A surprise in a cistern

[kor]

Great finds! I've only opened one cistern and it was filled with large rocks and bricks. I didn't think it was worth the effort.

 

[cannibalfromhannibal]

Yeah Kor, this was filled with a TON of limestone chunks and a few bricks. Was surprised anything survived around the chunks, but they were mostly tossed straight down in the middle, apparently missing most of the trash which as mentioned before, is usually found within about a foot of the edges. I usually dig in a circular direction and create a mound like a tall pitcher's mound in the center.

ORIGINAL: kor

Great finds! I've only opened one cistern and it was filled with large rocks and bricks. I didn't think it was worth the effort.

 

[appliedlips]

Glad u ended up with that nice druggist. Cisterns here in the St.Louis area are very hit or miss also. Some can be packed with bottles, and while not as early filled in as privies can be a lot of fun. Most of them are a lot of work for nothing but normally merit a test hole.

 

[cannibalfromhannibal]

Yeah Matt, was a surprise to me.....Here is a pic of mine with the clay pipe coming in. (I rotated pic to the left but it doesn't allow the rotation on the site for some reason.) I only climbed down into it once and due to never being filled in, the walls are very unstable looking. I scraped a few shards of 90's stuff and one drinking glass and that was it. I cleaned out the exit drain as there was debris collected around it, but was still draining.....I suspect this style of privy was a later "innovation" as the only other one I have come across was also an early 80's home, that fortunately WAS filled in and loaded!

ORIGINAL: AntiqueMeds

Interesting, never heard of a sewage system like that. I wonder if they used anything like that in old Frederick city here.

 

[cannibalfromhannibal]

Here is another shot of the opposite end where it drains, presumably into the city drainage. Likely a storm drain as I have never detected any sewage smells.

 

[cannibalfromhannibal]

Lastly, an overall shot of the walls. I noted the odd railroad spikes embedded in the walls before but just now realized the mortar and around here, the privies had no mortar. So now another mystery......regardless, they had to deposit their trash somewhere......they had money, so likely paid to have it hauled off.......Jack

 

[cannibalfromhannibal]

Hey applied, I agree, however by the amount of time is spent on a test hole, I figure I might as well keep going to where I can no longer bucket out the hole from inside. I was also more energized returning the next day and picking up where I left off. The biggest hassle to me is filling back in. Usually the "wet" ones eat dirt like crazy. This one was a "dry" hole but due to them tossing in large rocks near the top and the dirt settling leaving pockets, I had to hand bucket in 25 five gallon buckets of fresh dirt! Took longer to do this than return all the original dirt! Also was much more labor intensive, but helps keep me in shape. At 62, I need all the help I can get! Often times I have felt like quitting right before I started finding stuff. The cisterns I have dug seem to be either ringed with pockets or contain a meager 2-3 bottles at the very bottom. Those meager ones have been predominately in the business districts, whereas the residential ones are somewhat more productive on average. Here is a pic of the 2 fan styles druggists used in Hannibal, left one is the more uncommon Craft and the other is fairly common Ray Druggist.

ORIGINAL: appliedlips

Glad u ended up with that nice druggist. Cisterns here in the St.Louis area are very hit or miss also. Some can be packed with bottles, and while not as early filled in as privies can be a lot of fun. Most of them are a lot of work for nothing but normally merit a test hole.

 

[cowseatmaize]

Sometimes there are multiple systems, one or more for roof run, one for sewage and one for grey water. The separate sewage and grey are still used in harder to access areas, hills especially. It's tough to install a leach field in some places.
The roof runs are the ones often saved in dry climates.

 

[AntiqueMeds]

that's a weird thing ,never seen anything similar around here.
Not sure if you'd call it a cistern or a septic tank.
The igloo shaped one I have has the brick parged with lime mortar for waterproofing.
My cylinder one just has regular mortared brick.

Do you tend to have stabile soil around there? I think that often determines the construction technique for privies (and probably the affluence of the homeowner)
There is an abundance of flat limestone around here so they made use of that sometimes (cheaper than brick but more labor intensive).

 

[cannibalfromhannibal]

Yes, there tends to be some pretty tough natural clay around here, as well as an abundance of limestone used for liners, usually on the older pits. Age wise, they seem to go from earliest= stone, post civil war= wood liners, then brick lined by the 80's, with a smattering of wood lined privies through toc...... And my house sits on a fairly steep uphill part of town, and the only other one I have seen like mine is just across the street and half a block away!

ORIGINAL: AntiqueMeds

that's a weird thing ,never seen anything similar around here.
Not sure if you'd call it a cistern or a septic tank.
The igloo shaped one I have has the brick parged with lime mortar for waterproofing.
My cylinder one just has regular mortared brick.

Do you tend to have stabile soil around there? I think that often determines the construction technique for privies (and probably the affluence of the homeowner)
There is an abundance of flat limestone around here so they made use of that sometimes (cheaper than brick but more labor intensive).