Privys were often located near the edge of a lot, close to the service areas of the house, and were filled in when the house gained additional bathrooms, or the age of hiring help had passed. To find one today, look for a depression in the soil in likely areas, and try sinking a thin, long, rod of metal down into the center - the dirt will typically feel loose, and sometimes you'll hear a grinding as it hits glass or debris (privys were used for all kinds of "waste"). I really only know what a friend and the internet has told me about this, but our depression met all of the criteria, and I found an antique rasp in the first six inches, so my hopes were high. After digging four feet down however, it was sadly concluded that we were digging out an ancient rotted out tree (and if anyone reminds me that many privys were wood lined I'll cry). After digging that far down it seemed a shame to just fill it back up, so we grabbed an empty Gatorade bottle, and put a note (see title) inside, and filled her back up. I hope I'm long gone before anyone digs that up. I fear their wrath . . .
Happily, we're done de-nailing the beams and framing lumber - which, paired with clearing out the footprint, means we're ready for tree removal and the foundation. Next week should bring visible progress, done by someone other than yours truly . . . I'm thinking I need a lounge chair and a cold drink to enjoy the experience.
 |
| Something of interest seems to be living under our wood pile |
Good idea, Mayfair Mistress! Maybe I'll drop a Gatorade bottle down our privy hole before I get them to back-fill that sucker in.
ReplyDeleteYou're much more adventurous than I - never in a million years would I have dug even four feet down! Ewwwwwww! ;o)
I just hate the thought of forever ruining my chances of exploring something! And besides, bottles, treasures, Mr. Kelly's millions!!! Of course, all this failure has me wondering about the schoolhouse's two outhouses (I'm thinking marbles and inkwells?) . . .
DeleteWell...what did your note say?? And did you write it in English or did you just draw pictures? I love that you left a gift for the next explorer. I may copy you and leave some notes within our walls!
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry. I think I just understood your title...forgive me and forget my first question above :)
Deletehaha no worries! I knew it wasn't that clear when I wrote it, but laziness kicked in . . .
DeleteWe had a "shack" on the back of our old house that collapsed the first winter we were there. I think it was added on sometime in the 20s, and they must have buried a whole bunch of garbage underneath it before they built. I found plenty of broken dishes and bottles and even chicken bones.
ReplyDeleteI never did try and locate the actual bathroom, although I do have some suspicions about where it may have been...
Yeah, I think by the 20's there was a lot less cool stuff that ended up being tossed in outhouses, not to mention a few decades less to "compost." I'd have trouble motivating myself to investigate it if it involved a collapsed building on top ;-)
DeleteA friend and I dug out a privy once, several years ago. It was brick lined. We had high hopes of finding fabulous treasures in it, but the most interesting thing we found was one small glass medicine bottle. The same friend, working on another house, drew a map to buried treasure, then set fire to it so half of it burned away, then put it inside a staircase he was building. Someone years from now who tears down those stairs will be mad at him! ;)
ReplyDeleteYour friend is my new hero, here I thought I was devious . . .
DeleteAh! in our old neighborhood a guy was poking around with a long rod like you mentioned in the backs of the empty lots. Of course I asked what he was doing- and he said he was looking for old privies. We allowed him to dig in some of the lots we owned at the time. I bought a bottle from him and he gave me some that he found in the holes. He begged me to dig in one other property but I had just put in a shade garden. Now I wish I'd let him! Also when he didn't realize we were watching he found something that he seemed to want to hide! He looked all around as he held it in his hand and quickly went to his van and put it away! Oh the mystery! But anyway the bottles I bought from him and that he gave me also, have a beautiful iridescence that happened in the ground! We found so many cool things underground in that neighborhood.
ReplyDeleteWe've dug up a lot of cool bits and pieces too, what kills me is wondering what might be in the yards of some of the houses that were built on what used to be our land when the lot was subdivided - but I doubt the cops would be understanding of my midnight metal detecting.
DeleteThe privy digger acting stealthy like that would have turned me into a crazy (crazier) person. I wouldn't be able to rest until I found out what it was!!!
He most likely found a very very nice bottle and did not want to run the risk of losing it to the owner :) I know alot of privy diggers who has to agree that the property owner get's first pick of whatever you find to be allowed to dig,
ReplyDeleteMost likely, and truthfully it would take an expert to know what was valuable and what was just an old bottle - at the same time, finding old coins and such isn't unheard of either!
DeleteNot at all! I have a friend who stumbled upon an old cellar that was found when his friend went over it and punched through, he pulled several log cabin bitters bottles, those are worth $300+ and his friends father came up took ahold of one of the bitters bottles and said, "This is just a piece of stupid glass!" and threw it against a rock where it shattered..... he is very lucky I was not around or I might have been putting him in the hole, But I did manage to snag one of the mineral water bottles he had, it is the oldest one I own at 1872.
ReplyDelete