I & M Canal digging

monsterdigger · Dec 14, 2005

I live in the chicagoland area and live close to the I & M canal, for those of you who do not know what that is it is a canal they built in the early 1800's. It is still there, allthough very shallow in areas and filled with garbage. Most of the canal runs through wooded areas and all along the river i have found many old structures. Amagine all of the old bottles that are along the canal!!!!!!!!!!!!! I want everybodies feedback, do you think im crazy or should there be many bottles along this historic canal? I believe the canal was retired when the construction of the sanitary(and much larger) ship canal was complete in the arly 1900's. Please, i would like some feedback and if anyone is willing to go along on this dig, please reply thanks..............................Jake.

southern Maine diver · Dec 14, 2005

Monsterdigger...

Hi Jake... the INSIDE of the canal should be LOADED!! especially when people found out that they were going to discontinue the use of it!! For decades, our forefathers threw the trash into lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, embankments, holes, dumps etc... if they were near a place that was already dug for them (I.E. the canal) then many of them tossed there trash into it. Remember, most of the trash was glass, jugs, kitchenware, cups, dishes and broken stuff that would have gone right to the bottom anyway... especially the heavy bottom bottles (Townsends, torpedos, flasks, whiskey's [8D])

Look for where the canal is near a gathering of old homes, foundations or buildings from the mid-1800's Remeber, these people were hard workers, but it would have been easier for them to walk a couple hundred feet than to dig a big hole to bury their trash!![:-]

Hope this helps,

Wayne

monsterdigger · Dec 14, 2005

Chicago dosent seem as old as some of the states on the east coast, so this is one of the best chances I got. I will use your advice................thanks Wayne.

capsoda · Dec 14, 2005

Hi Jacob, An old out of use canal would be a great place to dig, especially if its dry!

southern Maine diver · Dec 14, 2005

Hey Warren, It doesn't have to be
dry if you have the gear and the know how!!![&:]

I've dove in 4' of water looking for bottles... as long as I can get my head underwater, than I'm happy as a clam![

]

Oh, earlier, I meant no disrespect to you or Lisa... I mean it, I was laughing so hard, I had tears in my eyes...[

][

]

I'll talk to my close friend "Bryan Came" he is the one I spoke of last night, the one with the wratcheting ankle and dive fin and get information on this attachment. I can tell you that we went diving once and when we came out of the water, he asked me to make an adjustment on his ankle... I was using a Craftsman 3/8" wratchet and socket and boy did we get some strange looks!!! [:-]

... I'm gonna copy these exchanges and show him... he'll give me the straight scoop on the prosthesis... The guy is a hard workin guy, down to earth with a great sense of humor! I love him like a brother, we are that close.

Anyway, have a great day and I might just post some photos of a flask found earlier this year[8D][:-]

Wayne

capsoda · Dec 14, 2005

Hey Wayne, No problem, everyone blames everything one the one legged guy any way.[sm=lol.gif] Be aware that us one leggers will, without any feeling what so ever, pull the old he's making fun of my one leggedness sympathy card.[

] You have to have a good sense of humor to converse with me anyway.[

] I can snorkel.[8|]

southern Maine diver · Dec 14, 2005

Cap...

You definitely have one hell of a sense of humor!!! Me??? I'm the "fatguy" in the rubber suit! Some of my friends have said that I should look out so I don't get harpooned as a whale!!! My buddy who owns the local dive shop says that whenever he wants a croud, he calls me...!!!

He also says that he rents out my drysuit in the summertime for covered rental space!!! I only go about 235lbs!!![

]

Talk to you soon,

Wayne

Gunsmoke47 · Dec 14, 2005

Hey Wayne, are you sayin your fresh water weights cost more than a Mares Reg??? [sm=lol.gif]

southern Maine diver · Dec 14, 2005

Gunsmoke...

Pretty close, although I have found a half dozen weightbelts over the past few years underwater... So now, I have a whole bunch of extra ones... along with anchors, knives, bottles etc.[

][

]

Wayne

Gunsmoke47 · Dec 14, 2005

Kinda makes you wonder what happened to the divers wearin the weight belts and knives don't it?[8|] [

] Kelley

I & M Canal digging

Welcome to our Antique Bottle community

Be a part of something great, join today!

monsterdigger

Well-Known Member

southern Maine diver

Well-Known Member

monsterdigger

Well-Known Member

capsoda

Well-Known Member

southern Maine diver

Well-Known Member

capsoda

Well-Known Member

southern Maine diver

Well-Known Member

Gunsmoke47

Well-Known Member

southern Maine diver

Well-Known Member

Gunsmoke47

Well-Known Member

Similar threads

Latest posts

Members online

Latest threads

Forum statistics

Share this page

Online statistics

Forum statistics