with demolitions currently in a holding pattern, i shifted my focus back on the big dig site located on the west side of chicago. despite the fact that i have unearthed several artifacts (e.g., bottle and common household fragments) dating from the 1880s to the depression, the three brick-lined privy pits (found at the big dig site) designed and built for discarding refuse during trips to the outhouse, have yielded very little. two of the three were completely emptied out or cleaned, likely time and again before being covered over. the third and most recent privy to be discovered earlier this week, was completely filled, but the majority of its contents consisted of discarded building materials from the time the structure on that lot was demolished. growing desperate perhaps, i decided to spend more time on the third privy, hoping that under the rubble, there might be something of interest. since the day was drawing to a close, darkness was rapidly approaching and my back was in pain from prolonged exposure to the bitter cold, i asked the backhoe operator to assist me with opening up this last privy. with the gentle nudge of his bucket, he loosened enough bricks for me to quickly pull apart and gain entrance. when rubble from the demolition of the building decades ago came spewing out, i was incredibly disappointed, but with some perseverance, i managed to remove it all, where i came across several inches of moist sludge resting several inches above the wood floor. there, within the muck, i recovered objects, including a few medicinal, soda and beer bottles, numerous household fragments, a salt-glazed pot and a single railroad conductors coat button made of brass with a fanciful monogrammed center. finding the artifacts was exciting at first, but was short-lived in the end. after scouring the bottom one last time, i concluded that it was cleaned out and i could go back to the shop, with only a handful of artifacts to look over, clean and document. on a positive note, i have recovered a decent payload from this site, which has no doubt shed light on the occupants who once resided in the now-demolished homes. the traces of their daily life had been buried for well over a hundred years until now. aside from the importance of observation and information gathering, there is still quite a bit of land that needs to be excavated at this site, so im sure next week i will find additional artifacts and/or perhaps another privy pit that has not been cleaned or altered. i can almost assure you that several more bromo-seltzer bottle will be found. to be continued.
Posted on: Sun, 11 Jan 2015 05:19:38 +0000
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