Article Title

Cultural Resources Investigations Of The San Antonio Water System East Sewer Rehabilitation And Replacement Project Along The Rosillo Creek Floodplain, San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas

Authors

Rhiana D. Ward

Agency

Texas Historical Commission

Abstract

In October 2016, Raba Kistner Environmental, Inc. (RKEI), was contracted by K FRIESE + ASSOCIATES (CLIENT), on behalf of San Antonio Water System (SAWS), to perform cultural resources investigations associated with a sewer replacement and rehabilitation project in southeastern San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas. The purpose of the investigations was to determine whether cultural resources were located within the 69.5-acre Area of Potential Effects (APE) and, if feasible, assess their significance and eligibility for designation as State Antiquities Landmarks (SALs) and for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). The project is located on both private land, and lands owned by the City of San Antonio (COSA) and maintained by SAWS, both political subdivisions of the state and therefore under the jurisdiction of the COSA Unified Development Code (UDC), as well as the Antiquities Code of Texas (ACT). Field work was conducted under Texas Antiquities Committee Permit No. 8183 with Kristi Miller Nichols as Principal investigator. Rhiana D. Ward served as Project Archaeologist and conducted field work on October 5-6 and 9-13, 2017, with the assistance of Kendra Brownlow, Chris Matthews, Chris Murray, and Rick Sample.

Background research identified two previously conducted cultural resources investigations and one potential historic battleground with in the proposed APE. Furthermore, six previously conducted cultural resources investigations, ten archaeological sites, one historical marker, and one cemetery are located within a 0.6-mile (1-kilometer) study area.

Investigations consisted of a metal detection survey and an intensive archaeological survey with auger testing. The metal detection survey resulted in the documentation of 86 hits, all of which were modern in age. No historic-age materials or evidence of the 1813 Battle of Rosillo Creek was encountered during the metal detection survey. Fifty auger tests were excavated throughout the APE, four of which tested positive for cultural materials. Three of the positive auger tests contained modern refuse materials and warranted no further investigation. The fourth positive test yielded one prehistoric tertiary flake and one piece of charcoal from an unknown depth. The positive auger test was delineated with six shovel tests to determine the vertical and horizontal extent of cultural materials within the APE and resulted in the documentation of site 41BX2208.

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