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On July 14 and 15, 1979, a surface inspection was conducted of a portion of the Port Bienville Industrial Park, Hancock County, Mississippi, where remnants of the Claiborne Site (22-Ha-501) were expected to be found. The surface visibility varied from poor to good and the boundaries were well marked. These property lines were inspected on foot and completely enclosed the project area. Two parallel transects were then walked north to south across the property.
On the western boundary at the southern end of a recently dredged canal an earth mound was observed. In the absence of subsurface investigation this "mound" appears to be back dirt from the canal. The remainder of the tract is generally level as though it had been cleared, bulldozed and burned. Recent charcoal is found scattered abundantly over the entire area with an unusual absence of artifactual material.
Soil conditions can best be described as being a broad, fairly level sandy clay ridge or terrace, light orange in color. This sandy clay is topped by a layer of dark reddish brown sand varying in thickness from 2"-8" (estimated without benefit of subsurface investigation). The sandy clay base extends to an unknown depth of more than 12'. The depth of this sandy clay deposit was observed in the profile created by the excavation of the canal on the western boundary. This condition was also observed along the southern, northern and eastern boundaries of the property, exposed by gully erosion.
Along the eastern boundary a dirt road is parralleled by a railroad track to the east. In the dirt road and extending eastward to the railroad tracks (and possibly westward) the soil conditions are somewhat different.


Claiborne Historical Site Guerin-Giardino-(067)
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