The primary objective of this investigation was to recover archaeological data pertaining to intrasite settlement patterns, domestic activities, subsistence behaviors, and the temporal positioning of specific stylistic and morphological attributes of the material culture of the Late Prehistoric occupants of this site. Site 12 Jo 289 was selected for testing because it was known to have high densities of material and features that had been previously observed during the 1992 survey. In addition, contextual information from Late Prehistoric sites in the till plain regions of east central Indiana has never been recovered. Excavations at a site such as 12 Jo 289 would supplement and enhance the GBL's ongoing study of Late Prehistoric settlement in that area (McCullough n.d.a, n.d.c). Specifically, the primary objectives of the proposed investigation attempted to address the following research goals:

1. to identify the presence or absence of defensive structures and to document the overall community pattern;
2. to locate and identify patterns of cultural activity areas by the location of pit features and midden concentrations resulting from the preparation, consumption, storage, or disposal of material culture;
3. to test for the presence of a central plaza or community area that may have been the locus of communal activities;
4. to obtain additional samples of well-preserved floral and faunal remains to more adequately assess prehistoric subsistence practices and to determine the seasonality of the Late Prehistoric occupation;
5. to recover a large enough quantity of Late Prehistoric ceramics to include the Sugar Creek site in a seriational analysis being conducted for south central Indiana (McCullough n.d.b); and
6. to collect sufficient data to provide a reliable assessment of this site's eligibility for nomination to the National Register of Historic Places.