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In the Spring of 2004, MARC was commissioned by Georgia State Archaeologist Jason Burns to teach a field school for a group of dedicated avocational archaeologists in Rome Georgia. This group, The North Georgia Underwater Archaeological Society (NGUAS) had been formed to conduct field work and research in efforts to identify and document submerged cultural resources of the civil war era in and around the Oostanula and Coosa River confluence which forms the Etowah. Major submerged resources in this area included the famed Myrtle Hill Wharf, and the stern wheeler river boat DIXIE, which burned to the waterline in a chance fire. Her remains rest in the silt of the riverbank only a few hundred yards downstream where she came to rest after being cut loose from her moorings while ablaze 1914.
DIXIE at nearby Coosa River landing. Myrtle Hill Wharf itself was a busy point of commercial shipping for the southeastern U.S. during the years leading up to the civil war, and was the point where many tons of cotton were loaded aboard vessels that frequented the busy wharf. Among them were the stern wheelers DIXIE and the JOHN SEAY .
Stern wheeler John Seay moored at the foot of Myrtle Hill with cargo of bailed cotton c.1850. Myrtle Hill itself claims the distinction of being the only ground never surrendered by the Confederacy. Today this hallowed ground stands as perhaps the most notable historic civil war cemetery in the country. Today, the Mrytle Hill Wharf is completely submerged bellow the river's surface. Yet still the civil war era construction can be admired by divers in it's simplicity and strength. Whole log raw lumber was fastened with thick iron fastener and groove assembly. The shoreward backside of the wharf's frame or "cribbing" was filled with loose brick and stone to add fixed weight and to deter erosion from the high flows of the rainy season.
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THE ROME FIELD SCHOOL The Rome field school was taught in accelerated format with principles
and content contained in the MAHS (Marine Archaeological and Historical
Society) academic curriculum.
Perspective Drawing of submerged Myrtle Hill Wharf joinery exhibiting whole log and iron fastener construction ( Knoerl 2004). Sections were taught on site plan development, vessel architecture, archival research, ethics, remote sensing, perspective drawing and videography. There were five evening class modules offered and the field school ran over the same five days during daylight hours, including a full weekend. NGUAS members were urged to join MAHS, and to take advantage of the entire comprehensive field school and certification classes offered as to continue their academic process.
Kurt Knoerl teaches Vessel Architecture for the NGUAS group.
A RIVERINE MAGNETOMETER SURVEY FOR NGUAS
As an additional service for the NGUAS group and Georgia's Division of Historical Resources, MARC utilized a portable, laptop driven magnetometer and interface which ran from a small inflatable boat so that the team could complete a geo-referenced magnetometer survey of river areas selected by the research team. The purpose of the survey was to locate Confederate cannon allegedly dispatched to the river to keep them from falling into the hands of the advancing Union Army. The portable array worked well, locating and mapping submerged ferrous objects including bicycle parts and metal pipes. Unfortunately, no cannon were found within the target area.
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