downeastdigger
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Long time since I posted here, so not sure if there are old friends still lurking. I hope you are all well, and have been finding things digging or at shows, or wherever. I've started my own blog "TheDowneastDigger", where I am going to post all of my digging and diving finds, and mix in my best finds from over the years. I'm also going to have a linked web site, which will have "tips and secrets from 40 years of digging antique bottles". This will be all types of digging and diving, but will emphasize what I do most, which is digging in the Northeast US.
I found a cool little privy in Salsbury Mass a couple of weeks ago. I'm going to try to attach a video of the point where I first found the privy, as well as some pics. Not sure if I'll be able to do it.
. I have discovered that the odds of finding a bottle filled privy here in New England, is significantly lower than in most other parts of the country. This is for a variety of reasons I won’t get in to here.
But in this particular case, I was in luck, as I passed this construction site daily, as they knocked down and cleared the trees, which exposed a total of 3 building foundations. I went back one evening last week, and probed the property for about an hour, with no luck . Then a probed a random “stab”, up next to what looked like the trunk of a 200 year old looking tree. Sure enough it felt like a shallow privy, so I cut a hole into the top of it, and reached down into the hole with my gloved hand, and could feel a couple of bottles in place. The very first thing I pulled out was the bottom have of an open pontil Browns Tomato and Sarsapparilla Bitters!
The total size of the privy was about 3’ x 4’ by 3’ deep. On side was brick lined, so I’m guessing the other 3 were wood that had rotted away. Although the privy was a huge tease, it was very fun to dig. It was pontil age, and I got 4 whole pontils, but there were some other large whole bottles in the same layer, which felt like they were going to be show stoppers, until I pulled them out to find they were unembossed whiskeys and wines, as well as an embossed “Dr Cummings Vegetine” which sure felt like a quart lettered flask before I got it out of the hole .
Only one embossed pontil, a “Dr. Tobias Venetian Liniment”, and 3 other unembossed pontils.
I found a cool little privy in Salsbury Mass a couple of weeks ago. I'm going to try to attach a video of the point where I first found the privy, as well as some pics. Not sure if I'll be able to do it.
. I have discovered that the odds of finding a bottle filled privy here in New England, is significantly lower than in most other parts of the country. This is for a variety of reasons I won’t get in to here.
But in this particular case, I was in luck, as I passed this construction site daily, as they knocked down and cleared the trees, which exposed a total of 3 building foundations. I went back one evening last week, and probed the property for about an hour, with no luck . Then a probed a random “stab”, up next to what looked like the trunk of a 200 year old looking tree. Sure enough it felt like a shallow privy, so I cut a hole into the top of it, and reached down into the hole with my gloved hand, and could feel a couple of bottles in place. The very first thing I pulled out was the bottom have of an open pontil Browns Tomato and Sarsapparilla Bitters!
The total size of the privy was about 3’ x 4’ by 3’ deep. On side was brick lined, so I’m guessing the other 3 were wood that had rotted away. Although the privy was a huge tease, it was very fun to dig. It was pontil age, and I got 4 whole pontils, but there were some other large whole bottles in the same layer, which felt like they were going to be show stoppers, until I pulled them out to find they were unembossed whiskeys and wines, as well as an embossed “Dr Cummings Vegetine” which sure felt like a quart lettered flask before I got it out of the hole .
Only one embossed pontil, a “Dr. Tobias Venetian Liniment”, and 3 other unembossed pontils.
