Cultural Resource Assessments:
A Step By Step Guide

What is a Cultural Resource Assessment?
A Cultural Resource Assessment or CRA is a streamlined process, similar to an Environmental Assessment (EA), designed to provide the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) with the basic information necessary to determine whether a project has the likelihood of affecting buildings, structures, objects, sites, and districts that are eligible for or listed in the National Register of Historic Places. These properties must be important in American history, architecture, archaeology, engineering, or culture. A CRA is one of several options that can be used to begin the process of evaluating the potential of a project to affect historic properties. Among the benefits of doing a CRA are: 1) the process is designed to be quick and relatively inexpensive; 2) it can be done very early in the planning process and provides advance notice as to what to anticipate in regard to cultural resource obligations; and 3) it will eliminate areas unlikely to contain historic properties (low probability areas) while focusing more attention on areas likely to contain these resources (high probability areas). In some cases, the CRA will eliminate the need to do additional investigations, but, often, additional work will be needed to complete responsibilities stipulated by state and federal laws.

How to do a Cultural Resource Assessment:

STEP 1
The first step is to determine the Area of Potential Effects (APE) for the project.

STEP 2
The second step in the process involves determining whether there are any previously recorded historic buildings or structures or archaeological sites within the APE. A qualified cultural resource management consultant will research the cultural resource information at the South Carolina SHPO and check the archaeological site files at the South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology.

STEP 3
Third, the consultant will do a brief literature and cartographic search for historic sites that may have been in the project vicinity. This will include searching appropriate historic maps (e.g., Mills Atlas, De Brahm 1757), cartographic surveys, county histories, and other types of information contained at the Archives and History Center, the Thomas Cooper Library, the South Caroliniana Library, and the county Office of Mesne Conveyance.

STEP 4
Next, the consultant will develop a generalized model of archaeological site location to determine the likelihood of unrecorded sites within the project area. The generalized model should be based on such factors as topographic relief, soil drainage, distance to water, known archaeological site locations, and historic settlement patterns within and near the project area. The consultant should include a map of the project area that defines areas of high and low site probability in the CRA summary.

STEP 5
The next step entails doing a walk-over of the project area. The goals of this walk-over are twofold. The first is to determine whether unrecorded standing buildings or structures that are 50 years or older are present and could be eligible for the National Register of Historic Places. The second is to assess the project area's physical condition and on-site soil characteristics, as well as to determine whether there are any archaeological sites visible on the ground surface. During this stage, the consultant will note any visible cultural resources, photograph any structures, and document both the type and level of disturbance that may have compromised the physical integrity of archaeological sites should they be present (e.g., previous mining, severe erosion, etc.). It should be noted that plowing and timbering alone frequently do not destroy all archaeological remains, especially below ground features such as pits and hearths that may be deeply buried or the spatial context of individual activity areas/occupations.

No subsurface testing (e.g., shovel tests) will be done during a CRA and surface collecting should be avoided unless a site is in imminent danger of being vandalized or destroyed. The reason for this is threefold: 1) to keep both time and costs down; 2) to ensure comparability of methods and results between the different cultural resource consultants; and 3) to avoid blurring the distinction between a CRA and a full cultural resource survey (which would require more extensive documentation).

STEP 6
The final step is the preparation of a brief three to five page summary of the CRA. The SHPO will review the summary within 30 days of receipt. To ensure timely SHPO review, please include the following accompanied by completed Project Review Form(s):

1. Project Title
2. Agency Requiring Work
3. Agency Project Number(s)
4. Project Location (include a 7.5-minute USGS topographic map delimiting the project boundaries and project planning maps)
5. Field Personnel and Dates of Survey
6. Brief Statement of Project Goals and Objectives
7. Field Methods
   a. Survey Description. Specific techniques should be described and justified for the project area. Describe locations examined, intervals between transects, variations in vegetation coverage, and surface visibility. Provide justification for structure documentation.
   b. Maps. Cartographic illustrations should depict the APE, recorded sites within and near the APE, newly identified structures and sites, windshield survey area, pedestrian only survey areas, transect locations, and any relevant field description (e.g. vegetative cover). All maps will include a north arrow (magnetic north, true north, or grid north), a map scale (e.g., 1:24,000), and a bar scale.
   c. Photographs. Include photographs showing the project area, areas of disturbance, types of vegetation, and any newly identified structures within the APE. Previously recorded buildings or structures whose eligibility for the National Register is unclear should also be recorded. Acceptable photographic formats can be digital photos printed to a quality color printer or color snapshots.
8. Summary of Results
   a. List of all previously recorded cultural resources and their National Register eligibility status (if known)
   b. Results of the literature and cartographic search
   c. Map showing the predictive model or generalized model of high and low probability areas
   d. An estimate of survey coverage for each identified probability area performed by CRA
   e. Recommendation based on all of the above factors should be made as to whether or not a full cultural resource survey is necessary.