ARCHAEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS AT HE NEWELL CREEK SITE (9CH155), Ossabaw Island, Georgia, 2003 Season

On June 25-27, 2003, the Office of the State Archaeologist, housed in the Historic Preservation Division of Georgia Department of Natural Resources, participated in an educational program for scouts held on Ossabaw Island, in Chatham County, Georgia. Ossabaw consists of ca. 26,000 acres of marsh, tidal streams, and uplands. With the exception of DNR facilities, a mansion dating to the time when wealthy families and corporations owned the coastal islands, and ruins of structures dating to the plantation era of the late 1700's through mid-1800's, the island is undeveloped. The island was acquired by the State of Georgia in 1978 from Mrs. Eleanor Torry (Sandy) West, a member of the family that had owned the island since 1924. Mrs. West was more interested in preserving the island in a nearly natural state and conducting educational programs and retreats than in developing the island for profit. As a result of her preservation efforts, the island provides a nearly pristine environment for study of coastal ecology. It is maintained by the Department o fNatural Resources for educational programs and wildlife management. Under the Ossabaw Management Plan, access is restricted above the high tide line except for permitted activities. In 2002, the Department of Natural Resources entered into an agreement with The Ossabaw Foundation and the Coastal Empire Council of the Boy Scouts of America to conduct educational programs for groups of scouts who would camp at several locations around the island. The program includes presentations by DNR historians, naturalists, and scientists. DNR archaeologists were invited to participate in the program, and scouts were presented information about the history and prehistory of the island, and they participated in the archaeological investigation of site 9Ch155. Investigations revealed occupations from the Late Archaic Period through the early 20th century. The report on the 2002 investigations is on file at HPD and at the Georgia Archaeological Site File (GASF) in Athens. The 2003 program continued with investigation of this site.