The Twelfth Street Extension Archaeological Data Recovery Project: Investigations at the Godley (38LX141) and Manning (38LX50) Sites, Lexington County, South Carolina

Construction of the Twelfth Street Extension Project was funded by the South Carolina Department of Transportation, in coordination with the Federal Highway Administration. This project is part of the Columbia Area Transportation Study and will provide access from the City of Cayce to U.S. Interstate 77. The planned Twelfth Street Extension corridor crosses two archaeological sites, the Godley site (38LX141) and the Manning site (38LX50). Each of these sites
had been investigated to varying degrees in the past and each has been determined to contain significant deposits and recommended eligible for the National Register of Historic Places. The archaeological deposits at the Manning site were deemed significant enough to have the site listed on the NRHP in 1978. To mitigate the adverse impacts of the impending construction at these two
sites, data recovery investigations were conducted within the construction corridor at each site.
Early investigations at the Godley site indicated that intact "house floors" and midden deposits were present. The site was recommended eligible for the NRHP based on the presence of these intact deposits. However, subsequent investigations, including this one, failed to identify house floors or midden deposits. The results of this investigation indicate that archaeological
remains within the project corridor, and probably the entire site, have been disturbed by plowing and bioturbation.
Previous research at the Manning site identified six loci (Loci A-F) within the overall site boundaries. Three of the loci (Loci A-C) are in the western portion of the site, and were found to contain significant archaeological deposits. The three loci (Loci D-F) in the eastern part of the site were found to have less potential for intact deposits. The Twelfth Street Extension project corridor
runs through the eastern part of the site, along a swale that separates Loci D and E. Although a buried A-Horizon was identified, no evidence of intact cultural features or stratified deposits was identified.
This investigation resulted in the identification of numerous cultural components at both the Godley and Manning sites, as indicated by diagnostic artifacts (both lithic and ceramic). However, undisturbed and intact archaeological deposits were not encountered within the project corridor at either site. While the uninvestigated portions of both sites may contain significant deposits, the
results of these data recovery excavations revealed that no significant archaeological remains which contribute to the overall significance of each site will be impacted by the construction of the Twelfth Street Extension.