Dug a shallow brick lined 4 seater......

[cannibalfromhannibal]

Went out to a friends mansion built for a union colonel in 1873, day before last to re-probe for the historic privy. According to various news articles from the 1950's it was a 4 seater with 3 adult and one child's seat. Also, all the out buildings mimicked the main house and each having a cupola or belvedere on the top, which included the barn, a chicken coop, a smokehouse, a greenhouse, and the privy. Only the barn and privy were made of brick. Apparently, the privy was quite the structure as after the colonel passed away, his widow was approached by a new servant who, knowing he had been buried somewhere in the back yard commented what a nice monument to the colonel had been erected. When asked as to what she referred to and pointing to the unusually fancy outhouse, the widow informed the servant of her error! So back to modern times, I attempted to locate this privy a couple years ago with no luck, though I was very close, and believe I actually probed it out but using the old fashioned probes, I think I missed the signs. This time using the more efficient carbon tipped probes, I found it in about 20 minutes, having avoided where I remembered probing the years before. I drew in my mind a distance of reasonableness to hike to the privy, esp. if not feeling well. I guessed 30-40 feet and made an arch in my mind and positioned from the back porch started there. Took about 3 minutes to hit it. It was somewhat a mystery at first as the 4 foot probe bottomed out at about 3 1/2 foot on what felt like a floor! Probe returned looking like stone or cement! Not a good sign, so I decided to open it up with a test hole and uncovered plaster about 6 inches deep! Crap! I now remembered my friend had filled in a rut near there with removed plaster during renovations. But it was shallow, and the probe definitely hit glass about 3 feet deep. So onward I went until I pulled out a little slick pharm from 90's. OK, on the right track. Then found some windowpane glass and bones. Now we're talking! Next step was to try to find a wall, and about as quickly as I thought about it, there it was, and it was brick!

 

[cannibalfromhannibal]

So now I get curious to see where the bottom lied, so I widened it out and got to digging. Hit a layer of bricks likely knocked into the pit from the above ground structure. Just under the bricks popped out this 3 piece mold whiskey embossed Hellman Dist. Co. St. Louis in perfect condition! Literally popped up with a couple bricks I up-ended with the shovel! Got me slowing down and immediately hit night soil! Evidence! So I keep on and fortunately I put the shovel aside and was digging with my screwdriver when I found this nice coffin flask lying on it's side. I'm sure I would have crushed it with a shovel if not for slowing down & using the screwdriver. Came out perfect and the homeowner was thrilled with it and it's very crooked neck. Next is a shot of what I initially flashed on to be a cobalt blue USA Hosp. Dept. bottle, as I could see the slug plate and similar looking embossing. Knowing the colonel was a union soldier, it all made perfect sense to me until I cleaned away the embossing more to reveal Wyeth & Co Philad. I was bummed but also happy at the same time because I've been looking to dig a deep cobalt blue one for years now. I finally have the 4 colors I am aware of, clear, amber, teal & cobalt. Knapp has an emerald listed which I have never seen, so I gotta keep my eye out for that one now! Sheesh! It never ends! Ha!

 

[cannibalfromhannibal]

Next pic is the Wyeth out of the hole in perfect shape, and a beauty! Very early with no air venting like my other ones and an early smooth base looking like 1870's all day long. So I get back to digging and out comes tons of dinner plate ware, crockery, lamp chimneys and windowpane, but pitifully few bottles, whole or otherwise. Found an edge of some broken stoneware thing that turned out to be a fancy men's spittoon minus the bottom and most of the rim. Would have been a beauty. I set it on the edge of the hole, turned back to where it had come out and there sitting pretty as can be a perfect pint sized Hathorn Springs Saratoga NY mineral water in black (olive amber) glass! Goes well with the quart size I dug a couple years ago. Oh, the "mystery" bottom turned out to be bricks topped with a thick plaster! I removed a couple bricks in spots and probed to check for a false bottom but there was nothing false about it. Very strange, I thought. But then I figured out if one were to put half the pit on top of the other half, it would have equaled a normal sized privy. It was just longer and wider rather than deep. Likely held the same amount of poopage, but easier to clean out. Oddly, there was no evidence of being dipped, likely due to the presence of a thick lime layer over the use layer. One pic of the busted stuff, much was complete and the owners are planning to invest in stock for super glue! Strangely there were no real cryers in the hole, likely due to the small number of bottles overall thrown into the hole. The one bottle that might qualify was a flaired lip, early smooth base sperm oil for Willcox & Gibbs sewing machines. looked every bit 1850's but likely early 60's as the firm wasn't well established until the 60's. Sadly most of the thin lip was gone, as well as two sizable holes in one side. Last pic of the meager haul, (L-R) the Wyeth, an early and crude looking Keasby & Mattison, the whiskey, a little guy I tossed out of the hole & discovered during the fill-in, embossed Jno H Blood Proprietor St. Louis, and lastly the Hathorn. All said it was an enjoyable day of digging. Nothing earth shattering but every keeper was a new one either in size, age or color. Who could ask for more? Not I! Besides, it would piss off the bottle goddess! Ha! Jack

 

[Robby Raccoon]

Loving the story and finds.

 

[micahmoore]

Thanks for sharing the play by play! Looking at that mansion and knowing the history I bet you had a hard time making yourself go slow!How long total did it take to unearth everything?

 

[LisaTammy]

"poopage" teehee

 

[nammlif]

Nice dig..!!..What's the jar in the second to last pic..??

 

[cannibalfromhannibal]

nammlif, the jar was a super crude Mason's Maltese cross 1858 with a small hole near the base, looking 1870's. Took about 7 hours +-, due to gabbing with the property owners and a lunch break. Plus staying hydrated in this humidity is a must. Jack

 

[cannibalfromhannibal]

Here are some shots of the damaged oil bottle embossed on all four sides. Front: Pure Sperm Oil/ Put Up/ Expressly For Backside: Willcox & Gibbs/ Sewing Machine Side: Broadway Side: New York. Hard to see the flair in the lip, but it was there.

 

[cannibalfromhannibal]

and the holes and other side....