✅ SOLVED Iron T beam bracket

[OldQuest]

Dug up four of these iron chunks at the site of an 1850s sawmill, this is two of them after two weeks soaking in apple cider vinegar and a hose-off. They were all encrusted in gravel, but the one on the left cleaned up fairly well. None of the other hunks of iron I've found have been as gravel-encrusted as these, so perhaps they were part of the foundation.

 

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[ANTIQUARIAN]

It looks like there are remnants of nails coming through these pieces. My first thought was parts from a wagon frame.
You 'brackets' look as if they were designed to support pieces of wood in a frame.

I've dug a number of 19thc woollen and lumber mill sites here in Southern Ontario and it never ceases to amaze me what turns up.

Hope you get a more definitive answer to your question,
Dave

 

[OldQuest]

It looks like there are remnants of nails coming through these pieces. My first thought was parts from a wagon frame.
You 'brackets' look as if they were designed to support pieces of wood in a frame.

I've dug a number of 19thc woollen and lumber mill sites here in Southern Ontario and it never ceases to amaze me what turns up.

Hope you get a more definitive answer to your question,
Dave

Yes, there are four holes in the flange part, but not in the web section. Some of the other pieces also have spikes still in the holes.

The mill most likely used an up-and-down sash-style saw, similar to the ones shown here: Up-Down Saw Mill « Full Chisel Blog
Perhaps these pieces were part of the sash frame?

 

[Tony in SC]

They look like pieces of the track on the saw mill where the husker frame ran.

 

[firemanphob]

Looks like a piece of carriage track to me but not certain.

 

[OldQuest]

A track makes sense. Would these have been laid end-to-end with wheels running on them, or could they have served as guides for a sled?

 

[firemanphob]

the ones I have seen have wheels on the carriage that ride on the rails.

 

[OldQuest]

Thanks everyone for the replies, I think the carriage rail is very likely, good enough to mark this as SOLVED.