I need some opinions - My old foundation site - w/Pics

[Midnightrider08]

Today I decided to switch modes and go for a bit of history. So wife and I headed to a farm where we had permission to go anytime, we found the owner and asked where he would suggest to start. He told us up in the sugar woods was the first foundation in town on first road in town by first settler in town in 1790 and that to best of his knowledge and records for his property nobody had lived in it since 1867 at the latest. He warned that it was a hike and that to follow the "Carved" out road at end of meadow and not the logging trail.

So up we went. I detected the entire way with not a hint of anything but was sorta a half hearted attempt as our main goal for the day was simply finding the foundation. After about 45 mins - Hour we located the foundation and the road either behind or in front of it . I beleive I approacehed it from the backside but I could be wrong and will know once I locate a fireplace. It had stones all along the outside about 20-30 feet then side walls were 15 feet-30. Then the logging road goes over part of it . then a stone wall , another old road and then another stone wall , there is a gap between the stone wall from the site to the old road which makes me think I approached it from the backside comming up the hill .

Anyways we began detecting the backside of foundation . I hit a load deep coin single and we dug and retrieved some square nails (Backside/ On a Hillside) .. wife kept digging that hole. I moved to the corner to my right and got another one and dug some more nails and kept getting singles , wife joined me and told me to move on as it was sprinkling . She found more nails and started finding pottery(small pieces) with color . I hit another good target on side wall and more nails more pottery and good size piece of really think green glass. I moved to the front and got more singles and found what I think to be the bottom of a old crock and other crock pieces. When all of a sudden wife says "Tooth" I can't even explain how I fealt at that moment ... I think I literally wanted to run away but for fear of feeling like a chicken in front of my wife I stayed. We determined it to be a predators tooth and put it in a bag got few more nails and headed home for the day.

When I got it home and examined it ... I noticed it still had what looked like a long root hanging from it and when I turned it upside up from what I thought it was I realized it looked like it could be really large back molars. I need to know A. why would they be right along the back wall ? B. Where can I go to find out what the teeth belong to ? and C. Would you go back ?

Here's my best attempt at getting pics on here :

http://s297.photobucket.com/albums/mm207/berkshirerdside/

You can't take a farmer our of the parlor and stick him in front of Pc and expect him to know what he's doing. My Pc skills aren't the best folks.

 

[Scots Gaelic]

Tooth, hmmm not scary. Come hunt a park with me, you get to see latex protection and wrappers , needles and bent spoons, everywhere, now that is scary. But I still go back every day, cause in those bushes and "hidden areas" of the park, people don't seem to know they are loosing coins and jewelry when their mind is a wee bit preoccupied!

That "gap between the stone wall from the site to the old road", sounds promising, maybe and old dumping area?!

Don't forget to leather wear gloves.

 

[Midnightrider08]

That "gap between the stone wall from the site to the old road", sounds promising, maybe and old dumping area?!

Don't forget to leather wear gloves.

The gap in the wall is shown in new pic in photobucket . It is 3rd pic in first row. By gap I meant break in the wall leading on to the rd , then another stone wall on otherside.

Do I literally excavate the site ? I gotten signals in the yard , by the stump , on the walls and corners and in spots inside , but there is a serious mound of rock ... Why ? Most cellar holes I find have sunken middles although I have seen them like this as well . Is it from walls and chimmney comming in ?

Place gives me the creeps and willys and I hope I not disturbing the poor ol fellas who lived there. He was a hermit I have read and did not come down off the hill much but had lots of visitors who went there for what reason I do not know besides it states the rd was well traveled and that the hermit would fix and make shoes and other items for people. 2 people both males with same last name are listed as owning it together originally. There were also 2 other men in town who came later with same last names although no confirmation of whose sons they were or if they were ever related. Eventually one of the original owners stayed at bottom of hill and the other the hermit lived at the top after a disagreement about conducting the farm. Most early settlers in my area came from the Berkshires of Mass after the War looking for land inbetween NH and NY and many people got duped of there land because of all that was going on at the time and nobody knowing really whose land it was. Even Ethan Allen sold Gum trees of Mansfield when they were actually worthless Pines but he didn't want to state the land as such.

I may have the place outlined all wrong and what I think was the backside may be the front side lookin out over the valley to the river over what would have been his farmland. The size of this property has always been 300 acres since 1807 atleast by what I can find record wise.

The thing got me wondering is ... how many more of these places are out on the Mtn tops. Also why did the early settlers settle in the mountains instead of in the valleys where the soil was better and going easier ?

I just hope I find something ... besides trouble , bad luck , or some ghost mad at me .

 

[EDDE]

Re: I need some opinions

Also another Noob question would be why does the square nails ring as loud coin ?

because you are using a bounty hunter
it a "overload" signal

 

[Kiros32]

That "gap between the stone wall from the site to the old road", sounds promising, maybe and old dumping area?!

Don't forget to leather wear gloves.

The gap in the wall is shown in new pic in photobucket . It is 3rd pic in first row. By gap I meant break in the wall leading on to the rd , then another stone wall on otherside.

Do I literally excavate the site ? I gotten signals in the yard , by the stump , on the walls and corners and in spots inside , but there is a serious mound of rock ... Why ? Most cellar holes I find have sunken middles although I have seen them like this as well . Is it from walls and chimmney comming in ?

Place gives me the creeps and willys and I hope I not disturbing the poor ol fellas who lived there. He was a hermit I have read and did not come down off the hill much but had lots of visitors who went there for what reason I do not know besides it states the rd was well traveled and that the hermit would fix and make shoes and other items for people. 2 people both males with same last name are listed as owning it together originally. There were also 2 other men in town who came later with same last names although no confirmation of whose sons they were or if they were ever related. Eventually one of the original owners stayed at bottom of hill and the other the hermit lived at the top after a disagreement about conducting the farm. Most early settlers in my area came from the Berkshires of Mass after the War looking for land inbetween NH and NY and many people got duped of there land because of all that was going on at the time and nobody knowing really whose land it was. Even Ethan Allen sold Gum trees of Mansfield when they were actually worthless Pines but he didn't want to state the land as such.

I may have the place outlined all wrong and what I think was the backside may be the front side lookin out over the valley to the river over what would have been his farmland. The size of this property has always been 300 acres since 1807 atleast by what I can find record wise.

The thing got me wondering is ... how many more of these places are out on the Mtn tops. Also why did the early settlers settle in the mountains instead of in the valleys where the soil was better and going easier ?

I just hope I find something ... besides trouble , bad luck , or some ghost mad at me .

I am actually having the same problem at a foundation that I am hunting. The cellar is filled with stone from the collapsed walls, and it's been quite difficult to dig. I thought about completely excavating the site, moving stone and iron to get to good ground, but the effort that will take will probably not be worth the finds.

 

[Ryan6060]

If I had a foundation site like that with the history behind it like you described I wouldn't care what I dug up, I would just keep on hunting. If my hunting partner yelled "skull with a bullet hole in it" I would respond..."Are there any large coppers under it"? Get back there dude and find some cuh-lone-neel relics!!!....and maybe a few more teeth!

That is hilarious!!! I thought the same thing though! Looks like a good site GOOD LUCK DUDE

 

[Michellets]

Don't worry about the tooth, it's only an animal tooth. I have made many teeth in a dental lab, and there is no way it is human. As far as the foundation goes I would absolutely go back to it. It's old, and the good relics and coins are probably very deep.
I recommend starting about thirty or twenty five yards out, and then circling it (very very slowly) . I don't start a good sight like that at the foundation (too many nails). I also look around for any sign of an old well, outbuilding,or outhouse. If you are fortunate at finding such structures then you know that people would walk a line to these buildings from the house. These areas need special attention.
I just dug a sight that dates to a very similar time. I have to tell you that he majority of buttons and coins that I recovered were deep, and, some were clipped so they don't register on my Ace 250 as any specific coin. My trick....dig any repeatable signal. It worked very well. Again, I would just keep circling that foundation starting from about twtwenty five yards out. Another thing to realize is that people didn't have a lot of silver money back then. Especially in rural areas. Remember, dig any repeatable signal, keep circling, and listen very carefully!!!!

 

[JerV3]

Nice looking site.

I'd pick it clean of every signal. In your case it may be a little tough with all the nails. My detector doesn't get fooled on iron very often. I hunt so many sites with skulls teeth bones. You get used to it after awhile. You see a dead critter at almost any site you go to anymore.

I've seen dead deer posums racoons etc. I've found teeth still connected to the root. If there is treasure there I don't care how many dead species are near. It's all about that treasure in the end. Good luck at this site. Looks like a really nice old foundation.

You may wanna search about a 100 yrd radius around the property. Maybe try a couple of the dirt paths that run in and out of the place.

HH Jer

 

[Midnightrider08]

Spent 4 hrs at the site this morning. Doing the corner by the tree. Pulled about 50 square nails , more pottery including some nice pieces with multi color. Came home for lunch and did some online reading here.

Took the advice above and started to grid about a acre site this afternoon. Spent good 3-4hrs this afternoon and evening just walking around listening. I had hits in the apple orchid , I think I may have found an outbuilding of some sort and either the animal pen or barn , I may also have found the dump as a spot about 50 yards from the foundation yielded more pottery and what I think to be a little metal doggie either that or a seriously coroded small nail. It looks like a cocker spaniel to me and sits perfectly on flat surfaces but is missing feet. Probably just a nail but then again it's heavier then a nail. Found a cool rock that sparkles all over but it not quartz , don't read on detector but i never have found or seen one like it.

I didn't find much worth much but getting a better feel for the place and did quite a bit of sifting and digging. Will post more pics of finds in days to come. Some of the color in the pottery is pretty wicked even if they are just pieces.

Thank you much for all the advice about broadening the search of area. There are hits on what I think would have been direct paths. I think a better detector would do me wonders but I can't complain really . My Bounty finds Metal .....and that what it about I guess.

Best to everyone .

 

[Scots Gaelic]

" Found a cool rock that sparkles all over but it not quartz , don't read on detector but i never have found or seen one like it. "

Mineral site (see if it is worth something):

http://www.minerals.net/mineral/index.htm

 

[Gribnitz]

Pig teeth resemble human and your at an old homestead. I wouldnt worry about that. Go digging and get that trash out so you can get to the neat stuff !