Archaeological Data Recovery Of A Burned Rock Midden At Site 41CM412, Comal County, Texas

The Comal Independent School District (CISD) retained Pape-Dawson Engineers, Inc. (PapeDawson) to conduct cultural resource investigations for the proposed construction of a new high school (High School #4) near the city of Garden Ridge in southern Comal County, Texas. The CISD High School #4 Project (Project) includes construction of buildings, parking lots, roadways, and associated utility installation for the new school campus. After the identification of a State Antiquities Landmark (SAL)-eligible burned rock midden at site 41CM412 during the preliminary archaeological survey, a data recovery investigation was undertaken within this portion of the site. Pape-Dawson archaeologists initially identified site 41CM412 during an intensive archaeological survey for the Project between December 11, 2017, and January 10, 2018, under Texas Antiquities Permit No. 8244. Comprising the entire 40.4-hectare (ha; 99.8-acre [ac]) survey area, site 41CM412 is a multi-component site containing early to mid-twentieth century structures, a light scatter of historic artifacts, an extensive scatter of prehistoric lithic material (both tools and non-tools), and a large burned rock midden. While the historic component of the site, as well as the extensive lithic artifact scatter, were determined to be not eligible for designation as a SAL, Pape-Dawson’s survey effort concluded that the burned rock midden demonstrated research value. Following completion of the initial survey, Pape-Dawson archaeologists coordinated with the Texas Historical Commission (THC), who concurred that the burned rock midden feature at site 41CM412 met the requirements for SAL designation. As impacts to the burned rock midden at site 41CM412 could not be avoided during the proposed Project construction, Pape-Dawson archaeologists conducted a data recovery investigation of the midden deposits. Since CISD is a political subdivision of the State of Texas, compliance with the Antiquities Code of Texas (ACT) was required for the investigation. Pape-Dawson completed the data recovery field effort under Texas Antiquities Permit No. 8361 between March 19 and April 3, 2018. The data recovery Project Area included a buffer of 0.66 ha (1.63 ac) surrounding the 0.21-ha (0.51-ac) midden area within the overall 40.4-ha (99.8-ac) site boundary. The primary goals of the investigation were to (1) assess the age or age range of the midden accumulation; (2) identify if the type of burned rock formation was sheet, domed, or annular; (3) identify the fuel sources and types of food processed at the midden; (4) determine if a heating element was present within the midden or if the rocks were heated elsewhere; and (5) determine if the accumulation of burned rock was gradual over a period of time or rapid during a phase of intense usage. To address these research questions, the investigation consisted of a program of systematic shovel testing, mechanical excavation of two archaeological trenches, and the hand-excavation of two 1-x-1-meter (3.3-x-3.3-foot) units, as well as five 50-x-50-centimeter (19.7-x-19.7-inch) columns. Melanie Nichols served as the initial Principal Investigator (PI), and Dr. Karissa Basse assumed responsibility as PI during report production. Field efforts were led by Melanie Nichols, with assistance from Jacob Sullivan, Virginia Moore, Megan Veltri, and Dr. Nesta Anderson. Light Detection and Ranging imaging and drone footage were collected on site by David Leyendecker and Angela Livingston. Geographic Information Systems and laboratory assistance was provided by Jacob Sullivan, Sheldon Smith, Ann Marie Blackmon, and Mikayla Mathews. Curation for the Project was completed by Ann Marie Blackmon and Mason Miller. Special studies, including macrobotanical analysis, faunal analysis, projectile point analysis, magnetic susceptibility testing, and radiocarbon dating, were conducted by Dr. Leslie Bush, Melanie Nichols, Chris Ringstaff, Dr. Charles Frederick, and Direct AMS, respectively. Brooke Bonorden served as editor, and Zachary Overfield oversaw quality control and quality assurance. The data recovery investigations resulted in the horizontal and vertical refinement of the boundaries of the burned rock midden (Feature 1) within 41CM412, which dates to the Archaic period. In addition, two internally embedded features—a possible heating element (Feature 1.1) and an earth oven pit (Feature 1.2)—were identified. A historic-age midden (Feature 2) was also identified during investigation. In total, the prehistoric assemblage collected from site 41CM412 consists of 3,224 prehistoric artifacts, including 3,156 lithics (17 projectile points, 2 dart point preforms, 29 bifaces, 3 unifacial scrapers, 1 perforator, 5 edge-modified flakes, 2 cores, 1 blank, and 3,096 pieces of unmodified debitage), 47 faunal bone fragments, 10 pieces of ocher (21.16 grams [g]), 1,395.4 g burned clay, 2.46 g charcoal, and 2,910 pieces of burned rock (214.29 kilograms). The historic- and modern-age material recovered from the site largely consists of metal, glass, cut faunal bone, and mortar. All cultural material was collected and brought back to the Pape-Dawson Laboratory in Austin for processing and analysis aside from FCR, which was analyzed and discarded in the field. Based on the results of the fieldwork and subsequent analyses, the burned rock midden at site 41CM412 appears to have largely resulted from a series of long-term, or perhaps seasonal occupations occurring from the Early to Transitional Archaic periods, with a concentrated occupation evident during the Middle Archaic. The vertical distribution of artifacts at the site points to multiple occupations occurring on a landform with a slow sedimentation rate. Integral heating elements and earth oven pits (Features 1.1 and 1.2, respectively) within the Feature 1 midden suggest the site contained a center-focused cooking facility. This facility is represented by the annular formation of the overall midden and on-site heating of the rocks. Task specific activities at the site include earth oven baking (as evidenced by burned rock midden deposits) and tool manufacturing and maintenance (as evidenced by a high percentage of small, tertiary flakes within the artifact assemblage). Processing of predominantly meat products also occurred at the site, given the presence of faunal bone within the overall Feature 1 matrix and general lack of packing material in the earth oven. Ancient fuel sources appear to be hardwoods of oak and potentially juniper. In addition, trace evidence of hickory/walnut/pecan family nuts indicate these plants may have also been processed as a food source. Although not all cultural components of the site were stratigraphically discrete, the burned rock midden deposits illustrate evidence of use and reuse over several millennia. This sequence significantly contributes to our understanding of Archaic cooking models and burned rock formation processes. In accordance with the criteria in 13 ACT 26.10, Pape-Dawson’s data recovery of the SAL eligible portion of site 41CM412 has mitigated any impact associated with the construction of the Comal ISD High School #4. As a result, Pape-Dawson recommends no further work for the site. The THC concurred with the Pape-Dawson’s recommendation on April 13, 2018 and allowed construction for the Project to proceed. Furthermore, Pape-Dawson received concurrence from the THC for the draft report of investigation on October 23, 2020. Following completion of the final report, artifact discard decisions will be coordinated with the THC. Project records, photographs, and select collected artifacts will be curated at the University of Texas at San Antonio Center for Archaeological Research

Trehalose Biosynthesis Promotes Pseudomonas aeruginosa Pathogenicity in Plants

Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain PA14 is a multi-host pathogen that infects plants, nematodes, insects, and vertebrates. Many PA14 factors are required for virulence in more than one of these hosts. Noting that plants have a fundamentally different cellular architecture from animals, we sought to identify PA14 factors that are specifically required for plant pathogenesis. We show that synthesis by PA14 of the disaccharide trehalose is required for pathogenesis in Arabidopsis, but not in nematodes, insects, or mice. In-frame deletion of two closely-linked predicted trehalose biosynthetic operons, treYZ and treS, decreased growth in Arabidopsis leaves about 50 fold. Exogenously co-inoculated trehalose, ammonium, or nitrate, but not glucose, sulfate, or phosphate suppressed the phenotype of the double ΔtreYZΔtreS mutant. Exogenous trehalose or ammonium nitrate does not suppress the growth defect of the double ΔtreYZΔtreS mutant by suppressing the plant defense response. Trehalose also does not function intracellularly in P. aeruginosa to ameliorate a variety of stresses, but most likely functions extracellularly, because wild-type PA14 rescued the in vivo growth defect of the ΔtreYZΔtreS in trans. Surprisingly, the growth defect of the double ΔtreYZΔtreS double mutant was suppressed by various Arabidopsis cell wall mutants that affect xyloglucan synthesis, including an xxt1xxt2 double mutant that completely lacks xyloglucan, even though xyloglucan mutants are not more susceptible to pathogens and respond like wild-type plants to immune elicitors. An explanation of our data is that trehalose functions to promote the acquisition of nitrogen-containing nutrients in a process that involves the xyloglucan component of the plant cell wall, thereby allowing P. aeruginosa to replicate in the intercellular spaces in a leaf. This work shows how P. aeruginosa, a multi-host opportunistic pathogen, has repurposed a highly conserved “house-keeping” anabolic pathway (trehalose biosynthesis) as a potent virulence factor that allows it to replicate in the intercellular environment of a leaf

National Register Testing At Sites 41BP585, 41BP594, And 41BP595 Three Oaks Mine, Bastrop County, Texas

Between October 2012 and July 2013, Atkins conducted National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) eligibility testing at historic sites 41BP585 and 41BP594 and prehistoric site 41BP595, located within the Three Oaks Mine in Bastrop County, Texas, which is owned and operated by Luminant. Impacts to all three sites are anticipated as a result of planned mine development. This work was conducted under the direction of Principal Investigator David L. Sherman. This report of investigations was written at Atkins and is being finalized by Blanton & Associates, with David L. Sherman remaining as the Principal Investigator. This work demonstrated that significant archeological deposits that may contribute to the overall NRHP eligibility statuses of the two historic sites are absent at both sites. Standing architecture at 41BP594, however, has previously been determined to be eligible for listing on the NRHP (Martin 2001). Archival research conducted as part of the current investigation into the histories of the historic sites remains inconclusive with respect to the identity of their 1870s and earlier occupants. Testing at prehistoric site 41BP595 indicated it resulted from multiple occupational episodes during the period from the late Paleoindian to the Late Prehistoric. Shovel testing and mechanical trenching revealed the presence of an expansive buried anthrogenic A soil horizon, or midden, replete with preserved subsistence remains. Mechanical trenching also exposed a variety of burned rock cooking facilities partially surrounding the midden area. Radiocarbon assays of burned nut shells recovered from feature contexts, along with the assemblage of diagnostic lithic artifacts, suggest the site was most intensively occupied from the Late Archaic to the early Late Prehistoric. A suite of special studies was conducted on burned rock samples recovered from four of the better-preserved burned rock features. These studies, which include residue, starch, and phytolith analysis, suggest that the burned rock features were used in part to process tubers/roots and grass seeds for subsistence. Macrobotanical analysis of flotation samples recovered from feature contexts identified spent fuel remains including oak and hickory wood and subsistence remains including oak, hickory, black walnut, and acorn burned nut shells. A small amount of burned bulb, possibly representing wild onion, was also recovered through flotation. These findings suggest that significant archeological deposits important to understanding the Late Archaic to early Late Prehistoric period have been preserved at 41BP595

Archeological Investigations at the Santa Maria Creek Site (41CW104) Caldwell County, Texas

The excavations by Atkins at the Santa Maria Creek site (41CW104) described in the following report have succeeded in bringing together a myriad of information regarding aboriginal occupations in eastern Central Texas at the dawn of the Historic period. The analysis of the materials recovered from National Register of Historic Places testing and data recovery has demonstrated that even a site buried in sandy, bioturbated sediments can still significantly add to the archeological record. This becomes even more important for areas such as Caldwell County, Texas, which have witnessed few such investigations. The report utilized a wide array of analytical techniques to unravel the site, including extensive ethnohistorical research, artifact analysis, special studies, and experimental archeology

Data Recovery Investigations: Murvaul Creek Site (41PN175), Panola County, Texas

This report summarizes the archeological findings of the 2011 data recovery investigations at the Murvaul Creek site, 41PN175, in far northeastern Texas in Panola County. The site is located along Farm-to-Market Road (FM) 10 approximately 1 mile north of Gary, Texas (Figure 1). Geo-Marine, Inc. (GMI), performed this work under contract to the Texas Department of Transportation, Environmental Affairs Division (TxDOT ENV) under the Texas Antiquities Permit Number 5879 (Work Authorization [WA] 579 06 SA005; WA 590 08 SA005; CSJ:1222-01-014; Geo-Marine project numbers 22005.00.06 and 22005.00.09). The fieldwork for this project was conducted in advance of the planned widening of FM 10 that was to replace three bridges and a culvert over Murvaul Creek with a larger structure and shift the road approximately 26 meters (m; 85 feet [ft]) to the east. Since the planned improvements of FM 10 would result in the loss of information at the Murvaul Creek site—a site that was recommended eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) and for designation as a State Antiquities Landmark (SAL; formerly State Archeological Landmark)—the current data recovery investigations were initiated. The data recovery investigations were conducted between February 7, 2011, and April 3, 2011. During this period, the fieldwork was conducted in several stages: site clearing, geophysical survey, 50-x-50-centimeter (cm) excavations, block excavations, and mechanical site scraping. With the exception of the site clearing stage, the results of each of the fieldwork stages are reviewed individually in this report. The investigations resulted in the documentation of numerous features that appeared to have been the remains of a small Middle-to-Late Caddo settlement or farmstead situated on the edge of an interfluve south of the Murvaul Creek floodplain. Additionally, materials pertaining to the Archaic period were documented across the site. Although the site has been intensively studied within the TxDOT right-of-way (ROW), both the current investigations and previous work were limited to the ROW (cf. Cliff and Perttula 2002). Hence, the site is very likely larger than has been adequately documented

The Siren Site and the Long Transition from Archaic to Late Prehistoric Lifeways on the Eastern Edwards Plateau of Central Texas

On behalf of the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), SWCA Environmental Consultants (SWCA) conducted testing and data recovery investigations at the Siren site (41WM1126), a prehistoric multi-component site in the Interstate Highway 35 right-of-way along the South Fork of the San Gabriel River in Williamson County, Texas. The work was done to fulfill TxDOT’s compliance obligations under the National Historic Preservation Act and the Antiquities Code of Texas. The testing investigations were conducted under Antiquities Permit 3834, and the subsequent data recovery was under Permit 3938. Kevin Miller served as Principal Investigator on both permits. Though the site extends far beyond the area of potential effects both horizontally and vertically, the investigations focused on Late Archaic and Late Prehistoric components within a relatively limited area that would be subject to project impacts. The investigations were conducted in February 2006. The investigations identified five isolable components that were intermittently laid down from approximately 2600 to 900 years ago. A substantial Late Prehistoric Austin phase occupation is represented by Scallorn projectile points, stone tools, burned rock, faunal materials, and radiocarbon dates from cooking features. The component feature assemblage includes a cluster of discrete, well-preserved burned rock features that range from small fire-cracked rock concentrations to a large, slab-lined feature that dominates the cluster. The underlying components include four cultural strata representing a series of phases in the final millennium or so of the long Archaic period. These components span approximately 2600 to 1500 b.p., though earlier, deeply buried components were also noted on the site. These deeper deposits were not the focus of the investigations, however, since they would not be affected by the project. The Archaic components revealed a suite of small side-notched dart points such as Ensor, Fairland, and Frio, as well as many earlier broad-bladed styles such as Castroville, Montell, Marshall, and Pedernales. These robust components contained numerous burned rock features of varying size and function, abundant tools, well-preserved faunal materials, macrobotanical remains including geophytes from several earth ovens, and a large suite of radiocarbon dates. The features include an incipient burned rock midden, burned rock clusters, a debitage reduction area, a biface cache, slab-lined hearths, basin-shaped hearths, and small circular hearths. The distributions of artifacts and features within the Archaic components across the excavation blocks showed significant variations. These differences reflect sequential components that provide a view of diachronic trends in technology, subsistence, economy, and a suite of other behaviors and activities during the long transition from Archaic to Late Prehistoric adaptations. As previously determined by the testing excavations and further substantiated by the data recovery investigations, the Siren site, most notably the Late Archaic and Late Prehistoric components, is eligible for the National Register of Historic Places under Criterion D, 36 CFR 60.4, and eligible for State Archeological Landmark designation under Criteria 1 and 2 of the Rules of Practice and Procedure for the Antiquities Code of Texas, 13 TAC 26.8. The excavations and subsequent analysis have mitigated the adverse effects of the bridge construction by recovering the vast majority of the affected components within the area of potential effect. No further archaeological work is recommended. Portions of the site outside the area of potential effects have not been fully evaluated, and any future impacts beyond the mitigated areas warrant further assessment

Archeological Investigations at the Santa Maria Creek Site (41CW104) Caldwell County, Texas

Report on the excavations at the Santa Maria creek site in Caldwell County, Texas during 2006 and 2007. The report includes a discussion of research methods, analysis of the findings, and history of the area