Living On The Border: Phase II Archaeological Survey And Phase III Archaeological Data Recovery Locus 1 Of The Rumsey/Polk Tenant/ Prehistoric Site (7NC-F-112, CRS # N-14492)

Summary

Living on the Border: Phase II Archaeological Survey and Phase III Archaeological Data Recovery

Rumsey/Polk Tenant/Prehistoric site (7NC-F-112, CRS # N-14492)

U.S. Route 301-Levels Road Mitigation Site

St. Georges Hundred, New Castle County, Delaware

DelDOT Parent Agreement 1537, Task 8

Project acreage: 3.3 acres of 123.21 acre tract

Fieldwork Dates:

Phase II Archaeological Survey: December 6, 2010-May 26, 2011

Phase III Archaeological Data Recovery: July 9, 2012-August 27, 2012

RGA, Inc. (RGA) conducted a Phase II (evaluation-level) archaeological survey and a Phase III archaeological data recovery at Locus 1 of the Rumsey/Polk Tenant/Prehistoric site (7NC-F-112, CRS # N-14492) within the Area of Potential Effects (APE) of the U.S. Route 301 Mitigation Site for the Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT). The U.S. Route 301 Levels Road Mitigation Site in St. Georges Hundred, New Castle County, consists of a 123.21-acre tract to be utilized as a borrow pit for the construction of the U.S. Route 301 highway project. The borrow pit will contain a stormwater outfall on its north and south side. The Levels Road Mitigation Site is adjacent to the western limits of Section 3 and southwest of the southern limits of Section 2 of the proposed U.S. Route 301 highway in Delaware. The Phase II archaeological survey and Phase III archaeological data recovery were required as part of the implementation of a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) developed between the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DelDOT, Delaware State Historic Preservation Office (DESHPO), and Maryland Historical Trust (MHT) for the U.S. Route 301 highway project in Delaware and Maryland. The Rumsey/Polk Tenant/Prehistoric site consists of two loci (Locus 1 and 2). Locus 1 of the Rumsey/Polk Tenant/Prehistoric site encompasses 3.3 acres of the larger 7.0-acre archaeological site and is situated within the northwestern portion of the APE. Following the completion of the Phase I archaeological survey, the Levels Road Mitigtation Site was redesigned and the DelDOT intends to protect the 3.7-acre Locus 2 of the Rumsey/Polk Tenant/Prehistoric site, located to the north of Locus 1, from construction impacts in perpetuity via an archaeological preservation covenant.

Phase II and III archaeological fieldwork at Locus 1 resulted in the recovery of 43,213 artifacts (217 prehistoric artifacts and 42,996 historic artifacts, the latter including 7,885 faunal remains), and the identification of 622 features, of which 163 features were archaeologically sampled. The site is comprised of a prehistoric Native American component and a historic farmstead component. No prehistoric features or significant artifact concentrations were located. The prehistoric Native American component was interpreted as a short-term campsite periodically re-used by small groups of people during the Late Paleo-Indian to Woodland II periods. The prehistoric component of Locus 1 of the Rumsey/Polk Tenant/Prehistoric site was not recommended eligible for the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) based on the limited prehistoric artifact assemblage, lack of prehistoric features, and limited research potential.

The historic farmstead component is comprised of two periods of historic occupation (1760s to 1780s and 1797/1804 to 1853), each with a suite of intact features and associated artifact assemblages. The first historic occupation phase (1760s-1780s) component included occupation by tenant farmers, and evidence suggests African or African American slaves may have also lived at the site in separate buildings. The second historic phase (1797/1804-1853) component included occupation by tenant farmers, black or white cottagers (farm laborers), and slaves. Artifact assemblages and features for eighteenth- and nineteenth-century occupants were generally not attributable with known tenants; however, spatially discrete contexts did shed light on changing farm use, consumer behavior, diet, animal husbandry, and cultural practices over time. Deposits and features illuminate the differences in material culture, artifact patterning, site use, and diet between enslaved and free residents at the site.

ii

The historic component was recommended eligible for listing on the NRHP under Criterion D and adverse effects to the site were mitigated through an archaeological data recovery program.

Significant archaeological data associated the first and second occupation phases of Locus 1 of the Rumsey/Polk Tenant/Prehistoric site was obtained as a result of the Phase II archaeological survey and Phase III archaeological data recovery. The preparation and submission of this Phase II/III archaeological survey report meets Administrative Stipulation IV.B. in the Memorandum of Agreement for the U.S. Route 301 project.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Rumsey Polk Tenant Prehistoric Site

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): David Clarke

Contributor(s): Philip A. Hayden

Field Director(s): Adrienne Jarczewski; Michael Insetta

Principal Investigator(s): Ilene Grossman-Bailey; Michael J. Gall

Project Director(s): Paul J. McEachen

Sponsor(s): Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)

Permitting Agency(s): DelDOT

Repository(s): Delaware Division of Historical & Cultural Affairs, Dover DE

Prepared By(s): Richard Grubb and Associates, Inc. Cranbury, NJ

Submitted To(s): DelDOT

Record Identifiers

DelDOT Parent Agreement 1537, Task 8(s): Parent Agreement number

2014-114DE(s): Company-specific project number

2014-031DE(s): Company-specific project number

2013-263DE(s): Company-specific project number

Notes

Redaction Note: figures showing or relating to site location information have been redacted

File Information

	Name	Size	Creation Date	Date Uploaded	Access
	Edited-Rumsey-Polk-Tenant-Prehistoric-Site-Ph-II-and-III-VOLUM...	45.57mb	Mar 16, 2018	May 30, 2018 6:30:24 AM	Public
	Volume I Phase II Archaeological Survey And Phase III Archaeological Data Recovery Locus 1 Of The Rumsey/Polk Tenant/ Prehistoric Site (7NC-F-112, CRS # N-14492)
	Edited-Rumsey-Polk-Tenant-Prehistoric-Site-Ph-II-and-III-VOLUM...	33.02mb	Mar 16, 2018	May 30, 2018 6:30:26 AM	Public
	Volume II Phase II Archaeological Survey And Phase III Archaeological Data Recovery Locus 1 Of The Rumsey/Polk Tenant/ Prehistoric Site (7NC-F-112, CRS # N-14492)