NORTH CAROLINA OFFICE OF STATE ARCHAEOLOGY ARCHAEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION STANDARDS AND GUIDELINES FOR BACKGROUND RESEARCH, FIELD METHODOLOGIES, TECHNICAL REPORTS, AND CURATION -December 2017- About the North Carolina Office of State Archaeology The North Carolina Office of State Archaeology (OSA) was created by the North Carolina General Assembly in 1973 to coordinate and implement a statewide archaeological preservation program. Elements of this program include maintaining a statewide computer-based inventory of archaeological sites, enforcing the North Carolina Archaeological Resource Protection Act (G.S. 70 Article 2), and ensuring the proper treatment of human burials in cooperation with the individuals and organizations specified in the Unmarked Human Burial and Human Skeletal Remains Protection Act (G.S. 70 Article 3). An important aspect of North Carolina’s statewide archaeological preservation program is to implement the policies of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, and later, North Carolina General Statute 121-12a. G.S. 121-12a provides for consideration of National Register properties in undertakings funded or licensed by the state. North Carolina Office of State Archaeology – Archaeological Investigation Standards and Guidelines (December 2017) Page ii Table of Contents PART 1. BACKGROUND RESEARCH .................................................................................. 1 I. Introduction .................................................................................................................... 1 a. Qualifications ...................................................................................................................................... 1 b. Making an Appointment.................................................................................................................... 1 II. Accessing Records .......................................................................................................... 2 a. Maps ..................................................................................................................................................... 2 b. Site Forms ............................................................................................................................................ 2 c. Reports ................................................................................................................................................. 2 PART 2. TERRESTRIAL FIELD METHODOLOGY .......................................................... 3 I. Introduction .................................................................................................................... 3 a. Definitions ........................................................................................................................................... 3 1. Defining an Archaeological Site .................................................................................................... 3 2. Site Occurrence Probability Categories ....................................................................................... 3 3. Area of Potential Effects ................................................................................................................ 4 4. Cemeteries and Grave Sites ........................................................................................................... 4 b. Qualifications and Permitting ........................................................................................................... 4 1. Principal Investigator Qualifications ............................................................................................ 4 2. Archaeological Investigations on State Lands ............................................................................ 4 c. Planning and Contingencies .............................................................................................................. 5 1. Background Research ..................................................................................................................... 5 2. Changes in Field Strategies/Methodologies ................................................................................ 5 3. Inadvertent Discovery of Human Remains ................................................................................ 5 II. Forms of Investigation .................................................................................................... 5 a. Monitoring ........................................................................................................................................... 5 b. Reconnaissance Survey/Due Diligence .......................................................................................... 6 c. Phase I Identification Survey ............................................................................................................ 7 d. Phase II Evaluation/Testing ............................................................................................................. 7 e. Phase III Data Recovery/Mitigation or Treatment ....................................................................... 8 III. Field Methodologies ...................................................................................................... 8 a. Remote Sensing................................................................................................................................... 8 1. LiDAR and Multi-Spectral Imagery ............................................................................................. 9 2. On-Site Remote Sensing ................................................................................................................. 9 b. Pedestrian Reconnaissance ............................................................................................................. 10 c. Excavation ......................................................................................................................................... 10 1. Shovel Testing ............................................................................................................................... 10 2. Close-Interval Shovel Testing ..................................................................................................... 12 3. Soil Coring and Augering ............................................................................................................. 12 4. Test Unit Excavation .................................................................................................................... 12 North Carolina Office of State Archaeology – Archaeological Investigation Standards and Guidelines (December 2017) Page iii 5. Feature Excavation ....................................................................................................................... 13 d. Machine-Assisted Excavation ......................................................................................................... 14 1. Deep Testing .................................................................................................................................. 14 2. Mechanical Stripping .................................................................................................................... 14 e. Special Analyses .................................................................................................................................. 14 IV. Documentation ............................................................................................................ 14 a. Field Documentation ....................................................................................................................... 14 b. Recording a Site ................................................................................................................................ 15 c. Recording a Cemetery ...................................................................................................................... 15 d. GIS Mapping ..................................................................................................................................... 16 PART 3. TECHNICAL REPORTS ....................................................................................... 17 I. Introduction .................................................................................................................. 17 a. Submission of Reports ..................................................................................................................... 17 b. Site and Accession Numbers .......................................................................................................... 18 c. Site and Cemetery Forms ................................................................................................................ 18 d. Curation ............................................................................................................................................. 19 II. Monitoring Reports ....................................................................................................... 19 III. Reconnaissance Survey/Due Diligence Reports ......................................................... 20 IV. Phase I Identification Survey (Intensive Survey) Reports ............................................ 21 a. Management Summary .................................................................................................................... 21 b. Introduction .....................................................................................................................................