The City of Oroville proposed additional upgrades to the electrical system in the Lake Osoyoos Veteran’s Memorial Park, located in Okanogan County, Washington. This fieldwork follows a cultural resource investigation reported in Cultural Resource Survey of the Lake Osoyoos Veteran’s Memorial Park Electrical Upgrade Project, Okanogan County, Washington. The 2013 survey covered approximately 3.0 acres in the center of the park’s campground. The present APE for the additional upgrades consists of approximately 20 acres within the same park, consisting of the outer limits of the park, encompassing the previously surveyed portion.
As the 2013 report details, the Project Area lies within traditional Okanagan and Nicola-Similkameen territories and is situated within the polygon that identifies the location of an open camp site. Additionally, the Project Area served as the location for the Okanogan County and International Fair, and included an Indian Encampment, a rodeo, horse races, a grand stand building, and an exhibition hall. The 2013 survey resulted in no newly identified precontact or historic-era cultural materials or features, and Plateau concluded that site “is not present on the Project Area, and may not even be present on the land form.”
Intensive pedestrian survey and probing were conducted on the remaining portions of the park in 2016. Pedestrian survey visibility was excellent throughout the Project Area. Plateau archaeologists excavated 48 subsurface shovel probes along six separate probe transects. The pedestrian survey and the excavation of subsurface probes—in addition to the 23 subsurface probes excavated in 2013—for the Lake Osoyoos Veteran’s Memorial Park Electrical Upgrade Project resulted in no newly recorded precontact or historic-era cultural materials or features. While one previously recorded site is located within the Project Area, the present survey—and the 2013 survey—did not locate any cultural materials that could be associated with this site. It remains Plateau’s opinion that the previously recorded site is not present within the Project Area. While it is reasonable to remain cautious, Plateau recommends that no further archaeological investigations are necessary prior to execution, or during this project as it is currently planned.
Location: Okanogan County
