Data recovery excavations at 41BX1412: a multicomponent site in McAllister Park, San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas

The Center for Archaeological Research (CAR) of the University of Texas at San Antonio contracted with the city of San Antonio Parks and Recreation Department to conduct data recovery excavations at site 41BX1412 in McAllister Park, northeast San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas. Data recovery excavations were initiated at the site in order to mitigate the impact of the construction-related disturbances that would result from the proposed expansion of Bee Tree Drive towards Starcrest Drive at the southeastern edge of the park. The expansion of Bee Tree Drive could not be redesigned to avert impact to 41BX1412, a multicomponent archaeological site recorded during a survey conducted in 2000 by CAR personnel. The data recovery efforts consisted of the investigation of a total of 128.5 m2 of the site. The fieldwork was carried out between September 22 and 29, 2000, under Texas Antiquities Permit Numner 2466. Steve A. Tomka served as project archaeologist. Testing suggested the presence of an Early Archaic, and a possible lat Paleoindian, component at the site. Data recovery excavations revealed no intact features. More importantly, the excavations indicated that although an Early Archaic cultural zone may exist at the site, buried some 60 cm below the surface, no in situ temporal diagnostics were recovered from this zone. Unexpectedly, the data recovery efforts yielded Middle Archaic temporal diagnostics but no intact deposits. A number of lines of evidence suggest that the site has undergone significant distrubance, most likely during the original construction of Bee Tree Drive. The results of the fieldwork and analysis suggest that the site has been heavily disturbed and does not warrant listing to the National Register of Historic Places nor designation as a State Archeological Landmark.