A "Pit" full of treasure!

jgas

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Apr 23, 2008
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A "Pit" full of treasure!

Now this was just a fun dig all the way around. Although it was 90 degrees and the humidity was crazy high, Don and I made our way to the bottom and all the way to our treasure :icon_pirat:

Started out early in the morning to try and beat the heat :icon_sunny:, made it thru the first pit with nothing to show except what it looks like to be in an actual privy. The ash line was very clear to see. The only thing we found was leftover coal and ash. >:( Oh well, we move on and hope for something better :thumbsup:

Onto the the next pit and on a totally different property on the other side of town. We found a pit in this yard within a minute or two after arriving. About 50 feet from the back door. Typical for inner city pits. So we started out by digging up all the overburden, rocks, bricks and pieces of sidewalk cement. And then below that the bottles started popping like spring mushrooms :headbang:

Don came up with a nice blob beer and then I found the Warners Safe Cure. We continued with several other patent medicines, and some small creamers. So we ended up with several good keepers. We were exhausted and in need of a gallon of water. :o

Along with the pictures of these most recent digs I added a few that we had dug on the same property but just now got around to cleaning them up. I think the cool find was the tangled mess of wire which had 5 insulators still attached. I really don't know much about insulators but I thought these were crude and archaic with no threads. Just a neat color that catches the eye. The green Stafford Ink was also a nice color. So we were blessed with another batch of old bottles and other goodies. Can't wait to get back out and get some more ;D Be safe out there and be sure to take water with ya, it's freaking hot out there :tongue3: :thumbsup: I hope ya don't get sick of all these pictures :laughing9: jgas
 

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Upvote 0
Re: A "Pit" full of treasure!

Hey Nolan, none of the pics have the probes we use in them. Those were shovels. But we use 6 foot and 5 foor spring steel probes. Some of the spots are obvious as you say, but I find the older ones to be very hidden. No dip in the ground. They also have less glass in them usually. Once you get the feel of the dirt, the strata, the coal, or the wood ash then you can pretty much pinpoint what age the pit will be before digging. Again, this is most of the time. I like to get fooled every now and again :tongue3:
On our next dig I will snap some shots of the probes and maybe the tips that capture the soil. Sometimes its merely a grain or two of soil that determines whether to open the hole or not. Nothing is better than feeling several layers, clay or sand caps and very little coal ash and finally the telltale "use layer" at around 5 feet. It's game on then!! Thanks for the replies. :thumbsup: jgas

ps. start your search around 50 feet or so directly from the back door of the home if it is still standing. Hope you find a nice privy to excavate!
 

Re: A "Pit" full of treasure!

I love Pit/Privy diggin'.....nothing else like it! Congrats on all the great time capsule finds! :icon_thumleft: :wink:
 

Re: A "Pit" full of treasure!

I can tell you that your insulators are early threadless types, and that last I knew threadless were worth some money! I haven't really collected them in years, so things may have changed, but I doubt it. I do know that I've only found one, and it was cracked and a different type than yours. Are there any markings on them at all?
 

Re: A "Pit" full of treasure!

The two Hoosier's score big again! Nice jackpot guys. :occasion14: :hello2:
That small syrup bottle is by far my favorite. :thumbsup:
A few questions:
1) I see you find a lot of bottles from South Bend. Any from LaPorte ever pop up? :icon_scratch:
2) How in the heck do you guys get permission so easily to dig a huge hole in someones yard? Some folks freak over small plugs being dug in their yards. :laughing9:

Another outstanding post! :notworthy:
-Doug-
(The other Hoosier)
 

Re: A "Pit" full of treasure!

Hey guys thanks again for the replies. Yep these insulators are threadless type with absolutely no markings on any one of them. Really crudely made though. Thanks to Diggummup for getting me the info on them as well as all the other responses on the Bottles Thread.

Hey Doug, in fact we have unearthed a Canfields Pharmacy bottle from Laporte. That was in this particular dig. Every now and again we get a Laporte bottle. How about a Jacob Spahn hutch soda from Laporte. I found that this year as well. As far as digging huge holes in peoples yards. We just sneak on under the cover of light and leave the holes open :tongue3:

Ha...Not really. We get permission from the homeowners first and foremost. Most properties are vacant or under reconstruction/ redevelopment. It is fortunate that I work for the city and I know some people in the city offices that help secure permission. Now I will show them what we do with pictures and offer them some of the finds. But most people just say fill in the hole and have fun. Some people actually like what we do by saving history. Most are just dumbfounded by why we would do such crazy stuff. I am just glad that there are not a gaggle of us digging up the entire city. The less the better ;D Its tough work sometimes and maybe that deters some folks from getting down and dirty :tongue3: Until next time my friend, happy hunting in the heat and humidity! jgas
 

Re: A "Pit" full of treasure!

AWESOME! I love old bottles... gota say I have always wanted to do a privy dig or even the other pit digs.... VERY KOOL!
 

Re: A "Pit" full of treasure!

jgas said:
Hey Doug, in fact we have unearthed a Canfields Pharmacy bottle from Laporte. That was in this particular dig. Every now and again we get a Laporte bottle. How about a Jacob Spahn hutch soda from Laporte. I found that this year as well. As far as digging huge holes in peoples yards. We just sneak on under the cover of light and leave the holes open :tongue3:

Ha...Not really. We get permission from the homeowners first and foremost. Most properties are vacant or under reconstruction/ redevelopment. It is fortunate that I work for the city and I know some people in the city offices that help secure permission. Now I will show them what we do with pictures and offer them some of the finds. But most people just say fill in the hole and have fun. Some people actually like what we do by saving history. Most are just dumbfounded by why we would do such crazy stuff. I am just glad that there are not a gaggle of us digging up the entire city. The less the better ;D Its tough work sometimes and maybe that deters some folks from getting down and dirty :tongue3: Until next time my friend, happy hunting in the heat and humidity! jgas

Very cool what you guys do. Hopefully I can learn a few things from you when I come back at the end of July. I have one of those privy probes too but haven't put it to good use yet.
Do you ever use Sanborn maps to locate the privys?
I find what you guys do fascinating. :thumbsup:
Keep up the great posts,
Doug
 

Re: A "Pit" full of treasure!

I knew it was gonna be a fun post when I saw the poster :icon_thumleft: Very nice! those insulators are just too cool, and 'ugh' extract of beef?!?'

enjoyed all the pictures!
 

Re: A "Pit" full of treasure!

Super finds! Can't wait to dig ay my Dads 1874 brick home! Could use a helping hand though, never dug a privy before. My house is a mid 1800's also but don't know where privy was. :icon_thumleft:
 

Re: A "Pit" full of treasure!

jgas that lil Canada maple syrup has me all worked up, nice unusual piece, fancy, mini to boot. Keep at it, something big is gonna pop.
 

Re: A "Pit" full of treasure!

What you have there are early smoothcore olive green id1080 insulators. depending on which they were used for telegraph or other will tell the age. If the wire you found on them is silver core inside copper it's telegraph if not it's other. but to be frank it really doesn't matter because both are rare and valuable. extremely valuable if found in other collors such as blue or black. The blue especially. verry good finds!!! P.S. Do not store these insulators on a shelf. Wrap them up in packing and store them. It has been my experience with insulator such as these that they are verry brittle and chip easily. Chips and blimishes effect price a lot.
 

Re: A "Pit" full of treasure!

:thumbsup:
 

Re: A "Pit" full of treasure!

Hey Capt. Caveman thanks for that info on the insulators. They are nice pieces thats for sure. I just love how crudely made they are. I will wrap them up, most likely get them on ebay or something since I don't really collect these. But they would be a great start to a collection. Sounds like they may be one of the better finds of the day. :thumbsup:

And as far as the pits go in your 1800's houses/yard. Get yourselves some probes and start searching around. I would be all over a house dated mid 1800's. Thanks for the replies guys, really appreciate all the comments ;D jgas
 

Re: A "Pit" full of treasure!

This was a fantastic post for me to read. Keep digging, and keep posting. I've gotta have something to get me through this awful heat here.

Congratulations,


Buckles
 

Re: A "Pit" full of treasure!

Very nice Bottles and other finds :o .... congrats! is a great post. :thumbsup:
H
 

Re: A "Pit" full of treasure!

great thread jgas. thanks for the info and good luck to you!
locating some of the more difficult ones seems to be an artform.
very impressive my friend!
 

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