The 1993 and 1994 Archeological Investigations at James A. Garfield National Historic Site, Mentor, Lake County, Ohio

Previous 1990 and 1991 archeological investigations at the James A. Garfield National Historic Site (JAGA) resulted in the recognition of Late Prehistoric and Historic 1930s-1950s components (Hunt 1999; Lee 1994). From June 21 to July 2, 1993, the Midwest Archeological Center (MWAC) conducted an archeological inventory and evaluation at JAGA. These investigations included shovel test surveys of the proposed access road and sanitary sewer line, and test excavations in the proposed parking lot area. A total of 219 shovel tests were excavated along ten transects in the area of the proposed access road. An additional 42 shovel tests were excavated along three transects in the area of the proposed sanitary sewer line. Since the proposed parking lot area had yielded some cultural materials during the extensive 1990 shovel testing (Lee 1994), four 1 x 1-m test units were excavated to evaluate this area prior to grading activities. Artifact yield was low across all three project areas, but included both prehistoric and historic materials. In addition, a previously unknown historic building foundation was uncovered along the route of the proposed sanitary sewer line.
In March, 1994, grading for the access road and parking lot began. In June and July, 1994, trenching occurred for the sanitary and storm sewers. On-site monitoring by MWAC personnel occurred intermittently throughout the five months of ground disturbance resulting in the recording of three historic features and the field observation of two other historic artifact scatters. The 1994 features were two previously unrecorded wells and a large concentration of architectural cobblestones found in association with a small midden.