Rumsey/Polk Tenant/Prehistoric Site (7NC-F-112, CRS # N-14492), U.S. Route 301, Levels Road Mitigation Site

Summary

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

3.3 acres of 123.21 acre tract

Fieldwork Dates:

Richard Grubb & Associates (RGA) conducted a Phase II (evaluation-level) archaeological survey and a Phase III Archaeological Data Recovery within Locus 1 of the Rumsey/Polk Tenant/Prehistoric Site (7NC-F-112, CRS # N-14492) by Richard Grubb & Associates (RGA) of Cranbury, New Jersey for the Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT). The Phase II and III Area of Potential Effects (APE) is within the limits of Locus 1, 3.3 acres of the seven acre archaeological site that could not be avoided, which is located in the northwestern portion of the Area of Potential Effects (APE) for the U.S. Route 301 Levels Road Mitigation site in St. Georges Hundred, New Castle County, Delaware. It is the understanding of RGA that Locus 2, approximately 3.7 acres of the site, is being avoided and will be protected from construction impacts in perpetuity via an archaeological preservation covenant.

The U.S. Route 301 Levels Road Mitigation Site consists of a 123.21-acre tract adjacent to the western limits of Section 3 and southwest of the southern limits of Section 2 of the proposed U.S. Route 301 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), Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT), Delaware State Historic Preservation Office (DESHPO), and Maryland Historical Trust (MHT) for the U.S. Route 301 highway project in Delaware and Maryland..

Phase II archaeological fieldwork included excavation of 120, one-meter square excavation units and four strip trenches (1-4) 79.3 square meters (853.2 square feet/ 0.02-acre within the site core defined as a result of the EUs. Mechanical stripping consisted of the removal of plowzone within trenches. Each trench measured four feet wide and 15 to 20 meters in length. The Phase II survey resulted in 115 prehistoric artifacts and 12,394 historic artifacts and the identification of one possible prehistoric feature (Feature 9), 25 historic features, and 18 soil stains that may represent cultural features.. Twenty-eight features, including Feature 3, found in Phase IB EU 2B, were bisected or otherwise sampled and profiled. The prehistoric component of Locus 1 of the Rumsey/Polk Tenant/Prehistoric Site was not recommended eligible for the National Register of Historic Places based on its limited artifact assemblage and lack of definitive features and research potential. The site's historic component was defined as two periods of historic occupation (1740s to 1770s and 1797/1804 to 1848/1855), each with a suite of intact feature contexts and associated artifact assemblages. An occupation pre-dating 1740 may have been present based on the recovery of a limited number of earlier historic artifacts. The historic component of the site is recommended eligible for the National Register of Historic Places under Criterion D. it was recommended that portions of Locus 1 of the site that cannot be avoided by the project be mitigated by an Archaeological Data Recovery program.

Phase III archaeological fieldwork included excavation of 12, two-meter square mechanically aided excavation units and five strip blocks measuring 2,700 square meters (0.7-acre) in the core portion of the site within Locus 1 of the Rumsey/Polk Tenant/Prehistoric Site (7NC-F-112, CRS # N-14492) The Phase III survey resulted in the recovery of xx prehistoric and xxxx historic artifacts and the identification of 564 prehistoric or historic subsurface features. A total of 165 Phase IB/II/III features was sampled. Feature 5, identified during the Phase II, archaeological survey, was excavated in whole. Flotation processing was performed on 88 soil samples from features.

Significant additional information about the two periods of occupation was generated and data recovered to mitigate the adverse effects on the Rumsey/Polk Tenant/Prehistoric site. On behalf of DelDOT, it was recommended that Locus 1 of the Rumsey/Polk Tenant/Prehistoric site be released for construction. No further fieldwork is required. 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

• DelDOT Digital Archive   •
• 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

Source Collections

All artifacts and excavation records were transferred to the Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs Curatorial Facility, Dover, DE Accession Number 2009.52