Class III Cultural Resource Survey of Reclamation Withdrawn Land Along the East Side of the Lower Verde River

USDI Bureau of Reclamation, Phoenix Area Office

Class III Cultural Resource Survey of Reclamation Withdrawn Land Along the East Side of the Lower Verde River

Summary

This project is part of the Lower Verde River Survey. Other entries related to this project can be found at the following link: https://core.tdar.org/collection/27743

As required under Section 110 of the National Historic Preservation Act, the Bureau of Reclamation's (Reclamation) Phoenix Area Office (PXAO) requested Archaeological Consulting Services, Ltd. (ACS) to conduct Class III (intensive) cultural resources inventory of approximately 6,200 acres of Reclamation withdrawn land along the west side of the lower Verde River in early 2000 (Boston et al. 2003). Previous delivery orders have resulted in the survey of all of the project area west of the Verde River except for some 520 acres of apparently private property west of the Verde River. However, none of the project area on the east side of the Verde River had been surveyed under Section 110.

Much of the eastern side of the Verde River is very rugged and access is for the most part very difficult. Therefore, Reclamation requested ACS to conduct a Class II reconnaissance survey to determine if safe access to the project area was possible, and to assess the nature of site density/distribution in seven study areas based on a random 10 percent sample strategy designed specifically for the reconnaissance survey. Because of accessibility and other issues (e.g., bald eagle closures), fieldwork in the project area is constrained by a tight time frame, from September through November; access to the project areas was facilitated by the use of oared rafts coordinated through Sedona Adventure Tours. The Class II reconnaissance survey, conducted under Tonto National Forest (TNF) Permit TON572, was performed by Walter Punzmann, Michael Droz, and Stan Plum on November 15–19, 2010. The Class II survey determined accessibility to the study areas, prioritized each on the basis of site potential from high to low, and identified five sites and four isolated occurrences (Punzmann et al. 2010). Based on the Class II effort, it was projected that intensive (100 percent) survey of Areas 1, 2, 5, and 7 would identify up to 18 new sites and 12 previously recorded sites in four of the seven study areas (ACS Scope of Work March 22, 2011).

At the request of Reclamation, following the recommendations made in Punzmann et al. (2010:63–66), ACS conducted an intensive Class III survey of Study Areas 1, 2, 5, and 7. The Class III survey strategy prioritized terrace areas within a 10–15 percent slope range, two side drainages near the northern end of the project area that were deemed likely to contain cultural resources, and terraces east of Study Areas 1, 2, and 7 that were thought to have good site potential. The Class III survey, conducted under TNF Permit TON572, was performed by Walter Punzmann, Jonathan Spiandorello, Thomas Jones, Jennifer Bower, Linda Schilling, and Stan Plum between October 3 and November 10, 2011. As a result of the Class III survey, 34 sites and 109 isolated occurrences were identified.

Cite this Record

Class III Cultural Resource Survey of Reclamation Withdrawn Land Along the East Side of the Lower Verde River. ( tDAR id: 393926) ; doi:10.6067/XCV82N53Q1