Jennifer L. Thompson

Archeological Significance Testing at 41BX17/271, the Granberg Site: A Multi-Component Site along the Salado Creek in Bexar County, Texas

The Center for Archaeological Research (CAR) of The University of Texas at San Antonio conducted archeological significance testing at 41BX17, the Granberg Site, from January to March 2006. The testing was conducted for the Texas Department of Transportation, Environmental Affairs Division (TxDOT-ENV). The Granberg Site sits on the eastern flood terrace of the Salado Creek south of Loop 410 in San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas. Planned road improvements including installation of a storm sewer line and a water main prompted the need to assess whether (1) cultural deposits including human remains still exist after previous testing and (2) if the deposits contribute to the site’s National Register of Historic Places eligibility. The archeological work was conducted under Texas Antiquities Permit No. 4010. Steve A. Tomka served as Principal Investigator and Jennifer Thompson served as Project Archeologist. Fieldwork included mechanical auger boring and backhoe trenching to determine the horizontal extent of the site boundaries within the median of Loop 410 eastbound. Sixteen 1-x-1-m units were excavated to determine the distribution and integrity of the cultural deposits and to locate any possible burials that may still exist at the site. Materials recovered included burned rock features, chipped stone artifacts, animal bone, snail and mussel shell and charred plant remains. The distribution of the artifacts, the geomorphic investigations, the radiocarbon assays, and temporally diagnostic artifacts indicate the presence of Middle and Late Archaic archeological materials with good stratigraphic integrity. The Granberg Site was determined to be ineligible for the National Register of Historic Places. Following the completion of eligibility testing efforts, the TxDOT directed the CAR to develop a research design linking the data recovered from the various excavations at the Granberg Site with research goals. The CAR developed the research design (Munoz et al. 2007) under Work Authorization No. 57513SA005 with Cynthia M. Munoz serving as Project Archeologist. At roughly the time of the research design implementation, the CAR was the recipient of a donation of a collection of commingled human skeletal remains recovered from the Granberg Site. These remains were recovered from 41BX17/271 in 1962 by Harvey Kohnitz, an avocational archeologist, without knowledge or permission from the Texas Highway Department. The remains were stored at the Kohnitz home until his son, Mark Kohnitz, donated them to the CAR in 2007. An osteological analysis was conducted at the CAR laboratory during February 2008 for TxDOT, under Work Authorization No. 57513SA005 Supplemental Work Authorization No. 4. The results of this analysis are reported in Appendix H of this report. The commingled remains will be curated the CAR and all required documents, including an inventory, will be submitted to the National Park Service National NAGPRA Program to fulfill all obligations pertaining to the NAGPRA laws. All artifacts collected during this project and all project-associated documentation are permanently curated at the CAR according to Texas Historical Commission guidelines.

Results of Archeological Significance Testing at 41TV410 and 41TV540 and Associated Geomorphological Investigations on a Segment of Onion Creek in Travis County, Texas

In late 2005, the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) contracted the Center for Archaeological Research at the University of Texas at San Antonio (CAR-UTSA) to conduct significance testing at 41TV410 and 41TV540, two prehistoric archeological sites located in the floodplain of Onion Creek in southeast Austin in Travis County. The work was conducted in advance of a borrow pit excavation related to the construction on State Highway (SH) 130. The borrow pit represented a project specific location (PSL). PSLs are normally not part of the project per Federal Highway Administration policy. PSLs are the responsibility of the contractor in most cases. However, the testing reported here was mandated by language of the SH 130 comprehensive development agreement. Significance testing was performed late in 2005 and early in 2006. For 41TV540, Dr. Raymond Mauldin served as Principal Investigator and Jennifer Thompson served as the Project Archeologist. At 41TV410, Dr. Mauldin served as Project Archeologist and Dr. Steve Tomka served as Principal Investigator. The archeological work at these sites was not under the purview of either Section 106 or the Antiquities Code of Texas. The work was not conducted under a Texas Antiquities Permit. However, testing at both sites was conducted in accordance with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and Guidelines for Archeology and Historic Preservation and guidelines provided by the Texas Historical Commission (THC). CAR completed fieldwork in early January of 2006. At 41TV410, 11 features were uncovered with radiocarbon dates that fell in the Early/Middle Archaic and in the Late Archaic. Recovery of artifacts and ecofacts was extremely low. The 41TV540 work also produced a low density of chipped stone artifacts and tools, and exposed 17 features, many of which dated to the close of the Early Archaic. Preliminary observations on flotation returns suggested good quantities of burned material and faunal remains were present at 41TV540. CAR prepared post-field reports summarizing the work and provided recommendations for both sites. Because both locations appeared to contain intact deposits that could, in our view, contribute to an understanding of the prehistoric cultural development of the region, CAR recommended that the sites were eligible to the NRHP under criterion d. TxDOT agreed with CAR recommendations that 41TV540 was eligible for listing in the NRHP, though they did not request any additional work at the site. TxDOT concluded that site 41TV410 was not eligible for listing on the NRHP. At TxDOT’s instruction, CAR prepared a research design for the analysis of the testing data from 41TV540, as well as a summary of the 41TV410 work. That document (Tomka et al. 2007), which outlined a series of analyses including several new geomorphic studies and a project area geomorphic synthesis, served as a guideline for the present document. Since the archeological and geomorphological investigations reported here, the construction of SH 130 has been completed and deposits containing the sites discussed have been removed. All artifacts, notes, photos, and other material associated with the project are stored at CAR. At this time, decisions regarding the disposal of selected artifact classes, as well as the location for permanent curation of the remaining artifacts and associated records, have not been made. However, it is expected that all project related records and artifacts retained will be permanently curated at CAR.

A Geoarcheological Survey of the Proposed Plainview Hike and Bike Trail, Hale County, Texas

In March of 2005, the Texas Department of Transportation issued work authorization #575-01-SA005 to the Center for Archaeological Research (CAR) at the University of Texas at San Antonio to conduct a survey of areas affected by proposed improvements to the Plainview hike and bike trail in southern Plainview, Hale County, Texas. The survey was conduced under Texas Antiquities Permit #3707 between March 31 and April 7, 2005. Steve Tomka and Raymond Mauldin served as Principal Investigators. Trail construction included 2.0 miles of additional construction and 1.3 miles of improvements to existing trails. The Right-ofWay is 50 feet and extends from one to three feet below ground surface. Archeological services included a pedestrian survey, excavation of fifty-five auger tests placed no more than 100 m apart, and twenty-one Gradall trenches. Two of these trenches exposed the stratigraphy of Running Water Draw near the Plainview Site, 41HA1. Bulk samples were collected for OSL dating, diatoms analysis, and lithologic analysis for further examination of the age and stratigraphic context of the Plainview Site, which is a State Archeological Landmark, a National Landmark, and a National Register of Historic Places property. Site 41HA12 was re-examined with 10 mechanical auger tests and 1 trench, which found only recent alluvial and cultural deposition. No additional archeological sites were recorded. This report includes descriptions of the fieldwork, results of the special analyses performed on bulk sediment samples collected, and a discussion of the geomorphology of Running Water Draw with specific focus on the results from trenches excavated near the Plainview Site. The single artifact and all documents and photographs generated from this project are curated at the Center for Archaeological Research at The University of Texas at San Antonio.

Archaeological Testing Associated with the Stabilization of Room 4 at Mission San Juan Capistrano, San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas

In May 2006, The Center for Archaeological Research excavated one test unit at the exterior north wall of Room 4, west of the chimney at Mission San Juan Capistrano. The excavation occurred to assess the condition of the foundation and the dimensions of a more recent concrete footing before restoration of the collapsed north wall. The excavation found disturbed deposits throughout the test unit, but was able to locate and record the architectural features for Ford, Powell, and Carson, Architects and Planners, Inc., the project sponsors. A composite map of all excavations conducted at the mission since 1931 is included with descriptions of the agency, dimensions and location of all excavations as reported to aid future cultural resource management of Mission San Juan Capistrano.

Archaeological Survey and Archival Research of the Naegelin Tract (41BX1600) in San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas

On December 2 and 3, 2004, the Center for Archaeological Research (CAR) conducted a Phase I survey of the 108acre Naegelin Tract in northwest Bexar County, Texas, for Raba-Kistner Consultants, Inc. The proposed development consists of extending De Zavala Road through the southern portion of the tract and Kyle Seale Road through the eastern margin of the tract. Drainage easements are planned to cross through the center of the property and also along the northern and eastern margins of the tract. Thirty-six shovel tests were excavated along 30-meter transects and in areas considered to have high or moderate probability of buried cultural materials. No buried cultural materials were identified by any of the hand-excavated shovel tests. The survey resulted in the identification of eight isolated finds including one heavily fragmented projectile point that may represent a Bulverde dart point. This was the only artifact collected during the survey. No prehistoric sites were identified within the project area. One historic site was identified during the survey (41BX1600). The survey documented the remains of a main stone building and nine outbuildings on the property. Although an age could not be determined based on the sparse artifacts noted on surface, the site appeared to represent a historic homestead built during the late nineteenth or early twentieth centuries. A 1939 aerial photograph of the area shows that many of the outbuildings and the main stone structure had been built by this date. Comprehensive deed research and oral histories conducted between February and June, 2005, helped to establish that the earliest structures on the complex were built in 1888. This research also revealed the presence of an unmarked grave on the property. Subsequent to the pedestrian survey and prior to the completion of the archival research, the main stone building was severely damaged by fire. The fire damage exposed construction and architectural details not visible during the pedestrian survey. During a subsequent site visit, a tenth wood-framed outbuilding was identified. One isolated stone building of the same construction technique and age remained in good condition following the fire until it was recently torn down during asbestos abatement activities. The principal stone-built structures on the compound were exceptional examples of Texas vernacular architecture of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The interior of the main stone structure had been dilapidated through years of neglect and abandonment, nonetheless, it retained structural integrity and exemplified changes in architectural elements over a period of roughly 10 years of additions to the original core structure. Following the fire, and the razing of the only undamaged building on site, the stone buildings retain no structural integrity and the site is not recommended as eligible for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places or for designation as a State Archeological Landmark. No additional archaeological work is recommended in association with this development. These archaeological investigations were conducted under Texas Antiquities Committee permit number 3597 with Dr. Raymond P. Mauldin, CAR Assistant Director, serving as Principal Investigator. The single prehistoric artifact collected during the survey and a small number of potentially temporally diagnostic artifacts collected from the surface of 41BX1600 following the fire, as well as all project-related documents are curated at the Center for Archaeological Research at The University of Texas at San Antonio.

Archeological Investigations at Mission Espíritu Santo (41GD1), Goliad County, Texas

Excavations were carried out at Mission Nuestra Señora del Espíritu Santo de Zuñiga (41GD1) in November of 2004 and February of 2005 by the Center for Archaeological Research of The University of Texas at San Antonio under contract with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. The work was conducted in advance of the planned construction of a French drain system. Shovel tests, 1-x-1-meter test units, and controlled backhoe trenches were used to explore areas that would be impacted by the proposed drainage system along the northern walls of the chapel and museum (granary) and across the center of the courtyard. Based on the findings of the shovel tests, test units, and trenching, three areas with significant deposits were identified. The first area is associated with a probable midden deposit located in the northwest section of the mission, the second is located along the northern wall of the granary (museum), adjacent to the priest’s quarters, while the third consists of two colonial-period features located west of the presentday workshop. Although at the start of the fieldwork it was assumed that no intact cultural deposits survived within the courtyard of the mission, the excavations revealed that selected areas do retain intact colonial-age deposits with significant research potential. These areas should be more fully delimited and explored as future opportunities for their investigations arise. The fieldwork was conducted under Texas Antiquities Permit No. 3593 with Antonia Figueroa and Jennifer Thompson serving as co-Principal Investigators. All artifacts collected were processed in the Center for Archaeological Research laboratory and transferred to Texas Parks and Wildlife for permanent curation.

Intensive Pedestrain Survey of Three Tracts to be Impacted by the Planned Expansion of the San Antonio International Airport, Bexar County, Texas

During the months of March and April 2005, the Center for Archaeological Research (CAR) of The University of Texas at San Antonio conducted a 100 percent intensive pedestrian survey of three tracts of land (totaling 210 acres) for Adams Environmental, Inc. The project area is located within the boundaries of the San Antonio International Airport and the tracts are owned by the City of San Antonio Department of Aviation. The tracts represent the planned locations for the expansion of two runways and land development adjacent to them. The goal of the archaeological survey was to identify and document all prehistoric and/or historic archaeological sites in the project area. The archaeological survey revealed that there were major disturbances in all three tracts. No prehistoric and/or historic sites were encountered and no additional archaeological work is recommended in association with the runway expansion project. The possibility that an alternative Widely Spaced Runway Option would be pursued for airport expansion was also considered as part of this project. The area that would be impacted by this alternative option is located on the northdescending bank of Salado Creek. Additional archaeological work, in the form of a 100 percent intensive pedestrian survey coupled with a standing structure survey, is recommended within this alternative area if this is the final option chosen for development. All artifacts collected during these investigations are curated at the CAR facility according to Texas Historical Commission guidelines. These investigations were conducted under Texas Antiquities Permit No. 3619, with Dr. Steve Tomka, CAR director, serving as Principal Investigator.