Agenda - 09-06-2007-4f - Laserfiche WebLink

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A objects, districts, structures, and buildings are determined as worthy of inclusion on the NRHP if "the quality of significance in American history, architecture, engineering, and culture is present" in these resources and if they "possess integrity of location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling, and association and a. that are associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history; or b. that are associated with the lives of persons significant in our past; or C. that embody the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction that represents the work of a master, or that possess high artistic values, or that represent a significant and distinguishable entity whose components may lack individual distinction; or d. that have yielded, or may be likely to yield, information important in prehistory or history." The majority of archaeological sites that are deemed significant and typically eligible for inclusion on the NRHP fall under the last criterion M. In order to assess a site's significance, that resource's potential for contributing new or collaborative information to the theoretical and substantive knowledge of archaeology must be determined. Consequently, researchers must consider how each site does or does not help address the questions within the project research design and within the framework of other regional research questions. Research questions that pertain to the North Carolina Piedmont Region are summarized below. • Refining the prehistoric and historic cultural sequence • Identifying prehistoric and historic activities. • Understanding lithic procurement and technology. • Contributing to our knowledge about prehistoric and historic settlement locations and the exploitation of natural resources for subsistence. • Understanding environmental diversity and adaptation and change of prehistoric and historic groups. The potential of any discovered site to help address these research areas is based on determining the intactness of cultural deposits (integrity), the variety and quantity of artifacts, the clarity of site stratigraphy, and the discreteness of site boundaries, and on the environmental context of each site. A limited field reconnaissance will be accomplished throughout the remainder of the property in areas where no construction is planned, specifically Area 3. A surface walkover in areas of ground visibility will be conducted. If cultural material is found on the surface, subsurface testing will be implemented as outlined in the previous section. Areas within the property that have a high probability for the presence of archaeological sites will be thoroughly investigated by systematic subsurface inspection. These areas include flat ridgetops and landforms adjacent to water sources. Landforms that exhibit more than 15 percent slope are considered to have a low probability for archaeological sites. Since the requirements for this portion of the survey is limited reconnaissance, systematic subsurface testing at 30 -m intervals will not be conducted across the entire property. As planning for the location of project buildings becomes complete, areas chosen for construction activities may require a more intensive investigation. Any cemeteries found will be recorded, but they will not be probed to determine boundaries or the number of graves present. If unmarked human burials or skeletal remains are found, the North Carolina State Archaeologist will be notified immediately, following the provisions of North Carolina G.S. 70, Article 3, The Unmarked Human Burial and Skeletal Remains Protection Act. C. LABORATORY WORK All recovered artifacts will be cleaned and conserved in a manner appropriate to assure their stability. All diagnostic artifacts will be fully provenienced and labeled. The cultural and temporal affiliation, material of manufacture, style, function, and form of recovered artifacts will be identified. Page 4 of 8