jgas
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Hello all treasure hunters, Pit digger Don and Jim back at it with ya on an 1895 School House Dig.
Took a look at the Sanborn maps and this spot just looked good. Gathered permission to dig so it was game on. This was the same general area as the milk bottle pit so we figured it may be the same property and an older pit. Since this particular area and the homes dated to possibly 1870 or so we were hoping for an older pit. But no matter what we were going to have some fun. So got to probing and found this pit. So we usually spray paint the edges of the pit. We used the 6 foot probes and never felt the bottom.
Usually our pits here are 6 to 8 feet deep. So we did our best landscaping and cut the grass out to set aside. Put the tarp down and got down to some serious digging.
We got down to around 5 feet or so and probed again. Again with the 6 foot probe and still could not reach bottom.
So a little frustrated as we knew that we only had a 4 foot ladder it was gonna be tough to get back out of the pit. This was a wood liner at one point and the chances for a collapse multiply the further we go towards china!
But we finally struck a good sign. A bottle that is super hard to get and we have never seen pieces of it in all the years we have been digging. Since we were hitting bricks at this level I thought that's what it was. But alas it was the elusive Rennoe's Specific in a great honey amber. YES!!! We struck color!!! and the best part is I didn't blast it with the shovel.
So with our spirits up and a long dig to come, we trudged along. And wouldn't you know it out pops another Rennoe's in perfect condition. Holy smokes another fantastic find. So on we went to further depths. Probing as we went another foot deeper and then another foot and so on....Used the probe at 7 feet deep and buried it all the way. So now we knew it was at least 13 feet deep we were halted in our tracks. Don had to run and get his extension ladder so we could get in and out of the pit. Now I'm not saying to anyone to go out and dig a hole 13 feet deep and all will be okay! Not at all. We know the dangers and we monitor the walls constantly. Any signs of a crack and we are out!
But the walls appeared fine at this point so we kept going. Then I see what I though was another brick and it was not a Rennoe's. It was a Neoferrum bottle. Whatever that was used for I have no idea. It was color again though so I was happy. The insitu pictures are pretty cool leaving the imprint of the bottle in the soil.
As we were heading down deeper Don started popping out ink after ink after ink after ink after ink.....what the heck was going on here. All I could think of was that there was a school house next door and this was the privy for the kids. Not much in the way of adult beverages in here. Just all these wild medicines and inks. Don did the inks in when he popped out a fabulous Carters 1897 Made in the USA olive green cone.
That was just the icing on the cake or so we thought. A couple of Hutch soda's popped out as well. Then as I was looking at the side wall I could see two more Rennoe's just waiting to be plucked out. Yes this was a great day now. Hard to believe we found 4 of one of the hardest to find bottles from this area. All in great shape. Found the privy pot at 10 feet and then there was 3 feet of some ash and bricks and more shattered plates and pottery. We finished the pit at 13 plus feet and had to take numerous breaks to get the strength to fill this one back in and make it look good. So what started out at 10:30 in the morning and ended at 7pm I think we scored pretty well. The deepest pits are not for the faint of heart. Just imagine a school kid looking down into that pit and doing his or her duty. YIKES! Best part is is that we located another pit 10 feet away. So we will slay that one after a nice rest! Hope you enjoy the pics. It was a fun and exhausting day but worth all the fun we had. Don't dig like this alone people, please. And especially don't risk your life for some bottles. I hope not to dig that deep again anytime soon unless it's a brick liner.! Good luck and happy digging everyone. jgas
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