Archaeological Survey for a Proposed Cellular Communications Tower Site (#IN031P, Gentryville Site, Job #16796), Spencer County, Indiana

Abstract

At the request of ATC Associates, Inc., the Glenn A. Black Laboratory of Archaeology, Indiana University ( GBL) conducted a Phase Ia archaeological reconnaissance survey of the proposed location for a cellular communications tower site and its associated structures (#IN031P, Gentryville Site, Job # 16796) in Spencer County, Indiana. ATC Associates, Inc. had staked the project area prior to fieldwork. The cellular tower site (approximately 30m x 30m) will consist of a free standing central tower structure and associated building and electrical equipment on concrete piers/slabs situated within a fenced enclosure. Access to the proposed cellular tower site will be provided by an existing dirt farm road (approximately 5m x 100m) that also serves as a residential driveway for the landowners. A total of approximately 0.35 acre was surveyed. The purposes of survey were 1) to identify and document all of the cultural resources in the project area, 2) to evaluate any sites found with regard to their eligibility for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) and the Indiana Register of Historic Sites and Structures (IRHSS), and 3) to make recommendations for the protection of significant and potentially significant cultural resources. Fieldwork was conducted November 4, 2000 by GBL archaeologists Mary E. Pirkl and Rexford C. Garniewicz. No cultural materials, or evidence for buried cultural deposits ( e.g. dark soil staining, charcoal, artifact concentrations) were discovered during the course of survey. Cultural resource clearance is therefore recommended for the proposed cellular communications tower impact area, provided that all earth-moving activities are restricted to the currently delineated project area boundaries.