Newby w/ questions from TN

[tnfishdaddy]

When I was younger, I did a lot of hunting and always picked up old bottles I came across out in the woods. Some how, they always seem to go home with my best friend. I have always found old bottles interesting but never have collected. Now I am ready to take the plunge. I want to learn all I can about bottles and how to find them. I have been checking out all of the posts and all the different names and terminology is mind blowing. Are there any good books out there that I might want to check out? As far as finding good places to look, any hints? I live in a very old and historic town but knocking on somebodies door downtown and asking if I can dig up there back yard might not be a good thing. I had one of my students tell me that he lives on the river and they have a bunch of old bottles along the river. The word old is coming from a 14 year old so I am not sure yet if they are realy old. I am 38 and I am old to him. How do I locate likely places? I don't hunt much anymore so running across old bottles while hunting is not really an option. I moved to this old town about 12 years ago to teach so I don't know the woods around here like I did where I grew up. On my in-law's farm is an old farm house that is run down. I asked if when they bought the farm if there had been an outhouse and they said they could show me. How does a person go about digging out a privy? Do I need a probe? How do I keep from breaking glass while digging? Has you can tell, I have a lot of questions. Any help you can give me would be appreciated. Thanks.
Jeff Hartman

 

[tnfishdaddy]

I forgot to mention. I don't care about what kind of bottles I find or even age. At this point, I would be happy finding some older dr. pepper bottles. I have no bottles what so ever so I would be happy finding anything. Thanks.

 

[O.T. digger]

thebest way to find and dig a privy is to get a probe and probe an area where a privy might have been and probe until you find glass some times a privy will have real soft much in it still so if you probing and the dirt is hard and then turns ral soft beneath the hard you might have a privy, a probe can be made out of rebar, just find creeks and rivers and look on the banks

 

[whiskeyman]

JEFF...Welcome to the Forum and the Hobby.
Look under the old farm house and in the attic look between the wall studs at the roofline...Sometimes bottles get tossed there.
Another thing about farm houses: often there is very little in the Privy. farmers had many other places to dispose of their trash. Look for sinkholes, ravines, gulleys ....they usually just dumped everything in them.
Good luck.

 

[Jim]

Welcome, Jeff. I have found that talking to the older residents of the area is a good way to find old dump sites. Many people who are now in their 70s, 80s, etc. will know of old sites that people our age never even knew about. This includes old dumps as well as sites where old farms or houses that are long gone once stood. Once you get a possible site, look around for fragments of old glass, especially deep aqua, green, cobalt, etc., as well as tops of old cork-type bottles. You may also see other old junk (tires, rusty metal), or an old foundation or ruins from old outbuildings. These are all signs of a good bottle finding site. Look for small depressions in the ground near old house sites, as these could be old privy holes. The ground items will likely be mostly if not all broken, so be prepared to dig for the good stuff! Good luck in your quest, and I hope to see you around on the forum. Jim

 

[whiskeyman]

JEFF...where you live?.... maybe we're close enuff I can take ya dump diggin' up here...Guarantee you'll be diggin' bottles, just can't guarantee they'll be all that great...LOL.
If ya don't wanna say where ya live on here, email me thru the Forum's private messaging......

 

[Miles]

Occasionally you may see a cleared path in the forest in the back or at the side of the house. If you follow it you may find a shallow farm dump. There is a lot of broken glass but it's easy beause you don't need to buy lots of things to dig it. just a trowel and some gloves would suffice.
Also there may be a path that leads to a depression in the ground. There would be a great place to probe. Also cellar holes are sometimes good places.

 

[tnfishdaddy]

Hey Whiskeyman, I sent you an email or a pm. Can't remember which.