2021 Public Archaeology Lab Days (Mar-Oct)

CCASM has been working with Charles County at the ongoing Public Archaeology Lab for a number of years.  The lab is for processing artifacts recovered from various archaeology initiatives in Charles County -  including processing artifacts recovered from savage archaeology in the County as well as those recovered in the 1970's around the Port Tobacco Courthouse.  Esther Read is the archaeologist in charge.

Starting October 11 and continuing through the remainder of the year CCASM managed a lab for processing artifacts from an ASM project in Carroll County  Dielman Inn Labwork at the request of the Archeology Society of Maryland, Inc (ASM).  CCASM is a chapter of ASM.

Rumford Bottle

October 4's Lab was a little different.  Normally only one or two people sort and bag artifacts from one drying screen.  But today Elsie, Linda, Denise, Peggy, and Carol all worked on the same screen.  We needed to have all the screens ready, i.e. empty, for the lab project that was to start the next week, and we wanted to have time to look for graves on a property in Nanjemoy.  We choose this top part of a bottle with RUMFORD embossed on the shoulder as the artifact of the day.  The Rumford bottle most likely contained baking powder.

We did finish bagging the artifacts in time to look for graves.  Before we could look for the graves we had to find their location based on buildings identified on a plat.  Unfortunately Google Maps was no help.  It was still a nice day to walk.

Looking for Landmarks

White Metal
Decoration

September 27 was another pretty day and Elsie, Linda, Denise, and Carol decided to work outside Burch House.  Elsie dry-brushed some really dirty iron artifacts; Carol and Denise sorted and bagged artifacts; and Linda washed glass artifacts.  There were stove parts, hinges, locks, and other hardware from the Courthouse Site, but we choose this white metal decoration as the artifact of the day.  It only had one hole by which it could be attached to another object.

September 20 was such a pretty day that Elsie, Linda, Denise, Peggy, Ned, and Carol decided to work outside Burch House and to dry brush the numerous metal artifacts that we had brought over from the Courthouse.  Most of the these artifacts were labelled "PT" indicating that they had been recovered from around the Courthouse.  We sorted and bagged the artifacts after we dry brushed them.  Actually the artifacts weren't that dirty.  Since Ned does blacksmithing, he helped us sort nails and also told us how some of the artifacts could have been used.  Although the majority of the artifacts were iron, we chose this small decorative copper alloy object as the artifact of the day.  It looks like it was could be used to pick up something small, but what?  A tag attached to the artifact read PT48.

Update: Sara Rivers-Cofield from the MAC Lab said her best guess is this is a skirt lifter from the late 19th or early 20th century.  The slide is used to close the clip.  She found this pinterst website with a Victorian skirt lifter similar to the one we found.
https://www.pinterest.com.au/elvacawood/victorian-skirt-lifters/

Top view

Side view

Bottom view

Straight-edge Razor

The Lab on September 13 was a little different - no washing or sorting or cataloging - just moving artifacts around.   Ned joined Linda, Denise, Elsie, to take the bagged artifacts to the Courthouse where Carol and Peggy integrated them with the other artifacts that still needed to be catalogued.  Ned, Denise, and Elsie went into the attic to bring down more artifacts and we stabilized the disintegrating bags before they could be processed.  There were lots of glass and metal artifacts from the Courthouse area.  We choose this straight-edge razor with a wooden handle as the artifact of the day.

Esther returned for the first time after her operation and had a "robotic" brace on her left arm.  Since Esther could not do anything strenuous with her left arm, Ned and Elsie went with her to explore a possible cemetery location.  Esther didn't need that much help exploring, but she did need help pounding a stake in the ground.

Medicine Bottle

On August 30 Linda, Mary, Peggy, Denise and Carol sorted and bagged the artifacts that had been washed the previous week.  Most of the artifacts were labeled "PT" which means they had been recovered from the Courthouse area.  We choose this fragment of a small bottle with a patent finish as the artifact of the day.  Patent and proprietary medicine bottles were made with this type of finish from about 1850 until after the turn of the century.  

Stove part

At the August 23 Lab Linda and Peggy washed artifacts, Carol and Denise sorted and bagged artifacts, and Elsie worked outdoors brushing dirt off iron artifacts.  The artifact of the day was one of those iron artifacts.  It looks like it could have been used to adjust the air flow for a cast iron stove - maybe a potbelly stove.  Interestingly most of the artifacts we are currently processing were excavated ca 1968 in the area underneath the current reconstructed Port Tobacco Courthouse. 

Fork with Antler Handle

On August 16 we returned to wearing face masks inside Burch House.  Mary and Elsie started cataloging groups of ceramic sherds that had once been part of the same vessel.  The sherds had been recovered at Port Tobacco ca 2008.  Linda, Peggy, Denise, and Carol continued to sort and bag artifacts recovered at Port Tobacco ca 1970, and chose this artifact of the day--a two-tined fork with an antler handle.

Metal Objects

On August 9 Denise, Linda, Peggy, Carol, and Elsie started bagging and washing Port Tobacco artifacts brought down from the attic last week.  (Elsie and Esther also worked on a process for cataloging the vesselized artifacts recovered from the ca 2008 Port Tobacco Excavations.)  There were many candidates for artifact of the day, but we chose a bag of interesting metal objects (starting from the upper left in the photo) - a glass and metal drawer pull, the top of a kerosene lamp, a copper spoon with a hole in it, an Indian Head penny, a printing block, and a decorative copper alloy buckle fragment.   We were intrigued by the partial printing block and used a mirror to try to read it.  Here is the "mirror" image and what we think it would print.  It would be interesting to see all the text.

Mirror image of Printing Block

Using mirror to try to read Printing Block

/ ??ael  Out.
/Girl—-It’s so odd  about
/ Now, my fiance’s fad is
/antiquities.
/ looking  at her)—-So  I
/--Up to-Date

Decorative Bracket

On August 2 work resumed on the Port Tobacco artifacts.  Linda, Carol, Elsie, and Mary were joined by Daphne, a Charles County intern.  This was Daphne's last day, and she was shadowing Esther to see what an archaeologist did.  More artifacts were brought down from the really hot attic.  There were a number of interesting metal artifacts brought down, and we chose this decorative bracket(?) as the artifact of the day. 
Mary and Daphne stabilized the artifact bags retrieved from the attic so they could be taken to Burch House where the artifacts will be washed.  The latest batch of artifacts processed at Burch House were sorted by Linda and Carol in preparation for cataloging.  Elsie and Esther put negatives that had been retrieved from the shed at Stagg Hall into polypropylene bags.  So quite a variety of activities.

Mammal Distal Phalanges

On July 26 Mary, Denise, Linda, Peggy, and Carol moved equipment used in the recent excavations back to the old garage at Stagg Hall while Elsie talked with a woman and her children who had dropped by to see what archaeologists do.  Then we all worked on sorting and bagging the remainder of the artifacts retrieved from Rich Hill.  This mammal distal phalanges bone was selected as the artifact of the day.  It could have connected with the phalanges ("short") bone selected as the artifact of the day on July 12.  These bones may have been from a pig.

At the July 19 lab Mary, Linda, and Carol were joined by Peggy to wash the artifacts recovered from the four Rich Hill excavation units.  They were quite dirty (dried mud) and quickly muddied the washing water.  Our artifact for the day is this chamber pot rim.  When it was found in one of the STPs, it was not removed until the feature containing it could be removed.  It was this rim that led to the excavation of the four units.  The "feature" did not turn out to be a post mold nor a midden.  Although this was not a midden, these four units contained small refined earthenware fragments, a few nails, a copper alloy button, and brick fragments as well as fire cracked rocks.  One thought is that trash ended up in this area near the sunken road when wagons turned around.  Just a thought. 

Chamber Pot Rim

Mammal Short Bone

For the first part of the lab on July 12 Elsie, Mary, Linda, and Melissa hosed off the mud from the equipment used at Rich Hill.  Then we returned to normal lab activities.  Melissa and Carol sorted and bagged the previously washed artifacts recovered from the Rich Hill STPs.  Mary, Linda, and Elsie washed the artifacts from the excavations dug this past weekend at Rich Hill.  We chose this mammal short bone that was found in a Rich Hill STP as the artifact of the day.  It was about seven centimeters long (forgot to include ruler in the photo).

Hosing Off Mud

Washing Artifacts

On June 28 Elsie, Denise, Mary, and Carol were joined in the lab by Melissa, a new volunteer.  We were able to wash all the artifacts that had been recovered from Rich Hill the past weekend (June 26-27).  So several of us got to spend three days doing archaeology.  Initially we had chosen a thick dark bluish green piece of glass as the artifact of the day.  It was unusual, but also hard for a photograph to capture the color.   Instead we chose a nineteenth century copper alloy button with the word "gilt" embossed on it.  One of the volunteers on Saturday brought his metal detector and recovered (and documented the location of) this button in the area of the STPs.  [also check out  In the field at Rich Hill]

Button-Obverse

Button-Reverse

At the June 14 Archaeology Lab Denise, Mary, Linda, and Carol sorted and bagged the Port Tobacco artifacts that were in the drying screens.   And we chose this unusual artifact of the day.   It's this neck and finish from a wine bottle, probably eighteenth century.  Although the interior and exterior are an opaque cream colored glass, there is an olive green glass layer in the middle.  The neck is also slightly deformed indicating it may have been near a fire.  It would be interesting to know the conditions causing the surfaces of the glass to become opaque.

Wine Bottle Neck

Wine Bottle Neck

June 7 we must have been recovering from Market Day the previous Saturday, because we forgot to choose an artifact of the day.  Denise, Julie, Elsie, Linda, and Carol were at the lab continuing their activities from previous labs.  And a lunchtime we confirmed various volunteering commitments for CCASM.

Alkaline Glazed
Stoneware

The May 24 Lab had lots of volunteers - Denise, Mary, Julie, Peggy, Linda, Elsie, and Carol.  Denise and Julie bagged the washed (now dry) artifacts from Rich Hill.  Mary and Elsie continued inventorying the Port Tobacco artifacts retrieved 2007-9.  Linda, Peggy, and Carol returned to the Courthouse to continue cataloging the Port Tobacco artifacts retrieved ca 1970.  We finally finished cataloging the ceramics retrieved from the BF1 North-South Trench.  We started cataloging them before the shutdown.  The artifact of the day is this alkaline glazed stoneware pottery rim sherd that came from the BF1 North-South Trench.

May 17 was a great day to wash artifacts outdoors behind Burch House.  Peggy joined Julie, Denise, Linda, Mary, and Carol to wash the the artifacts that had been retrieved from the ten STPs dug at Rich Hill the past Saturday.  We were able to complete washing all the artifacts so Esther could report the findings to the Historic Preservation Commission that evening.  Around lunch we had three visitors that led to some interesting conversations.
  

Washing Artifacts

Visitors

Townsend Rim Sherd

But the artifact of the day for May 17 did not come from Rich Hill.  It had been washed last week and was from Port Tobacco.  We even know the unit and level from which it was retrieved.  The artifact is this Late Woodland Townsend Corded pottery rim sherd.

Parian Porcelain Fragment

 On May 10 Linda and Carol worked on artifacts at the Courthouse while Denise and Elsie washed artifacts at Burch House.  Denise and Elsie chose the base of this ceramic figure as the artifact of the day.  All that can be made out is what looks like part of a basket .  The original bag indicated it was a Parian porcelain figure. 

Jasperware Rim

We had planned to be in the field at Rich Hill on May 3.  But there was a little rain early on, and the forecast indicated the chance for rain was 50+%.  So the field work was postponed.  After a discussion of upcoming events and what we planned to do, we stopped for lunch and returned to the lab in the afternoon.  Denise and Carol continued cataloguing in the Courthouse.  Elsie, Mary, and Esther continued working in the Burch House Attic.  Once again Julie who was washing artifacts at Burch House came up with the artifact of the day - this jasperware rim. 
Thanks to Julie for the photo.

Historic Port Tobacco Village is opening up in May, and tours will start April 29.  So on April 26 Elsie, Linda, Mary, Denise, and Carol helped get Burch House ready for tours.  This also included setting up the Archaeology Lab displays in the back room.  We forgot all about taking photos.

Button Covers - Top

Button Covers - Reverse

On April 19 Elsie, Denise, Julie, Carol, and Esther once again were in the Archaeology Lab in Port Tobacco.  We continued with activities in both the Courthouse and Burch House.  Denise and Esther brought down additional artifacts from the Courthouse attic.  So there will be plenty of artifacts to wash at Burch House next week.  Toward the end of the day Denise and Carol were able to start cataloging artifacts again.  And they chose these artifacts of the day -- copper alloy button covers.

 

glass vial base

On March 29 after several months of being away, we returned to the Public Archaeology Lab.  Although we had been together in the field on several days this year, this was the first time in the lab.   Elsie and Mary worked in the Burch House attic to transfer artifacts into corrugated plastic boxes.  All the cardboard boxes needed to be removed from Burch House to help reduce the possibility of mold.  Linda and Carol worked on the Courthouse second floor trying to organize the additional artifacts that Esther brought over from Burch House.  They also made a new bottle of 10% B-72 in acetone that will be used to label the artifacts.  Julie was on the first floor of Burch House washing artifacts - one of our normal activates.  So it was Julie that selected our artifact of the day - the base of an olive green eighteenth century vial.

Putting new boxes
together

Transferring artifacts
to new boxes

Pointing out bottle of
10% B-72 made today

2020 Public Archaeology Lab Days (Sep-Dec)
2020 Public Archaeology Lab Days (Jan-Mar)
2019 Public Archaeology Lab Days (Jul-Dec)
2019 Public Archaeology Lab Days (Jan-June)
2018 Public Archaeology Lab Days (July-Dec)
2018 Public Archaeology Lab Days (Jan-June)
2017 Public Archaeology Lab Days (July-Dec)
2017 Public Archaeology Lab Days (Jan-June)
2016 Public Archaeology Lab Days (July-Dec)
2016 Public Archaeology Lab Days (Jan-June)
2015 Public Archaeology Lab Days