halfdime
Silver Member
It's amazing how time can change your priorities. Fifteen years ago, my father and I discovered a stone foundation in the woods near our house. The stone was cut sandstone, and I spent 6.5 years pulling the stone out of the woods to build a retaining wall. It was a project of monumental proportions, and one in which I still take pride. Physically, I couldn't do it now, however! 
After I got a metal detector, I remembered the site; even deep in the woods, once upon a time it was a farmhouse with people living in it. Hopefully, those people dropped a few coins. So far, I've found two Indian heads and a beautiful 1840 large cent, but there is probably an hour of work clearing for every ten or fifteen minutes of detecting. I've had Kiros32 and DrDetector to the site, and they can vouch for the effort we've all put in for little return. We're still convinced that more (and better) coins await us, but so does a lot of work.
Eleven months ago, while detecting another site, Kiros32 and I came across an obvious privy. We decided to dig it, and it was an incredible experience! In the time since, I've dug another dozen or so, and in the back of my mind I knew I had to find a privy at the foundation we know as the Dunn site. With the knowledge gained by digging other privies, I suspected that we'd do very well if we could just find this one. Finding coins there has been like finding needles in a haystack, and the privy was almost the same thing. Until this afternoon. A couple weeks ago, Kiros32 and I started to dig what had all the obvious signs of a privy. The dirt was soft, easily dug and we were finding a few human artifacts (glass, pottery). Then, we hit a clay/sand/gravel layer that stopped us in our tracks. It may also have stopped the Dunns from continuing their attempt to put a privy there.
This afternoon, after leaf detail at Mom's, I went over to the site determined to find a privy. I decided to check what we believe to be the back of the house, down a slope and a reasonable distance away from the house. I found a depression, pushed in my probe and liked what I was feeling; easy digging and little resistance. I started to dig and was getting powdery soil: an indication that it wasn't native undisturbed. Pretty soon, I started to get little pieces of glass, then stumbled upon a two inch, fragile little bottle. It's slightly aqua, leans to one side and has, I believe, a pontil on its base. I called Kiros32 with the happy news and assured him that some of the privy would still be there on Friday. We'll also have lots of easy sifting to do. Pretty soon, I was finding bottles pretty easily. First, a broken Dr. Jakob's OEL (Oil?), in aqua
. Then a few unmarked bottles. Then the embossed bottles started to roll out, and it appears that someone in the Dunn family was losing their hair and they were determined to get it back! First, Mrs. S.A. Allen's Worlds Hair Restorer, in two shades! Then, Dr. Tebbetts Physiological Hair Regenerator. Last, I found a beautiful Mrs. Winslow Queen of Hair Restorer, in aqua, which I carelessly broke later 
. I really hate that. Fortunately, I consoled myself with Prof Low's Magnetic Liniment, also in aqua. To round things up, there is R. Matchetts Pure Genuine Four Fold Liniment and, appropriately, Henry's Sewing Machine Oil. This privy appears to be four feet deep, and the farm dates back to the mid 1800's, so this is probably just the first of several!
After I got a metal detector, I remembered the site; even deep in the woods, once upon a time it was a farmhouse with people living in it. Hopefully, those people dropped a few coins. So far, I've found two Indian heads and a beautiful 1840 large cent, but there is probably an hour of work clearing for every ten or fifteen minutes of detecting. I've had Kiros32 and DrDetector to the site, and they can vouch for the effort we've all put in for little return. We're still convinced that more (and better) coins await us, but so does a lot of work. Eleven months ago, while detecting another site, Kiros32 and I came across an obvious privy. We decided to dig it, and it was an incredible experience! In the time since, I've dug another dozen or so, and in the back of my mind I knew I had to find a privy at the foundation we know as the Dunn site. With the knowledge gained by digging other privies, I suspected that we'd do very well if we could just find this one. Finding coins there has been like finding needles in a haystack, and the privy was almost the same thing. Until this afternoon. A couple weeks ago, Kiros32 and I started to dig what had all the obvious signs of a privy. The dirt was soft, easily dug and we were finding a few human artifacts (glass, pottery). Then, we hit a clay/sand/gravel layer that stopped us in our tracks. It may also have stopped the Dunns from continuing their attempt to put a privy there.
This afternoon, after leaf detail at Mom's, I went over to the site determined to find a privy. I decided to check what we believe to be the back of the house, down a slope and a reasonable distance away from the house. I found a depression, pushed in my probe and liked what I was feeling; easy digging and little resistance. I started to dig and was getting powdery soil: an indication that it wasn't native undisturbed. Pretty soon, I started to get little pieces of glass, then stumbled upon a two inch, fragile little bottle. It's slightly aqua, leans to one side and has, I believe, a pontil on its base. I called Kiros32 with the happy news and assured him that some of the privy would still be there on Friday. We'll also have lots of easy sifting to do. Pretty soon, I was finding bottles pretty easily. First, a broken Dr. Jakob's OEL (Oil?), in aqua
. Then a few unmarked bottles. Then the embossed bottles started to roll out, and it appears that someone in the Dunn family was losing their hair and they were determined to get it back! First, Mrs. S.A. Allen's Worlds Hair Restorer, in two shades! Then, Dr. Tebbetts Physiological Hair Regenerator. Last, I found a beautiful Mrs. Winslow Queen of Hair Restorer, in aqua, which I carelessly broke later . I really hate that. Fortunately, I consoled myself with Prof Low's Magnetic Liniment, also in aqua. To round things up, there is R. Matchetts Pure Genuine Four Fold Liniment and, appropriately, Henry's Sewing Machine Oil. This privy appears to be four feet deep, and the farm dates back to the mid 1800's, so this is probably just the first of several!
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Looks like she really was Wonder if it worked 
Rob
