Survey 1981
We had gotten word that a man had been finding some lead balls on his property in the extreme southern part of DeKalb County. The property is along Conley Creek and is just west of the railroad tracks. Four of our group went to the site and were allowed to look as lon as we wish. The site was very rugged and along the side of a hill. Very large rocks in the area were made of granite.
Metal detection devices were used. The interesting feature about this site was the amount of fired bullets recovered. The old road bed crossed the property and the old pilings for the bridge across the creek could be seen. The Union forces had moved through this location several times as well as the Confederate forces. General S. D.
Lee CSA had moved through this area a couple of times and one time was to cover the retreat of General Hood CSA from Atlanta. We looked on the property for five days and discovered a variety of artifacts. This location in relation to the road would have been an excellent snipers nest among the rocks. This could explain the amount of fired bullets found at the site.
Artifacts Found:
1. 36 fired .58 cal bullets
2. 21 fired .69 cal balls
3. 7 dropped .58 cal bullets
4. 2 Eagle Buttons (Union)
5. Half a bayonet
6. Knapsack hook
7. Several farm implements
8. Partial had pin (Union)
References:
1. O.R. Route's of the Atlanta Campaign, Washington DC.
2. The Official Atlas of the Civil War.
3. The Georgia Archives Atlanta GA.
