Are these privies?

[barberman]

New to privy digging. Got Samborns and probes. Are these pits? Located near 1860's high school. 3 photos in this link. Comments appreciated. barbershop@mchsi.com

https://plus.google.com/photos/116672061723429565751/albums/5717553116467822161?authkey=CJ3F78mklcDlLA

 

[barberman]

Sorry about the double post, trying to figure out how to imbed images. Rick

 

[CALDIGR2]

Along alley way? Rear of original yards? If yes, better probe 'em.

 

[twowheelfan]

 

[twowheelfan]

https://i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af227/rickdean/DSCN7069.jpg

 

[twowheelfan]

the word "image" needs to be in brackets rather than" IMG" also there is a button that says "image" that will auto fill the front and end of the link to the picture. just copy paste the URL and remember to check "embed picture in post" at the lower part of the post page before hitting "ok" oh yea, they might be privys! best way to know for sure is to probe, then dig a test hole!

 

[appliedlips]

Maybe![] Good luck digging them

 

[appliedlips]

Chances are being in the midwest, those will be newer holes if they are privies. I always try to find all the pits on a property before digging. I will almost always pick the more tightly packed,less sunken holes to dig first. In my experience, with exception to large inner cities with huge pits, the sunken ones are likely newer or have been dug before I got there. There are exceptions but always try to dig the better holes first as permissions sometimes change after digging begins.

 

[barberman]

Sanborns

Trying to learn from you folks. These pits are located exactly as shown on the 1885 Sanborn. (Give or take a few feet) So wouldn't they be original/old? Osage City, Kansas dates from 1860 or so. The 1885 Sanborns show the little "houses" along the alleys, along property lines. Not very often are they shown near the rear of the house.

 

[twowheelfan]

RE: Sanborns

first you need to figure out when that 'hood most likely got running water. older houses with big yards would dig a new pit when the original one filled up rather than dipping. then they would move or build the outhouse over to the new one. from what i understand, that usually took about ten years around here on the east coast. that being said, if the 'hood got running water in the 1870's then there would only be that one pit. if you have permission to at least probe, then probe in a spot that is most likely a good "sterile spot" to get a feel for what is the natural feel for the ground, then probe the sinks for a "not natural" feel ( man made debris, like brick, ash, crunchy glass etc.) or the privy walls if they are stone or brick. then, probe out sites near the sinks to see if you get another "not natural" hit. those would probably be the older pits and usually have a deposit of trash right on top from the homeowner filling in the sinkhole for years with trash and ash until it stopped sinking. it would be super if you had an earlier insurance map for the area to compare.