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This book presents the results of the archaeological investigations that were conducted along then Light Rail route before and during its construction. As with any project that receives federal funding, METRO was legally required to undertake archaeological investigations along the project corridor; but production of this volume reflects not only METRO's commitment to legal compliance with environmental laws, but also the commitment of the cities of Phoenix, Tempe, and Mesa to preserve and protect the rich prehistoric and historic heritage upon which they are built— a heritage that is reflected in the very name of Phoenix. As a result of our investigations, we encountered a wealth of archaeological materials, investigated 1,049 features, and recovered over a quarter of a million artifacts— not surprising given that the Light Rail route traverses numerous prehistoric villages that were occupied by the Hohokam about 1,000 years ago. While only a very few of these artifacts can be described in this volume, most of them are curated (stored under controlled conditions so they can be preserved for future generations of researchers) at three local museums— Pueblo Grande Museum in Phoenix, the Tempe Historical Museum in Tempe, and the Arizona Museum of Natural History in Mesa. Here we discuss some of the more interesting prehistoric and historic artifacts and features that we found, and relate how their analysis has advanced what we know about the prehistoric and early historic occupations of the Phoenix metropolitan area. This is volume 4 part 1 of the reports for Tracks through Time: Urban Archaeology along the METRO Light Rail Corridor. This report details the artifact research within the excavations. The types of artifacts examined in this report are ceramics, lithics, shells, copper bells, historic resources and artifacts.

The Southwest Germann site is among the largest of prehistoric Hohokam settlements in the Queen Creek area. The Rohrig Substation property is located at its southwestern edge and overlaps a previously unreported habitation locus. Archaeological testing (Phase 1 data recovery) at the substation documented the presence of adobe-walled rooms, puddling pits, and trash deposits that were probably contained within an adobe-walled compound on the easternmost side of the Rohrig property. Salt River Project decided to restrict substation construction to the western 2 acres of the property to preserve the habitation features. Phase 2 data recovery focused on the 2-acre construction area. Features documented during the Phase 2 effort included a large midden, several small pits, a roasting pit, several crematoria, secondary cremations, and animal burials. Diagnostic ceramics indicated the locus was primarily occupied during the late Soho and early Civano phases of the Classic period (A. D. 1250-1350). The Rohrig Substation investigations were designed to obtain new information about the types of cultural activities that occurred on the margin of large Hohokam habitation areas in the Queen Creek area. The data recovery research provides new insights about residential activity, subsistence, mortuary practices, and patterns of interaction within the the Southwest Germann site. The results of the project suggest the Classic period inhabitants of the Rohrig Substation locus had strong ties with populations in the middle Gila River Basin and a set of traditions and customs strongly rooted in the past. Contributions of expertise were provided by Jenny L. Adams, Michael W. Diehl, T. Kathleen Henderson, Gary Huckleberry, Penny Dufoe Minturn, R. Jane Sliva, Arthur W. Vokes, Jennifer A. Waters, and Gregory J. Whitney.

Northland has completed cultural resources testing at two parcels. During the project, 83 trenches were mechanically excavated, totaling 1,613.3 meters. Trenches were roughly 20 m long, 65 cm wide, and 1.5 m deep. They were laid out in a checkerboard pattern across both loci, with trenches spaced 40 m apart east-west. This equates to approximately a 1.25 percent subsurface sample of the 20.7 acre project area. Testing confirmed the presence of features associated with Las Canopas (AZ T:12:137[ASM]), a large Hohokam village. In total, Northland identified 141 prehistoric cultural features, including habitation structures, extramural features, irrigation canals, and human burials. Basic descriptive information was collected on the location and distribution of all features identified. All human remains disturbed during testing were documented and removed. During testing, 20 human burial features were encountered. A map of the location of trenches and features was also prepared. The results of the Northland testing project indicate a lengthy prehistoric occupation within the tested parcels. Diagnostic ceramics ranging from the early Pioneer period, ca. A.D. 500 to 750, through late Classic period, ca. A.D. 1300 to 1450 were collected or noted during fieldwork. The temporal and spatial distribution of features across the tested parcels confirms the presence of intact prehistoric features. High densities of subsurface features, including human mortuary features, are present in multiple areas within the project area. Northland recommends that additional cultural resources investigations be conducted prior to any future ground disturbing activities within the project area. Las Canopas is eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places based on its potential to contribute significant information to the prehistory of the region. Results of Northland's testing project indicate numerous additional intact features associated with the site will be encountered by any future ground disturbance activities. Of particular significance, it is highly probable that multiple human burial features remain undisturbed within the parcels. The site contains significant information potential and can address many important research questions pertaining to Hohokam occupation in the area. Indeed, there are few remaining sites in the Phoenix Basin with as much research potential. Therefore, prior to any future ground disturbance, Northland recommends that a research plan and plan of work for data recovery be prepared and implemented.

Data recovery was completed at Pueblo del Rio as specified in the work plan developed after the testing phase. The purpose of the data recovery was to recover sufficient information from the portion of Pueblo del Rio within the EPNG right-of-way to answer general research questions as outlined in the treatment plan and to mitigate the adverse effect of the proposed EPNG undertaking on the cultural resources within the right-of-way. These goals were accomplished. However, the highly disturbed nature of the deposits made interpretation of the investigated features difficult. Additionally, the spatial limits of the project area within the narrow EPNG right-of-way precluded site-wide generalizations.

The Roosevelt Community Development Study (RCD) involved the testing and excavation of 27 sites in the Lower Tonto Basin of central Arizona. This is one of three related data recovery projects undertaken in the Tonto Basin for the Bureau of Reclamation prior to the raising of the Roosevelt Lake dam. The results of the RCD project are presented in four Anthropological Papers of the Center for Desert Archaeology: Anthropological Papers No. 12 is the research design; Anthropological Papers No. 13 (two volumes) contains background information and the site descriptions; Anthropological Papers No. 14 (three volumes) includes the artifact and environmental analyses; and Anthropological Papers No. 15 presents the synthesis and conclusions. The project was situated within the Tonto National Forest and covered a four-mile, continuous area along the north bank of the Salt River. Sites within the project area exhibited a great range of functional, temporal, and, possibly, cultural diversity. These included two sites with platform mounds (the Meddler Point and Pyramid Point sites); a 10Q-room masonry pueblo (the Griffin Wash site); smaller masonry compounds (e.g., the Porcupine site); and pithouse hamlets and farmsteads (e.g., the Hedge Apple and Eagle Ridge sites). Temporal components ranged from the Early Ceramic period (A.D. 100-600), at Locus B of the Eagle Ridge site, through the Roosevelt phase (A.D. 1250-1350) of the Classic period. The Early Ceramic component of the Eagle Ridge site is now the earliest documented ceramic period site in the Tonto Basin and provides definitive evidence for an indigenous ceramic-using population. The project area was inhabited most intensively during the Roosevelt phase, when platform mounds, pueblo room blocks, and small masonry compounds were occupied. Architectural and artifact variability suggest the presence of several different cultural groups co-residing in the Tonto Basin at this time, and migration is believed to have been a significant process in Tonto Basin prehistory. The RCD project area was largely abandoned by A.D. 1325, prior to the large-scale aggregation that occurred during the Gila phase; very few Gila Polychrome sherds were recovered from project area sites. The mandate of the RCD project, as spedfied by the Bureau of Reclamation, was to investigate the temporal and developmental sequence of the prehistoric populations within this area. To meet these goals, six sites were intensively examined through full-scale excavation, and an extensive data set was gathered from the remaining 21 sites. The three volumes in Anthropological Papers No. 14 contain the artifact and environmental analyses. More than 150,000 artifacts were recovered from the RCD excavations. This volume (Volume 3) presents the paleobotanical and osteological data. Included are analyses of the pollen (Chapter 18), flotation (Chapter 19), faunal (Chapter 20), and mortuary (Chapter 21) assemblages. Data from the subsistence analyses are combined and synthesized in Chapter 22. Volume 1 of Anthropological Papers No. 14 presents the analyses of the chipped stone, ground stone, jewelry and personal ornament, and shell assemblages. The ceramic artifact assemblage is examined in Volume 2 More spedfic information on the individual sites and the project background can be found in Anthropological Papers No. 13. Anthropological Papers No. 15 integrates and synthesizes these data to provide a more inclusive view of the prehistoric occupation of the RCD project area and the Tonto Basin.

The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), United States Department of the Interior, was in the initial stages of the Water Management Project designed to bring Central Arizona Project water to the Gila River Indian Community (GRIC). Under terms of a contract signed in 1992 with the GRIC, facilities designed and constructed by Reclamation would deliver 173,000 acre-feet of water annually onto the reservation. Federal law mandates consideration of potential impacts of such projects upon cultural resources and requires that necessary and appropriate steps be taken to mitigate those impacts. In accordance with these laws, Reclamation did a complete inventory of all cultural resources that may fall within the project area. Data resulting from this inventory provided the basis for assessment of the significance of the resources and for the design of plans to mitigate potential impacts to them. Two survey areas in which a water delivery system and associated features (such as dikes) will be constructed were identified by Reclamation. Broad survey areas were defined so the location of eligible sites would be known before specific project design began. In total, 180 sites were identified and recorded during survey. These sites include possible Archaic period materials, a wide range of prehistoric Hohokam site types representing all periods of the Hohokam sequence, possible Protohistoric manifestations, and numerous Historic Pima sites of varying ages. The report consists of two volumes. Volume 1 contains background information; consideration of survey and recording methods; analyses, evaluation, and interpretation of collected data; and recommendations for future treatment of discovered sites. Volume 2 contains site descriptions.

In late August, 1988, Archaeological Research Services, Inc. (ARS) performed a cultural resources survey on lands of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community for the Arizona Department of Transportation. The survey was undertaken for a project involving the construction of turn lanes. The project area encompassed a 4700 ft x 67 ft construction right-of-way adjacent to the northern edge of SR 87. Five prehistoric habitation sites and one prehistoric canal were identified within the right-of-way. The ceramics and architectural features associated with these sites indicate they were occupied by the Hohokam during the Sedentary and Classic Periods. At the request of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, ARS collected all of the surface artifacts from the five habitation sites within the construction right-of-way. A variety of ceramic and lithic artifacts were recovered, as well as some faunal remains and shell artifacts. This study presents an analysis of the surface collections from those five sites, and assesses the content and structure of the archaeological deposits for the portion of each site within the right-of-way. The results of the analysis suggest there were two groups of sites characterized by different artifact assemblages. One group of sites was associated with both Sedentary and Classic Period occupations, while a second group of sites was only associated with the Classic Period occupation of the area. These sites represent a group of agricultural communities that were first occupied during the Sedentary Period, and that grew substantially by Classic Period times. ARS will monitor the proposed turn lane construction for the presence of sub-surface cultural features and remains when the project is undertaken.

An archaeological testing program was undertaken at a portion of Pueblo del Alamo (AZ T:12:18 ASU). The project area encompasses 10 acres and contains a part of the site. Forty-one trenches were placed, systematically and judgmentally, within the 10 acre parcel. Thirty-five cultural features were found. Eight of the features are of historic date and 27 appear to be prehistoric. The Prehistoric occupation spans the period from the Gila Butte phase through the Civano phase. All of the cultural features are located in the northeastern portion of the project area. Avoidance of this area is recommended. Because no cultural remains were found outside of that area, archaeological clearance is recommended for the remainder of the parcel.

The Salt River Project (SRP) and Arizona Public Service Company (APS) constructed three transmission lines along a portion of the Beeline Highway on the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community (SRPMIC). SRP proposed to build a new line that connects the Pinnacle Peak, Brandow, and Papago Buttes substations. At the same time, APS proposed to realign two existing transmission lines and move them out of the Salt River channel and onto the north terrace above the river. Prior to construction, Archaeological Consulting Services Ltd. (ACS) was contracted to perform cultural resource investigations for both the SRP and APS portions of the project. A total of 13 identified sites were evaluated in 1984 as significant and, as such, potentially eligible for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places. Not all of these sites would be affected by the proposed transmission line development however. The recommendations of the studies were: (1) both SRP and APS should work to minimize adverse effects by carefully designing pole and access locations, and (2) a data recovery program to negate any adverse effects of the proposed development project should be prepared and implemented. The data recovery work was performed under the authority of the SRPMIC and an ARPA permit from the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Phoenix Area Office (BIA) (permit No. ACS/SR/PAO/0001A). Artifacts and notes were to be curated by the SRPMIC.

In 1978, the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) directed the Museum of Northern Arizona (MNA) to complete an intensive archaeological survey of the proposed alignment for the Salt-Gila Aqueduct, a feature of the Central Arizona Project. The survey area was 11,115 acres and included the 60 mile-long transmission line (with a typical width of 200 meters), three proposed utility line locations, one flood retention dike location, 11 possible spoil or realignment areas, and a subsidence well. Seventy archaeological sites were recorded during this survey, 25 of which were incorporated into 2 archaeological districts. Following pedestrian survey, the MNA also conducted archaeological testing at selected sites to evaluate their eligibility for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). Both districts and nearly all of the sites were evaluated as significant because of the scientific data they could be expected to yield. The survey had two general goals: 1) to assess the significance of archaeological resources in the project area and to recommend ways of mitigating adverse impacts to them which might result from construction and 2) to generate and synthesize data that would significantly enhance scientific knowledge about the project area, specifically about the use of the area through time. This report addresses the first goal and provides a plan to mitigate the adverse impacts to NRHP eligible properties that might arise from construction.The synthetic report that addresses the second goal can be found at tDAR ID 53594.

In 1978, the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) directed the Museum of Northern Arizona (MNA) to complete an intensive archaeological survey of the proposed alignment for the Salt-Gila Aqueduct, a feature of the Central Arizona Project. The survey area was 11,115 acres and included the 60 mile-long transmission line (with a typical width of 200 meters), three proposed utility line locations, one flood retention dike location, 11 possible spoil or realignment areas, and a subsidence well. Seventy archaeological sites were recorded during this survey. Following pedestrian survey, the MNA also conducted archaeological testing at selected sites to evaluate their eligibility for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places. The survey had two general goals: 1) to assess the significance of archaeological resources in the project area and to recommend ways of mitigating adverse impacts to them which might result from construction and 2) to generate and synthesize data that would significantly enhance scientific knowledge about the project area, specifically about the use of the area through time. This report addresses the second goal and synthesizes the survey data providing models of aboriginal utilization of riverine and nonriverine resource zones in the study area. The mitigation report that addresses the first goal can be found at tDAR ID 53593.

One of several construction programs proposed for inclusion in the Central Arizona Project was a system of aqueducts to link Parker Dam on the Colorado River in western Arizona and the Charleston Damsite on the San Pedro River in southeastern Arizona. Since the possibility existed that archaeological remains might be destroyed by necessary subjugation of lands for the aqueduct, the Southwest Archaeological Center of the National Park Service, U. S. Department of the Interior, made arrangements with several institutions to determine the extent of salvage archaeology requirements. The Department of Anthropology, Arizona State University was asked to conduct an archaeological survey of the Granite Reef and Salt-Gila Aqueducts from the Agua Fria River to the Gila River in central southern Arizona. A purchase order No. 931-18 was initiated by the Southwest Archaeological Center to assist Arizona State University in defraying expenses of the survey. Fieldwork on the program was undertaken with a dual purpose. First, it was necessary to complete the purposes for which the funds were made available, that was, a detailed inventory of sites endangered by proposed construction. Second, this project offered an opportunity to train students in one aspect of salvage archaeology. Since the proposed aqueduct route traversed several landforms and biotic zones, it was possible to include observations on settlement patterns, utilization of the environment, distribution of distinctive cultural remains, and a number of new concepts in surveying techniques. The observations and data obtained added significant depth to the usual survey for salvage archaeology purposes. Only a summary has been included here; detailed notes, as well as the collections, are on file at the Anthropology Laboratory, Arizona State University. Maps of the aqueduct routes were obtained from the Phoenix Office of the Bureau of Reclamation. No stakes were yet in place in the field and constant triangulation with instruments was necessary to be assured of map-field correspondence of location. Since changes in the line might occur when final designs are completed, every effort was made to extend the survey up to 100 meters or more on either side of the present right-of-way and proposed retarding dams. Effects of possible minor deviations were investigated; a major change would require examination of the new alignment. Arizona State University students primarily concerned with the training-research program were Don E. Simonis and Paul R. Fish. Christopher R. Lintz assisted during a major part of the program. Suzanne Kitchen and Joy Stanton were members of the field party upon several occasions. Field, laboratory, and classroom work was under the direction of Dr. Alfred E. Dittert, Jr.; Dr. James Schoenwetter provided additional instruction related to vegetation zones, surface pollen sampling, and similar specialized problems as they were encountered in the field. The research occupied available units of time between 1 October 1968 and 31 April 1969.

The Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) directed the Arizona State Museum to conduct a cultural resources survey of the Salt-Gila (Fannin-McFarland) Aqueduct as part of its environmental assessment of the impacts of the proposed Central Arizona Project. Twenty-two archaeological sites and two major areas of cultural activity were identified during the survey. Of these sites, 19 were recommended for further investigation and 5 were suggested for clearance (not eligible for the NRHP). The majority of the sites in the project area are prehistoric and are associated with the Hohokam archaeological culture. Only two historical-period sites were identified. The prehistoric sites were categorized according to site function as (1) long-term multiple activity sites, (2) short-term limited activity sites, (3) temporary activity sites, and (4) lithic activity sites. Long term multiple use sites are the largest in size and range from Colonial to Classic period (A.D. 500-1400) in age. The majority of the other sites also date to the Hohokam occupation, however, there were used for shorter periods of time.

This document consists of site descriptions for sites located on the Salt River Indian Reservation Lands. Those contributing content to the report include Gerald Bair, Susan B. Belt, Dav Buge, Thomas Cartledge, William G. Holiday, Susanne LaFollette, Minnabell E. Laughlin, Chad Phinney, Erwin R. Ray, Linda Richards, Helen P. Wells, Regge N. Wiseman, Robert York, and Betsy R. Zeligs.