Christopher A. Cojeen Archaeology Principal Investigator Research Cojeen Archaeological Services, LLC History Small-Scale Cultural Resources Inventory Report of the City of Guthrie Proposed Construction of Wastewater Treatment Plant, Lift Station and Sewer Line (13.4 Acres Surveyed), Located in Portions of Sections 5 and 6 T16N R2W, Logan County, Oklahoma Surface Ownership: Privately Held Lands Prepared for: Myers Engineering (for the City of Guthrie) Representative: Jack Heiser Project Location: Portions of the N/2 NW/4 Section 5 and N/2 N/2 of Section 6 T16N R2W USGS Guthrie North, OKLA quadrangle, 7.5-minute series 1983 Records Search: 8/20/2020 Survey: Amy Cojeen, James Briscoe and Hunter Riddle, 9/7-8/2020 Report: Christopher Cojeen and Amy Cojeen, 9/24/2020 P.O. Box 1186 | Norman, Oklahoma 73070 | (405) 360-9996 FAX: (405) 366-7020 Table of Contents ABSTRACT .......................................................................................................................... 1 DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT ............................................................................................ 5 LOCATION AND SETTING ...............................................................................................5 PRE-FIELD RECORDS CHECK/ REVIEW OF PREVIOUS RESEARCH .............................................................................. 12 SURVEY METHODS ......................................................................................................... 13 PALEONTOLOGICAL RESOURCES ............................................................................... 13 CULTURAL RESOURCE FINDINGS................................................................................ 13 RECOMMENDATIONS ..................................................................................................... 15 REFERENCES .................................................................................................................... 16 APPENDIX A SHOVEL TEST LOG i Small-Scale Cultural Resources Inventory, City of Guthrie WWTP, Lift Station and Sewer Line, page 1 ABSTRACT On 9/7-8/2020, Cojeen Archaeological Services, LLC (CAS) personnel performed an archeological survey of the City of Guthrie proposed new construction of a wastewater treatment plant, lift station and sewer line (study area). The proposed construction is located on private lands in portions of Sections 5 and 6 T16N R2W, Logan County, Oklahoma. This study was performed at the request of Myers Engineering Corporation. Approximately 13.4 acres of land area was studied for this report. The archeological survey included a background file search and pedestrian field survey augmented by shovel testing in an attempt to locate cultural resources in the project area. Files at the Oklahoma Archeological Survey (OAS) in Norman indicate no previously recorded archeological sites are located in the specific project area. The project is located approximately 0.5 miles west of State Highway 77 and 0.7 miles north of the City of Guthrie. Plans include the construction of sewer lines from North 7th Street trending west, connecting to a lift station at Bryant Road to terminate at the new wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). The proposed 1.2 miles of sewer line was surveyed utilizing a 30 ft. wide study corridor. A 100x100 ft. area was surveyed surrounding the proposed lift station. An approximate 12-acre area was surveyed for the proposed WWTP. The study area has been impacted by land management activities including plowing and contour terracing. Surface visibility was moderate (50% overall) due to recent plowing with short to medium height grasses covering the surface. No cultural resources were noted during the course of this study. Completion of the project will have no effect on cultural resources. Small-Scale Cultural Resources Inventory, City of Guthrie WWTP, Lift Station and Sewer Line, page 2 Figure 1. Project vicinity. Small-Scale Cultural Resources Inventory, City of Guthrie WWTP, Lift Station and Sewer Line, page 3 Figure 2. Study area (USGS Guthrie North, OKLA quadrangle, 7.5-minute series 1983). Small-Scale Cultural Resources Inventory, City of Guthrie WWTP, Lift Station and Sewer Line, page 4 Small-Scale Cultural Resources Inventory, City of Guthrie WWTP, Lift Station and Sewer Line, page 5 LOCATION AND SETTING The City of Guthrie proposed new construction WWTP, lift station and sewer line is located in portions of Sections 5 and 6 T16N R2W, Logan County, Oklahoma (Figures 1 and 2). The project is located in the floodplain of Cottonwood Creek and an upland environment overlooking the Cimarron River. At the time of survey, the study area fell within open pasture and contour terraced field setting with riparian forests lining river (Figure 3). Surface visibility was moderate at the time of survey, averaging 50% overall. Soils in the project area are derived mostly from Quaternary and Recent fluvial deposits deposited along terraces of the Cimarron River and its tributaries, and local Permian bedrock material. Soils along the eastern portion of the sewer line study area consist of Ashport silt loam, 0 to 1 percent slopes, occasionally flooded. These linear, well drained soils consist of silt loam over silty clay loam occur on floodplains and are parented from loamy alluvium derived from sedimentary rock. The predominant soil in the lift station, western portion of the sewer line and the WWTP study area include Teller loam, 1 to 3 percent slopes. Teller loam is linear, well drained soil consisting of loam, fine sandy loam over sandy clay loam, occurring on paleoterraces parented from loamy alluvium derived from sedimentary rock (Natural Resources Conservation Service 2020). The project lies within the Central Red-Bed Plains Geomorphic Province (Curtis, Jr., Ham and Johnson 2008) of the Red Bed Plains Physiographic Region (Bruner 1976). Vegetation in the study area is associated with the Post Oak-Blackjack Forest, which “locally known as the Cross Timbers and presents a mosaic of forest, woodland, and grassland vegetation” (Hoagland 2008). Elevation in the study area ranges from 925-980 ft. AMSL. Habitat types in the region include prairie habitat, edge-habitat associated with agricultural production and riparian bottomlands. Historically, the major grazing animals in the area were bison and pronghorn. Major predators were the wolf, coyote, bobcat and kit fox. Woodlands along streams supported wapiti, deer, and cottontail. Additionally, there were many burrowing animals (prairie dogs, pocket mice, kangaroo rats, etc.) and their predators (badger, black-footed ferret, etc.). The active hydrology and typography of the region support a wide variety of faunal resources. A more complete list is provided by Albert and Wyckoff (1984). PRE-FIELD RECORDS CHECK/REVIEW OF PREVIOUS RESEARCH CAS personnel contacted the offices of the OAS to review information on previously recorded cultural resources in the project vicinity. OAS files indicate no cultural resources are recorded within the specific study area or within a 0.5 miles radius of this project. According to the most recent listings, no National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) listed properties are located in the specific project area. Additionally, no properties determined eligible by the Oklahoma State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) but not listed on the NRHP (Determinations of Eligibility list) are indicated within the study areas (Oklahoma SHPO, 2020a, 2020b). Small-Scale Cultural Resources Inventory, City of Guthrie WWTP, Lift Station and Sewer Line, page 6 Late 19th century General Land Office (GLO) maps were examined for structures, trails and roads in the study area (Bureau of Land Management 2020). The 1873 Government Land Office map for Township 16 North, Range 2 West shows an unnamed trail trending northwest/ southeast through the sewer line study area (Figure 4). No indication of a trail was observed in the study area. The Oklahoma Highway Department 1940 General Highway and Transportation map of Logan County was also examined; this map shows structures adjacent to but outside of study area (Figure 5). Mid to late 20th century aerial images were accessed via the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) EarthExplorer application (USGS 2020). Images taken in 1955 and 1968 show the project area as open contour terraced pasture, with no indications of structures or structural remains in the study area (Figures 6-7). A 2018 Google Earth satellite image shows the project area as it exists today in open field and contour terraced pasture (Figure 8). Figure 4. 1873 GLO plat map of the study area (outlined in pink). Small-Scale Cultural Resources Inventory, City of Guthrie WWTP, Lift Station and Sewer Line, page 7 Figure 5. 1940 Logan County highway map of study area (outlined in pink). Figure 7. 1955 aerial photograph of the study area (outlined in pink). Small-Scale Cultural Resources Inventory, City of Guthrie WWTP, Lift Station and Sewer Line, page 8 Figure 8. 1968 aerial image of the NE/4 of study area (outlined in pink). Figure 9. 2018 satellite image of study area (outlined in pink). Small-Scale Cultural Resources Inventory, City of Guthrie WWTP, Lift Station and Sewer Line, page 9 Cultural History Previous archeological research in the project area primarily consists of cultural resource management studies related to federally funded infrastructure construction or improvements, and energy development activities involving State or federally administered lands. Archeological sites were recorded over an extended time