Feature Profile
Recently, ACC, Inc. conducted an archaeological survey of a borrow pit tract in Cumberland County, North Carolina. The borrow pit tract encompasses approximately 16 acres of agricultural field and recent clear cut. The tract is bounded by ditches and a drainage on the north, south, and west. A dirt and gravel farm road bound the borrow pit to the east.
During the archaeological survey, two sites (31CD1991 and 31CD1992) were identified within the project tract. Site 31ON1992 is a small scatter of prehistoric lithics with no further research potential. Site 31CD1991, however, consists of a large Archaic through Middle Woodland artifact scatter, containing numerous intact cultural features that were exposed in machine scrapes following shovel testing. The site was recommended Eligible for the National Register of Historic Places and mitigation activities, consisting of the exposure of large blocks, were undertaken.
Mano and Metate
Based on the data gathered during this multi-stage investigation, we can speculate on the life cycle of site 31CD1991. During the Early through Middle Archaic, the site area would have been a wooded terrace with the Cape Fear River running nearby. The site inhabitants would have focused on hunting and would have produced spear points and knives from metavolcanic and quartz available in cobble form in the nearby river. The site was still being utilized during the Late Archaic. As reflected by the number of pit features attributable to this time frame, occupation may have been more intense than during the previous subperiods. Again, hickory nuts would have been a primary focus and several of the pits were possibly used to store the nuts beyond the autumn months. Although still visited, the site setting was not as favorable to the Woodland people as it had been during the Archaic. The lack of Woodland features and relatively few ceramics suggests only short stays of small groups. The site continued to be occupied until the Middle Woodland after which it was apparently no longer visited.
Radiocarbon Dates
This investigation was unique in that it sought to explore the efficacy of the survey methodology currently being used in Sandhill settings. Due to our utilization of investigative techniques generally associated with later phases of investigation, we have illustrated that traditional Phase I survey methods (i.e., shovel testing alone) does not always allow for sufficient examination of a project tract, particularly in the Sandhills of the Interior Coastal Plain. This investigation has shown that the combination of field methods (i.e., shovel testing and scraping) at the Phase I level has led to the recovery of valuable data that may otherwise have been lost.
