Resistivity Survey to Identify Archaeological Features at the Nathan Boone Homestead State Historic Site

The Nathan Boone Homestead State Historic Site (NBHSHS) was established in 1991 upon acquisition of the property by the state of Missouri. The site is located approximately two miles north of Ash Grove in the Ozarks region of southwest Missouri, and was the home of Nathan Boone (youngest son of Daniel Boone), his family, their slaves, and their decedents from the 1830s to about 1900. The Boone house, which still stands, is the focus of NBHSHS interpretation. However, a lack of archaeological information hinders protection of archaeological deposits in the cabin area. This study helps solve that problem by using electrical resistivity surveys to identify sub-surface archaeological deposits in the cabin area at the NBHSHS. To delineate subsurface deposits, I used two different electrical resistivity methods. First, a Geoscan RM15 resistivity meter was used to survey twenty-eight grids in areas with a high potential for archaeological deposits. Examinations of the electrical resistivity data detected high and low resistivity anomalies in the cabin area. Then a multi-electrode electrical resistivity system was used to examine a portion of the survey area at greater depth. The results confirmed the presence of anomalies identified with the RM15, and revealed additional anomalies. These results will help site managers effectively manage archaeological deposits in the cabin area. In addition, these findings demonstrate the value of electrical resistivity in Ozarks archaeology