Phase IA Cultural Resource Reconnaissance for the Des Moines Water Trail Corridor Through Portions of Boone, Dallas, Jasper
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Phase IA Cultural Resource Reconnaissance for the Des Moines Water Trail Corridor Through Portions of Boone, Dallas, Jasper, Marion, Polk, Story, and Warren Counties, Iowa REVISED By Mark L. Anderson and William E. Whittaker Melody Pope and Stephen C. Lensink Co-Principal Investigators Technical Report 170 Office of the State Archaeologist The University of Iowa Iowa City 2015 Table of Contents Figures ........................................................................................................................... iv Tables ............................................................................................................................ iv Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 1 Project Area Description ................................................................................................. 2 Regional ...................................................................................................................... 2 Local ........................................................................................................................... 2 Cultural Resources Assessment ....................................................................................... 8 Methods ...................................................................................................................... 8 Results....................................................................................................................... 11 Future Work .................................................................................................................. 12 Priority Areas for Further Study Due to Possible Future Development ....................... 12 Sensitivity for Cultural Resources .............................................................................. 28 Information to Assist in Developing Interpretive Materials ........................................ 29 Archaeological Research Needs ................................................................................. 31 Summary and Recommendations ................................................................................... 32 References Cited ........................................................................................................... 33 Appendix I: National Archeological Data Base - Reports: Data Entry Form ................ 244 iii Figures Figure 1. Study area in relation to counties and cities. Includes Des Moines Water Trail area. .... 56 Figure 2. Map showing study area in relation to vegetation. ....................................................... 57 Figure 3. Map of prior archaeological surveys in the study area. ................................................ 58 Figure 4. Map of previously recorded archaeological sites in the study area. .............................. 59 Figure 5. Map of the study area, showing architectural properties with Iowa Site Inventory listed on the NRHP. .......................................................................................................... 60 Figure 6. Map of archaeological sites with NRHP-eligibility recommendations. ........................ 61 Figure 7. Map of the known cemeteries within the study area. ................................................... 62 Figure 8. Map of the Landscape Model For Archaeological Site Suitability (LANDMASS) ....... 63 Tables Table 1. Descriptions of the Most Common Soil Series in the Study Area. ................................. 64 Table 2. Townships, Cities, and Villages of the Study Area. ...................................................... 66 Table 3. Prior Archaeological Investigations in the Study Area .................................................. 67 Table 4. Previously Recorded Sites in the Study Area. ............................................................. 110 Table 5: The Study Area’s Architectural Properties with the Iowa Site Inventory Form. .......... 167 Table 6. Study Area Recorded Sites with Specific Archaeological Recommendations. ............. 241 Table 7. Basic Cultural Resources Information about Existing and Potential Accesses ............. 242 iv The University of Iowa’s Office of the State Archaeologist conducted a Phase IA archaeological reconnaissance survey along the Des Moines Water Trails through Boone, Dallas, Jasper, Marion, Polk, Story, and Warren counties, Iowa. The study revealed information about prior archaeological surveys, previously recorded archaeological and architectural sites and properties, NRHP eligibility of properties, and potentially significant historical resources that have not been archaeologically identified. GIS shapefiles pertaining to cultural resources were generated and provided to the DNR. Recommendations for future work along the water trail corridor were presented. Introduction The Office of the State Archaeologist (OSA) of the University of Iowa has prepared this report under the terms of a cultural resource survey agreement between OSA and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. This report records the results of a Phase IA archaeological reconnaissance survey along the Des Moines Water Trails, which contains portions of the Des Moines, Middle, North, and Skunk Rivers, along with portions of Beaver and Walnut Creeks, all flowing through portions of Boone, Dallas, Jasper Polk, Story, and Warren counties, Iowa. The studied river segments include 229.9 river km (142.8 river mi) along the five river and two creek segments. The Des Moines River corridor includes the Des Moines, Middle, North, and Raccoon River segments and Beaver and Walnut Creek segments, totaling 200.9 river km (124.8 river mi). The Des Moines River corridor begins roughly 1.5 mi northwest of the town of Madrid and continues south and southeast to its termination approximately at the Perry–Red Rock Township line, Marion County. The South Skunk River corridor includes 28.9 river km (18.1 river mi) and begins roughly .75 mi southeast of the town of Cambridge, Story County, and terminates just north of the town of Colfax in Jasper County. An area extending from bluff top to bluff top of the river channel segments was the study area. The Des Moines River corridor’s valley width ranged from roughly 1 to 6 km (.6 to 3.7 mi) for a total study area of 41,885 ha (103,497 ac). The South Skunk River corridor’s valley width ranged from roughly 3 to 5.9 km (1.9 to 3.7 mi) for a total study area of 15,670 ha (38,721 ac). The total study area for the entire Des Moines Water Trails study area is 57,555 ha (142,216 ac) (Figure 1). There are no immediate impacts projected in the study area; this survey is meant to aid in future planning. Mark L. Anderson conducted the reconnaissance survey assisted by Bill Whittaker. Melody Pope was project director. The OSA is solely responsible for the interpretations and recommendations contained in this report. All records including maps and figures are curated in the OSA Archives. The National Archeological Data Base Form is included as Appendix I. Information contained in this report relating to the nature and location of archaeological sites is considered private and confidential and not for public disclosure in accordance with Section 304 of the National Historic Preservation Act (54 U.S.C. § 307103); 36 CFR Part 800.6 (a)(5) of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation’s rules implementing Sections 106 and 110 of the Act; Section 9(a) of the Archaeological Resource Protection Act (54 U.S.C. § 100707) and, Chapter 22.7, subsection 20 of the Iowa Code. OSA Technical Report 170 Project Area Description REGIONAL The project area is located within two of Iowa’s landform region including the Des Moines Lobe and the Southern Iowa Drift Plain (Figure 1, inset). They are described as follows. The Des Moines Lobe is underlain by glacial till deposited during the most recent ice advances into Iowa, approximately 12,000 to 14,000 years ago. The Bemis, Altamont, and Algona end moraines delimit the three major Late Wisconsinan glacial ice margins. (Prior 1991:39–40, 47). Except along major streams, drainage systems are generally not well established. Kettle lakes, eskers, kames, and other features formed by ice wasting and meltwater discharge mark the landscape. Though many wetlands have been drained, the majority of Iowa’s natural lakes are located in the region. The Des Moines River and its immediate tributaries deeply incise the till plain, exposing the underlying bedrock in many places. Discontinuous deposits of wind-transported, reworked outwash are present across the lobe and are identified as the Peoria Formation. These deposits, including a silt facie (loess) and a sand facie (eolian sand), abruptly overlies older Quaternary formations of mainly the Dows and Noah Creek Formations (Bettis, Quade, and Kemmis 1996:24–26). The topography of the Southern Iowa Drift Plain is one of steeply rolling hills, level upland divides, stepped erosion surfaces, and dendritic drainage networks. Uplands are mantled by a moderate to thick cover of Wisconsinan-age loess. Pre-Illinoian glacial drift and underlying sedimentary bedrock are exposed within the deeper stream valleys. Southeast Iowa is dominated by broad, level upland divides that represent undissected remnants of surfaces developed during the Yarmouth and Sangamon stages on a Pre-Illinoian drift plain. The areal extent of undissected uplands decreases with distance westward, and stepped hillslopes and deep valleys dominate the south-central