Archaeological Survey Report for UNION STREET RAILROAD BRIDGE (Trail Connection Project) Key No. 11085 ODOT, Region 2 Local Agency On-Call ATA 23456 WOC 1 City of Salem, Urban Development HDR Project No. 007337: 30289 October, 2005 Heritage Research Associates, Inc. 1997 Garden Avenue Eugene, OR 97403 1001 SW 5 th Ave., Suite 1800 Portland, OR 97204-1134 503.423.3700 Phone 503.423.3737 Fax
Archaeological Survey Report Union Street Railroad Bridge (Trail Connection Project) City of Salem Marion and Polk Counties Oregon Key No. 11085 Summary This report summarizes the results of a survey for archaeological resources carried out in connection with the proposed Rails to Trails conversion of the Union St. Railroad Bridge in the City of Salem, Marion County, Oregon. The project consists of the conversion of an existing ±722-foot long steel truss bridge and ±850-foot long timber trestle to accommodate pedestrian and bicycle traffic. Built in 1912, this bridge is composed of a five-span truss section crossing the Willamette River and a timber trestle section that crosses through Wallace Marine Park on the west side of the river. The City of Salem has taken ownership of this bridge and proposes improvements to the existing structure to facilitate conversion into a pedestrian and bicycle trail connecting east and west Salem. The Union St. Railroad Bridge (historic name: Salem Falls City and Western Railroad Willamette River Bridge and Trestle) has been previously recognized as an historic resource potentially eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. A draft National Register of Historic Places nomination form for the railroad bridge was prepared by the Salem Urban Development Department in June 2005 (Jalving et al. 2005). The objective of the archaeological survey was to identify any prehistoric or historical archaeological sites that might be affected by proposed improvements to the Union St. Railroad Bridge. This survey was undertaken to ensure compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, the Section 404 process overseen by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, as well as Oregon State laws requiring identification and protection of archaeological resources. The survey reported here was conducted by the author on September 20, 2005. Project Location The project is located in the City of Salem along the existing railroad corridor, extending through Polk and Marion counties. The Union St. Railroad Bridge crosses the Willamette River one block north of the Marion St. Bridge for motor vehicles in northeast Salem (Figure 1). The east end of the bridge (in Marion County) is situated on the northwestern margin of the downtown area in an urban setting characterized by buildings and paved streets. The western end of the bridge (in Polk County) is situated in the City of Salem s Wallace Marine Park. More specifically, the Union St. Railroad Bridge is located in the NE¼ of the SW¼ of Section 22 in Township 7S, Range 3W, Willamette Meridian. Archaeological Survey Report. Page 1 of 9
Figure 1.Location of the Union Street Railroad Bridge in the City of Salem (USGS Salem West 7.5' quadrangle, 1969, revised 1986). Archaeological Survey Report. Page 2 of 9
Cultural Resource Background and Records Search The Union St. Railroad Bridge is situated within the territory inhabited at the time of historic contact by native peoples known as the Kalapuya, who occupied the floor of the Willamette Valley above Willamette Falls. More specifically, the project area lies within the northeast corner of the territory of the Santiam Band of Kalapuya (Zenk 1990:548). The principal ethnographic account for the Kalapuya, Kalapuya Texts by Melville Jacobs (1945), was based on research with Santiam informants. A search of the cultural resource site records maintained by the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) indicated that no prehistoric or historic archaeological sites have been recorded in the immediate vicinity of the Union St. Railroad Bridge. At SHPO, the locations of recorded archaeological sites in Oregon are plotted on USGS 15' or 7.5' quadrangles. The Union St. Railroad Bridges surveyed during this project is on the Salem 15' quadrangle maintained by SHPO. Although no archaeological sites have been formally recorded in the close vicinity of the Union St. Railroad Bridge, previous archaeological surveys have, in fact, recorded evidence of prehistoric and historic occupation in the City of Salem (as indicated on the Salem 15' quadrangle maintained by SHPO). Historical accounts also refer to Native American occupation and activity in the present boundaries of the City of Salem (Brown 1977-1978; Judson 1962-1964; Tomkins 1962-1964). A reference to a Native American settlement in the project area vicinity is found in an article entitled Street Names of Salem by Lewis Judson published in Marion County History (1959). Judson wrote: The street named Chemeketa perpetuated the Indians name for their village, which was located on the edge of a forest area extending from the present Liberty Street on the east and Mill Creek and the Willamette river on the north and narrowing to a point at Pringle Creek on the south (Judson 1959:17). Former SHPO archaeologist Leland Gilsen mapped Judson s description of this village s location as along the east bank of the Willamette River immediately north of the Union St. Railroad Bridge. Another reference to the former existence of a village in downtown Salem is found in an article entitled The Last of His Tribe Quinaby by Henry Brown, apparently written in December 1878, and republished in Marion County History (1977-1978). Brown wrote: In the winter of 1847 all of the Chemeketa and Chemawa Indians formed their winter camp in Salem. The camp commenced at the northern edge of Marion Square and extended down to North Mill Creek, where Babcock s furniture shop now stands, and back to the river and mouth of the creek (Brown 1977-1978:39). Archaeological Survey Report. Page 3 of 9
Figure 2. View to northeast of Union St. Railroad Bridge. Brown also mentioned an Indian burying ground that may have been associated with this village. A recent article entitled Down by the Riverside in Historic Marion by Sybil Westenhouse (1998) places this cemetery several blocks south of the Union St. Railroad Bridge. These accounts seem to indicate that the Union St. Railroad Bridge may be on the periphery of an extensive Native American settlement in Salem. The only archaeological evidence possibly associated with this village so far reported is a small prehistoric lithic scatter recorded as 35MA14 exposed during parking lot construction on Front Street several blocks south of the present project area (Gaston 1977). The closest location to the Union St. Railroad Bridge where archaeological testing has been conducted is the block bounded by Commercial Street SE on the west, Liberty Street on the east, Ferry Street on the north, and Trade Street SE on the south. Beginning as early as 1869 or 1870 a sequence of hotels and other businesses was constructed on this block. Archaeological evidence of these historic developments was destroyed in 2003 by construction of the Salem Conference Center (Minor 2003; White et al. 2003). Archaeological Survey Report. Page 4 of 9
Field Survey For Section 106 purposes, the Area of Potential Effect (APE) is roughly defined as the project s Area of Potential Impact, which will be limited to that area within 100 feet of the centerline of the existing railroad right-of-way from Front Street to Wallace Road and areas that trail connections to the road may impact. Within the APE, work may include trestle repairs, excavation and placement of embankment materials for a park connection, paving at-grade trail sections, constructing a sidewalk and stair tower, and related activities (lighting, signage, and railings). Selection of construction options, which will determine the specific nature and extent of ground disturbance, is currently in progress. A pedestrian survey of the APE was undertaken to determine if surface evidence of prehistoric or historic archaeological sites or artifacts was present. The corridor was surveyed by one archaeologist walking a meandering path as vegetation permitted between the railroad and the edge of the APE. Both sides of the railroad corridor were inspected, and accessible areas beneath the bridge were examined as well. For the purposes of this survey report, the Union St. Railroad Bridge can be said to be oriented roughly east-west. The eastern extent of the project begins near the intersection of Water Street and Union Street approximately one-half block west of Front Street (Figure 3). At this location, Union Street intersects with Water Street, which continues south along the top of the river bank. On the northeast side at the end of the bridge is the City of Salem s Union St. Sewage Pumping Station, immediately east of which is a small unidentified business building. On the southeast side of the end of the bridge is a small landscaped area between Water Street and the edge of the river bank, and across Water Street to the east is the South Salem Substation. Trails leading down from the top of the bank provided access to the river below the bridge. The top of the bank is estimated to be about 30 feet above the river. The trails provided good exposures of native soil along the river bank for about 30 feet to the north and 10 feet to the south of the bridge. Beyond those distances the bank was covered with dense vegetation. The native soil consists of about 15 feet of brown silt underlain by about 15 feet of dense rounded gravel. A concrete outfall at the river s edge and a metal culvert near the top of the bank indicated considerable previous ground disturbance in the bank below the bridge. The western end of the bridge in Wallace Marine Park connects to a timber trestle that extends across a low terrace at the river s edge and terminates on a higher river terrace to the west. The trestle transitions to a railroad embankment that intersects with Wallace Road at the western extent of the project. On the southwest side of the bridge, between the trestle and concrete boat ramp, is an area of low riverbank about eight to ten feet high covered by lawn (Figure 4). Backdirt from numerous rodent holes in the lawn contained very clean sediments that may represent fill. The river bank underneath the bridge has been reinforced by concrete, precluding examination of soil exposures in the bank. A wide gravel bar that extends outward from the bank between the two westernmost bridge piers was inspected for the presence of eroded cultural materials. On the Archaeological Survey Report. Page 5 of 9
Figure 3. View to west of east end of Union St. Railroad Bridge. Figure 4. View to north of west end of Union St. Railroad Bridge. Archaeological Survey Report. Page 6 of 9
northwest side of the bridge the low river bank is covered by a stand of trees with blackberry undergrowth. Trails through this area provided some exposures of native soils, however. From the river bank west to the boat ramp access road the linear area immediately below the trestle has been cleared of vegetation, exposing angular basalt cobbles and small boulders deposited there, apparently during trestle construction. From the bridge, the trestle continues around to the southwest onto a higher terrace. Here the trestle continues on a berm that is ten to twelve feet above the natural terrain to the north, where a residential area is situated, but only about six feet above the terrain on the south, which is an open field raised in elevation by deposition of fill. From the boat ramp access road westward, the linear area under the trestle has not been cleared and dense vegetation, mostly blackberries, has grown up. Conclusions No evidence of prehistoric or historic archaeological resources was observed during the survey of the Union St. Railroad Bridge over the Willamette River. The east end of this bridge is in a developed urban setting on the periphery of downtown Salem. The west end of this bridge is in a relatively undeveloped setting in Wallace Marine Park. Although inspection of the ground surface during the bridge survey was limited to some extent by the presence of vegetation, some ground exposures were available on the river banks at both ends of the bridge. No indications were observed during the survey that archaeological resources might be present in the existing railroad right-of-way that constitutes the project APE. No further archaeological work is recommended in connection with the Union St. Railroad Bridge project at this time. In the event that buried cultural materials or deposits are exposed during construction in connection with the Rails to Trails conversion of this bridge, Oregon State laws (ORS 97.740 to 97.760, 358.905 to 358.955, and 390.235), as well as various federal laws and regulations that may be applicable to this project, require that work in the vicinity of any such finds immediately be suspended. The SHPO and the City of Salem should be notified, and a professional archaeologist called in to evaluate the significance of the find and recommend a subsequent course of action in consultation with SHPO, the City of Salem, and the appropriate Indian tribes. References Cited Brown, Henry 1977 The Last of His Tribe Quinaby. Marion County History 12:30-31. [Originally written in 1878]. Gaston, Jenna 1977 Archaeological Site Record Form for 35MA14. On file, Oregon State Historic Preservation Office, Salem. Archaeological Survey Report. Page 7 of 9
Jacobs, Melville 1945 Kalapuya Texts. University of Washington Publications in Anthropology No. 11. Seattle. Jalving, Sarah, Virginia Green, and David Skilton 2005 National Register of Historic Places Registration Form for Salem Falls City and Western Railroad Willamette River Bridge and Trestle, Salem. Draft on file, Salem Urban Development Department. Salem. Judson, Lewis H. 1959 Street Names of Salem. Marion County History 5:17-20. 1962- Indian Pits in Salem. Marion County History 8:29-31. 1964 Minor, Rick 2003 Mechanical Auger Testing for Archaeological Discovery at the Salem Conference Center Site, Salem, Marion County, Oregon. Heritage Research Associates Report No. 270. Eugene. Tomkins, George E. 1962- Indian Camp Grounds of the Willamette Valley. Marion County History 8:43-46. 1964 Westenhouse, Sybil 1998 Down by the Riverside: Periodic Sightings of Its People and Places. Historic Marion (Marion County Historical Society Quarterly 36(2):3-6). Zenk, Henry B. 1990 Kalapuyans. In Northwest Coast, edited by Wayne Suttles, pp. 547-553. Handbook of North American Indians, Volume 7, W.C. Sturtevant, general editor. Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. White, Susan L., David V. Ellis, Judith A. Chapman 2003 Archaeological Monitoring of Construction Excavation for the Salem Conference Center, Salem, Oregon. Archaeological Investigations Northwest Report No. 1224. Portland. Archaeological Survey Report. Page 8 of 9
SHPO REPORTING DATA Findings: (-) Prehistoric Historic Isolate County: Marion and Polk Township: T7S Range: R3W Section: 22 USGS Quad: Salem West, Oreg. 7.5 Date: 1969, revised 1986 Project Area: 2 acres (1 acre for each end of bridge) Surveyed: 2 acres Type: Survey Archaeological Permit #: NA Field Notes Location: Heritage Research Associates, Inc. Curation Location: NA Project Title: Archaeological Survey for Proposed Rails to Trails Conversion of the, Marion and Polk Counties, Oregon. HRA Letter Report 05-51. Eugene. Author: Rick Minor Consultant: Heritage Research Associates, Inc. Client: HDR Engineering for City of Salem Date: 2005 Archaeological Survey Report. Page 9 of 9