2002 S ERCD - TRC Garrow Associates, Inc. for a Cultural and Archaeological Survey

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INTRODUCTION TRC Garrow Associates, Inc. (TRC) is pleased to submit this proposal for a cultural and archaeological survey of the Chapel Hill Township Park and Educational Campus (CHAPTEC) in southeastern Orange County, North Carolina. The proposal is based on the Request for Proposal (RFP) and accompanying maps provided by the Orange County Environment and Resource Conservation Department (ERCD), and on our previous experience with projects of this type in this area. The Orange County ERCD has commissioned this study to provide information to guide siting of future park and school facilities and to identify areas of historic and cultural interest for interpretation. The Orange County ERCD has requested a comprehensive survey of the proposed construction sites and a limited survey of the remainder of the property. The project area involves a 193-acre tract south of Eubanks Road and east of Old Route 86. The project area includes ridgetop, slope, and floodplain settings at the headwaters and near the confluence of Buckhorn Branch and Jones Creek. The confluence of these drainages forms Bolin Creek just outside the project area to the southeast. Several historic period resources have been identified on the property, including a 1929 farmhouse with associated outbuildings (Cate Farmstead), log tobacco barns, and a nineteenth century log cabin. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS The cultural and archaeological survey will be conducted in four stages: (A) background research; (B) surface and subsurface investigation of the Cate Farmstead, tobacco barns, and log cabin site; (C) field reconnaissance for the remainder of the property; and (D) reporting of results. Task A: Background Research The first task will consist of a review of the available archaeological and historical literature concerning the project area, and will be completed prior to the beginning of fieldwork. This research will provide the environmental and cultural perspectives necessary for interpreting the survey results as well as data on known resources in and adjacent to the survey area, and will be fully documented in the final report. The background research will begin with a review of the state historic structure and archaeological site files and reports at the North Carolina Division of Archives and History Office of State Archaeology (OSA) and Survey and Planning Department in Raleigh to gather additional information available for the previously recorded resources present on the tract and for other sites documented nearby. Following this review, we will consult pertinent sources, such as An Inventory of Cultural, Historical, Recreational, Biological, and Geological Significance in the Unincorporated Portions of Orange Counry, the Historic Preservation Element Orange County Comprehensive Plan (The Jaeger Company 1996), Test Excavations at Selected Log Cabin Sites in Orange County, North Carolina (Daniel and Ward 1993), An Archaeological Survey of Portions of Orange County, North Carolina (Daniel 1994), Carolina Dwelling (Swaim 1978), the Hillsborough Historical Society Journal, and the ERCD research files, as well as resources available at the North Carolina Collection at UNC-Chapel Hill, the North Carolina State Archives and Library, and other repositories to identify published or unpublished data concerning the project area and relevant site and structure types. Page - 1