elbert County, Georgia, Elbert County Road Relocations 1979

Summary

The Institute of Archeology and Anthropology was contracted by Patchen, Mingledorf and Associates, Inc. of Atlanta, Georgia to survey six road and bridge relocation areas in Elbert County, Georgia as a part of a larger Patchen, Mingledorf project funded by the Corps of Engineers (Fig. 1). These road relocations are necessitated by the construction of the Richard B. Russell Reservoir by the Corps of Engineers, Savannah District. The archeological reconnaissance survey was undertaken to insure compliance by the Corps of Engineers with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, and Executive Order 11593. The field work portion of the project took four days and was completed in three separate trips conducted on May 25 and 26 and June 8 and 13. The writing of the report and the analysis of the artifacts were completed at the Institute laboratory during a two week period following the completion of the field work.

The Richard B. Russell Dam, presently under construction, is located on the stretch of the Savannah River between Clark Hill and Hartwell Lakes. The power pool elevation of Russell Reservoir will be 475 feet a.s.l. The total area to be flooded is 26,650 acres, which includes a 28 mile stretch of the Savannah River, a 12 mile stretch of the Rocky River in South Carolina and a 9 mile stretch of the Beaverdam Creek in Georgia. The inundation of many small creeks will also occur, including Allen, Bond, and Crooked Creeks in South Carolina and Van, Coldwater, Pickens, and Cedar Creeks in Georgia.

The proposed Russell Reservoir area was surveyed in 1977 under a separate contract between the Institute of Archeology and Anthropology and the Corps of Engineers, Savannah District. Because of the sampling strategy used during the reservoir survey, none of the areas of road relocation were covered. Those areas not surveyed previously were specifically examined during this project. A preliminary report on certain aspects of the Russell Reservoir survey (Taylor and Smith 1978) is available for study and was consulted in addition to the detailed notes and files of the Institute of Archeology and Anthropology and the Russell Survey.

One historic site, 9EB201, was discovered in a road relocation area by the Russell Survey during the summer of 1977. 9EB201 will be directly impacted by both inundation and the proposed road relocation 2-1. One additional building was located at 9EB201 as a result of the present survey. Further work at this site has already been recommended by the Russell intensive survey. Seven sites were found as a result of the road relocation survey. Six were prehistoric campsites and 1 was an historic home site. 9EB421 is a small unidentified prehistoric lithic scatter. No further work is recommended for this site. 9EB422 is an Early Archaic site which extends over a 50 by 40 meter area of a ridge top and slope. The site yielded one diagnostic artifact, a chert Palmer point. The site has recently been clear-cut and the soil has eroded down to red clay.

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): US Army Corps of Engineers Mandatory Center of Expertise for the Curation and Management of Archaeological Collections, St. Louis District

Landowner(s): US Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah District

Sponsor(s): Patchen, Mingledorf and Associates, Inc

Repository(s): US Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah District

Prepared By(s): Institute of Archeology and Anthropology, University of South Carolina

Submitted To(s): US Army Corps of Engineers, Savannah District

Notes

General Note: The digital materials in this collection were processed by the Veterans Curation Program (VCP), and include an archival photograph, finding aid, original investigation report, oversized material spreadsheet, photographic material spreadsheet and scanned asset key. Additional digital materials held by the VCP include an archaeological survey report, archives database, box labels, design memorandum, document folder listing, initial data collection, management statements, maps, notes, oversized labels, photographic material labels, photographic slide labels, records removal sheets, scopes of work, and a transmittal slip. For additional information on these materials, refer to the finding aid.

File Information