Phase One Archaeological Survey

at the

Waverley Farms

and

Squire Tract

Prince William County, Virginia

by

Heidy P. Fogel, Ph.D. and
John Bedell, M.A.

May 1994

Engineering-Science, Inc.
10521 Rosehaven Street
Fairfax, Virginia 22030

ABSTRACT

In December 1993 and January 1994 Engineering-Science, Inc., on behalf of the Friendswood Development Corporation, conducted a Phase I archaeological survey of the Waverley and Squire Tracts of the proposed Waverley Farms Development. The project area covered approximately 1803 acres of which 372 acres were classified as having high archaeological potential for the location of prehistoric sities and 1,431 acres of which were classified as having low archaeological potential for the location of prehistoric sites. All high potential areas and a 10 percent sample of the low potential areas were surveyed. The survey consisted of shovel testing and surface inspection of plowed fields. All work was undertaken in compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and Guidelines for Archaeology and Historic Preservation, and the standards of the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, as outlined in the Guidelines for Preparing Archaeological Resource Management Reports (1991). A total of 37 archaeological sites was located. Twelve of these are historic sites, 22 are prehistoric sites, and 3 have both historic and prehistoric components. If any of these sites is threatened by development, significance should be assessed by means of Phase II archaeological testing.

II. ENVIRONMENTAL BACKGROUND

A. Project Area

The project area is located in western Prince William County, in the northeastern part of Virginia about 25 miles southeast of metropolitan Washington, D. C.. Northern Virginia falls in the Middle Atlantic region of the eastern United States. The middle latitudes of the eastern United States are within a temperate atmospheric zone, with four marked seasons. The modern climate of the middle Atlantic region is characterized by hot and humid summers and moderately cold winters. In the winter, the average temperature is 37 degrees Fahrenheit, and in the summer, the average temperature is 76 degrees Fahrenheit (cf. Elder 1989). The annual precipitation is 36 inches, 20 inches of which usually falls from April to September. Average annual snowfall is 15 inches (cf. Elder 1989).

The project area is physiographically part of the upland Piedmont region of Virginia. The type of vegetation found in the Piedmont depends on the interaction between topography, geology, and elevation, but it is generally considered to be tansition between the oak-hickory and the oak-pine vegetation zones (Braun 1967). Oak-hickory forests may be found on richer soils, while along rivers birch, willow, cottonwood, and sycamore may be found. Today, much of the land in the project area consists of agricultural fields and old fields growing up with cedar and pine trees.

The elevation of project area ranges from 300 to 450 feet above sea level. The topography can be characterized as rolling upland hills dissected by perennial streams and small tributaries.

B. Geology and Soils

Prince William County is located in the Piedmont Physiographic Province. The structural center of this area is the Culpeper Basin. The Culpeper Basin is part of the Piedmont Lowlands region that extends from New Jersey to central Virginia. The Basin is one of the structural trough depressions bordering the eastern front of the Appalachian Mountain system. The sediments that formed the red bedrock material existing in the Basin were deposited during the late Triassic to the early Jurassic Periods. These dsedimentary rocks are predominantly siltstones, but include shales, sandstones, and conglomerates. The sedimentary rocks were intruded with lava (diabase and basalt), and a contact zone of altered rock (hornfels and granulite) formed between the ediabase and red sedimentary beds. Soils within the area are typically weathered products of these rock types. Residual alluvial deposits of gravel, cobbles, and occasional boulders composed of quartzite, sandstone, and weathered igneous rocks exist along stream terraces, including many rock types from outside the Basin, transported downstream by the ancient Potomac River from outside the Basin.

Quartz outcrops along two ridges in the western portion of the project area were noted during the field work, and these represent an important resource for the prehistoric inhabitants. At least one of these outcrops had been mined in prehistoric times.

The dominant soils within the project area are the Jackland- Waxpool-Legore unit and the Arcola-Panorama-Nestoria (Elder 1989). The Jackland-Waxpool-Legore unit consists of very deep, poorly drained to well drained soils that have a clayey or loamy subsoil. The unit consists of nearly level to moderately steep soils on upland ridges and side slopes underlain mainly by diabase and basalt. Cobblestones and boulders of diabase are common in areas, and outcrops are on the steeper slopes. The Arcola-Panorama-Nestoria soils are moderately deep, deep, and shallow soils that are well drained and have a loamy subsoil. The soils are underlain by siltstone and sandstone and in places are capped with old alluvial sediments. They contain few rock fragments consisting largely of partially weathered siltstone and sandstone and in places rounded quartz gravel. The unit is composed of gently sloping to very steep soils on ridges and side slopes of the Triassic portion of the Piedmount Plateau. The Arcola-Panorama-Nestoria unit occupies the majority of the project area, with the Jacksonland-Waxpool-Legore unit found only along the western edge. The majority of soils found in these formations have fair to very poor potential for most agricultural uses, including woodland management, and very poor potential for most urban areas. High shrink- well clays and seasonal water tables are major problems. Many of the soils in the project area are highly erodible, particularly on the surface and in the lower soil layers. Erosion has significantly impacted most of the prehistoric sites in the project area.


FOOTE/FOOT NOTE: Engineering-Science, Inc., Fairfax, Virginia
documents for Eisner's Disney the Foote relationship to the
Waverley tract, stating that the tract "originated with
purchases made by William Foote at the the Red House sale in
1797 and from the Nelson estate in 1805 .  .  .  . (p. 24)"
The Waverley Plantation House was built in 1836 for William's
son, Frederick.  In the social aftermath and economical
upheaval following the Civil War, the Disney-supported survey
reports that "Baltimore banker Enoch Pratt bought Waverley
plantation when it was sold to pay Frederick Foote's debts
.  .  .  . (p.  28)"
(More from this document is available by request to chotank@aol.com )

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