Previous Archaeology

Structure A

The foundation uncovered on lot 267 in 1954 crosstreching measured 14 feet by 16 feet and contained a brick cellar with a corner fireplace and a bulkhead entrance that faced Nicholson Street. Knight believed that this foundation was constructed in the early eighteenth century. Excavation of this building included complete removal of the fill within the cellar and partial excavation around the exterior of the foundation. Knight collected several artifacts from the cellar fill. The specific provenience of the artifacts within the cellar was not documented; however, a report compiled in 1959 and 1962 by archaeology student Robert M. Barrow and archaeologist Audrey Noël Hume provided a description of the artifacts.

Mapping the foundations of Structure A. CW photo number 54-W-614. (Click on image to enlarge)

Uncovering Structure A, looking north. CW photo number 54-K-391. (Click on image to enlarge)

Uncovering Structure A, looking south. CW photo number 54-K-390. (Click on image to enlarge)

Uncovering Structure A, looking northeast. CW photo number 54-K-388. (Click on image to enlarge)

The floor plan of what we now call Structure A had at least two cells, with a later, brick addition extended off the northeast corner of the brick foundation. A brick-lined cellar was located beneath the southern room of the structure and was heated with a corner fireplace. The north cell area was not located in the 1954 excavations, nor was this area included in the 1998 excavations, but its presence is indicated by the central, north-facing hearth constructed on the northern exterior of the cellar. Because Knight did not discover any brick remains of this cell during his excavation of the area, it is likely that the cell was founded upon perishable materials, such as wooden posts. The brick foundation was substantial, measuring one and a half bricks wide, with English bond and shell mortar. During the 1998 excavation, the only portion of this structure revealed was a section of the later addition placed off the northeast corner of the original foundation. The grey trash midden layer and clay cap described above were associated with the early occupation of the building and overlay the builders trench excavated during the construction of the cellar.

The artifacts recovered from the grey midden layer that postdated the building have also yielded some clues about the architectural components of this structure. These items include window glass, lead window casing, nails, dressed slate, whitewashed plaster, and ceramic roofing tiles.

The destruction of the building probably occurred in the first quarter of the nineteenth century. This can be discerned from the artifact collection excavated in 1954 from the fill of the cellar. These artifacts were likely deposited after the standing structure had fallen into ruin. Open cellars were often used for trash disposal, thus the artifacts may have come from the ruin itself, or brought to the cellar from a nearby household. Most of the artifacts were manufactured in the late eighteenth to early nineteenth century. The cellar was probably buried by the first quarter of the nineteenth century.

Structure B

The remains of the structure on lot 268 measured 50 feet by 24 feet with a small west wing. The west structure was entirely excavated, and the main structure was exposed up to its intersection with Botetourt Street. The main structure, which contained a cellar, was built in the eighteenth century, possibly during the Ravenscroft period of 1715-39. In 1782, the larger building was depicted on the Frenchmans map.

This structure stood until 1896, at which time it was destroyed by fire.

Uncovering Structure B, overall work. CW photo number 54-W-610. (Click on image to enlarge)

Uncovering Structure B, looking east. CW photo number 54-W-611. (Click on image to enlarge)

Unovering Structure B, looking east. CW photo number 54-DB-576. (Click on image to enlarge)

Uncovering Structure B, looking east. CW photo number 54-DB-575. (Click on image to enlarge)

Uncovering Structure B, looking west. CW photo number 54-DB-577. (Click on image to enlarge)

Uncovering Structure B, looking northeast. CW photo number 54-DB-578. (Click on image to enlarge)

The Well

The well was exposed and mapped in 1954. No further work in this area has been done since, and it is unclear when the well was in use, though presumably it dates to the eighteenth century. Wells are common features on colonial lots of this period, and the position of the well (about halfway between the "front" and "back" of the lot) is typical. It is not clear whether the well was cleaned out after its abandonment; if not, it is potentially a very important archaeological feature that may be worth excavating in the future.

Uncovering the well. CW photo number 54-W-622. (Click on image to enlarge)

Trash Midden

One of the more intriguing features found in 1998 was a layer of trash deposited within a ravine that ran westward across the excavation. The east edge of this deposit extended beyond the east edge of the excavation. On the west, this deposit abutted the brick foundation and cellar on colonial lot 267 (Structure A) and was contemporaneous with the early occupation of this structure. Sometime in the first two decades of the eighteenth century, this layer was sealed with a thick clay cap that isolated the deposit from later contamination. Unfortunately, a portion of this deposit had been impacted by the 1954 archaeological investigations.

The midden expanded about 30 feet, and spanned the area between the eastern edge of the excavation and the brick foundation on lot 267. On the eastern edge, the deposit was only 4.9 feet wide and 0.8 feet deep. The layer quickly widened and deepened to the west and reached a width of 17.1 feet and depth of 3.3 feet where it abutted the brick cellar foundation. Directly beneath this layer lay the builders trench for the cellar. Therefore, it was possible to conclude that the artifacts recovered from the midden were deposited soon after the structure had been built. The brick foundation had been constructed within a ravine, which may have resulted in water damage to the eastern cellar wall. Possibly in an effort to fill the ravine and halt this damage, the ravine was filled with trash and debris and sealed with a clay cap.

The soil in the midden contained pockets of ash, clay, heavy brick rubble, charcoal and shell, as well as over 9000 artifacts. The soil varied in color from brown to brownish yellow. The deposit was thickest at 12 inches thick along the northeast edge of the ravine by the foundation, suggesting that the deposition originated from this area. A clay cap measuring 13.5 inches thick sealed this trash layer. The clay was brownish yellow, redeposited subsoil clay that contained small brick flecks throughout. This clay was packed against the brick cellar foundation.

A large assemblage of late seventeenth- and early eighteenth-century artifacts were recovered from the ravine which can be associated with the occupation or use of the brick structure on colonial lot 267. These artifacts were identified, analyzed and described by CW senior laboratory technician Susan Christie. The most striking aspect of the midden assemblage was the very large amount of wine bottle glass recovered. Over 5700 fragments of wine bottle glass were found, comprising over 60% of the artifacts from the midden fill. The majority of the bottles were of the onion and mallet form manufactured during the late seventeenth to early eighteenth century. Rectangular case bottles also represented a small percentage of the bottles.

Six wine bottle seals were recovered. Four exhibited a crest displaying a coronet atop a coat of arms bearing a cross, supported on each side by standing dogs. Beneath the dogs was a scrolling banner bearing a motto in French, which on two seals read MAINTARM and on one seal read MAINTDROIT. An association or date for these seals was not determined. The fifth seal depicted a baronial crown above a fox standing on a rouletted horizontal line representing earth. This seal could represent a more refined version of a ca. 1700 seal of the Peirpont family. The sixth seal was incomplete and bore a milled edge bordering a beaded coat of arms. Again, association and date for this seal has yet to be determined

Bottle seals found on the site. (Click on image to enlarge)

In addition to wine bottle glass, the midden fill contained a few fragments of clear, leaded glass. The forms represented a decanter, a continental oil bottle, scent bottles, tumblers, and stemmed wine glasses. Two datable stems included a Silesian style, manufactured between 1710 and 1730, and a funnel shaped style with basal teardrop, a decorative technique that began in the fourth quarter of the seventeenth century.

The ceramics recovered from the midden fill were dominated by English delftware, but also contained fragments of white salt glazed stoneware, Yorktown coarseware and Buckley coarseware, which provided the terminus post quem of 1725. This is the earliest date of manufacture for these ceramics which establishes the earliest possible date of their disposal. Earlier dated wares included Red Sandy Ware, Fulham, Westerwald and Nottingham stonewares, North Devon coarseware and Chinese porcelain. A few fragments of locally produced, hand-built pottery were also recovered. In addition, two unusual vessels came from the midden and have tentatively been identified. One appears to be a seventeenth-century French tin-enameled salt, and the other a white salt-glazed vessel with a cylindrical bucket shape and squared rim, which may have also been a salt.

Non-kitchen related ceramic items from the midden included two, and possibly three, crucibles and fragments of seventeenth-century clay roofing tiles.

Other artifacts recovered included tobacco pipe fragments, one of which displayed the makers mark of the Manby family dating to the last quarter of the seventeenth century. A very small percentage of the fragments were locally produced Chesapeake pipes. In addition, varieties of metal hardware were found in the midden, including iron handles, hooks, hinges, tongs, a file, and other various objects. Copper alloy materials and lead items were also present. These metals included the following notable items: a brass coin weight, a complete lead excise bale seal dating from the reign of Queen Anne (1702-1714), and several inscribed lead window casings indicating the date 1717.

Other artifacts recovered included tobacco pipe fragments, one of which displayed the makers mark of the Manby family dating to the last quarter of the seventeenth century. A very small percentage of the fragments were locally produced Chesapeake pipes. In addition, varieties of metal hardware were found in the midden, including iron handles, hooks, hinges, tongs, a file, and other various objects. Copper alloy materials and lead items were also present. These metals included the following notable items: a brass coin weight, a complete lead excise bale seal dating from the reign of Queen Anne (1702-1714), and several inscribed lead window casings indicating the date 1717.

Postholes

Two large postholes, with smaller replacement postholes within, were discovered in the excavation. These posts were 9.8 feet apart on a roughly north to south axis. They were positioned about 14 feet west of the large structural foundation on colonial lot 268, and about 17.1 feet east of the foundation and cellar on colonial lot 267. These posts were almost certainly in existence when the larger building on 268 was in use, and possibly in existence when the building on 267 was in use, though it is not known how or even if these posts related to either of the two buildings.

The lower and earlier postholes were 23 to 23.5 inches wide, and extended about 12 inches into the subsoil. The posthole fills consisted of brown sandy loam with flecks of brick, marl and charcoal throughout. There was no visible mold in these postholes, but the eastern half of both was cut by later replacement postholes, both of which contained post molds 4 by 5 inches in size. These later posts had been given extra support by filling the holes with clay and flat laid bricks.

The artifacts within the fill of the postholes, for both the larger, earlier holes and the smaller, later holes suggest that the posts were placed after 1720. Given that only two of the posts in this series were uncovered, it is difficult to assign a definite function to them. However, the size of the earlier posts, and the placement of the replacement posts in exactly the same location, suggest that these posts supported a heavy frame and that care was taken in their upkeep. Possibly, these were a pair of structural posts for a small earthfast structure or shed, although they may have also been used as fence posts.

Seventeenth-Century Boundary Ditch

The earliest feature on the site was a boundary ditch that cut across the southeast corner of the 1998 excavation. This ditch was 2.1 feet wide and oriented along a southwest to northeast axis. It had been filled with a clean, olive brown silt loam with a band of lighter gray silt deposits along the bottom. The ditch sloped steeply along the south edge and gradually along the north edge. The complete lack of artifacts or inclusions suggested that this ditch predated most colonial activities on the site.

Partial excavation of this feature revealed four narrow depressions along the base and sides of the ditch at irregularly spaced intervals. These depressions measured approximately 4 inches across and 6 inches deep. The fill within these depressions was the same as that for the ditch. This suggested that these depressions were created while the ditch was in use. These depressions may have resulted from ditch maintenance such as dredging or cleaning activities.

The ditch was partially eroded in one area by the ravine, which provided evidence that the ditch predated the ravine as well as the structure that was constructed within the ravine.

Thus, the ditch relates to early to mid seventeenth-century activities on the site. Similar ditch features oriented off the Williamsburg town grid have been recovered at other sites in Williamsburg, such as the Peyton Randolph site, Shields Tavern, the Nicholson-Tyler site, and the Tucker House, for example. These features are often all that remains of the earliest historical occupation.

Note: The material in this section is taken from the archaeological report written by Margaret Cooper in 1998 (The Ravenscroft Site: Archaeological Investigation of Colonial Lots 267 and 268. Colonial Williamsburg Foundation Library Research Report Series No. 1678. John D. Rockefeller Jr. Library, Williamsburg, Virginia).