Mystery stone wall in the middle of the woods.

[USMC18]

Hey everybody, I need your help figuring out what this stone wall was for. I love to go exploring and walking in the woods, so my dad told me a story of how him and a couple of friends went hiking in the woods and found this stone wall. These woods are behind a Cemetery that is Supposedly very haunted and is know around my area very well. Inside the woods is a fairly steep hill with many piles of stones laying around (possibly Cairn Markers from the Native Americans). The wall is right at the top of this hill, maybe a quarter mile from the Cemetery. The area around it is pretty open compared to the rest of the woods, which is thick with trees and shrubs. The stones that make up the wall look like they were cut with some type of tool or machine because they have perfect square sides. It doesn't look like these stones were just pulled out of the ground. My dad told me that when he found the wall, it was more intact. It looks to me like it had fallen over since the last time my dad seen it, which was around 15 years ago. By the way, this Cemetery is in the middle of a New York State Forest. The area goes back to about 1798 and was founded by the Quakers. The main source of business came from Lumbering, so there were a lot of sawmills in the area. The only explanation I can think of is that there were farmers in the area that were clearing land for farming. Maybe they dug these rocks up and stacked them. But these rocks have square sides. Then again it might have something to do with the Cemetery. Who would want to do this in the middle of the woods? I have no clue. Anybody have any ideas? (These pictures were taken in the fall.)

 

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[yaxthri]

Nice place to be walking and hunting around. Wish I was there right now !

 

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[USMC18]

Thank you everybody for commenting. There sure is a lot of ideas for what this could be.

 

[USMC18]

Is it actually a stone wall or a stack or pile of block stones that could have been placed as a survey marker or claim monument.

I guess it could be more of a stack than a wall. But the picture doesn't really do it justice, it is a pretty large group of stones.

 

[Sheperdess]

I would look for the oldest - old-timer in the area and maybe he or she would know. It may give them a chance to think back when they were young and you may learn a lot more than what a few old strategically place rocks are. The experience would be awesome for you!

 

[Dr. Syn]

If you really want to dig into it, a couple of things to check out. Look for online county/city/town maps, often they list the homes/owners.
Also look for online aerial mapping services, I have a place in PA, and the "Penn Pilot" site has aerial maps going way back into the 30's and such.
I found my family's original home site with one of their photos.

I just checked, it looks like they have parts of New York covered also. Type in your location and time frame and see what it shows.
Penn Pilot Photo Centers

p.s. I use such resources to also track down treasure stories. Last tale had the location off by only 75 miles (and 2 counties) from where it actually was. Made it a lot easier to locate once I knew where to look.

 

[wstgo]

I guess back in those days everything was in the middle of the woods.... obviously someone put a lot of work into building this. The fact that it is on top of a hill I wonder if it was used for signaling. Light a fire on top and it can be seen for miles.

 

[lisfisher]

I'm guessing it's defenetely not just a typical northeast farmers wall, the stonework and corners are too uniform. I'd say it's the remains of an old chimney. Also, by the looks of the squareness of those cornerstones I'd say that stone may have been quarried somewhere and brought in. Not very common to find perfect cornerstones like that sitting in the middle of the woods. Stone like that would fetch about 300 to 400 a pallet here in CT, if not more. Look for a slight small road width impression from any point at the stone pile, leading away from it. Other clues to where the road was is a slight variation in tree size or lack of trees altogether.

 

[USMC18]

Awesome website thank you very much! It shows my area pretty good. I did see a logging road that goes up to where the stones are so that's pretty cool. I also seen the homes of many places i metal detected before that are now cellar holes.

 

[USMC18]

Here is a 1939 view of the area compared to 2014 to give you an idea.

 

[finderskeepers]

my 2¢...waaaaay too much effort involved for this to be just a "stone wall". The quarrying, lugging, and precision stacking...I agree with those who suggest some sort of foundation or remnant of a structure. My hunch is possibly tied to some CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) activity in the area. The 1930's were filled with literal armies of these workers doing improvement projects all over the country. The somewhat modern look of the work, the size/age of the trees in the "cleared" area, the fact that it's a state forest and the history of logging...I wouldn't rule it out.

 

[gldnbrew]

Here is a 1939 view of the area compared to 2014 to give you an idea.
View attachment 1092771View attachment 1092772

Go here and check the older topo's

NETR Online ? Historic Aerials

Helped me find an old church that disappeared off the maps in the 20's

 

[USMC18]

Go here and check the older topo's

NETR Online ? Historic Aerials

Helped me find an old church that disappeared off the maps in the 20's

It doesn't cover my area, but thanks anyways.

 

[gldnbrew]

It doesn't cover my area, but thanks anyways.

You are right, that's a bummer. That the first one I have encountered that did not go back into the 1800's.

 

[gldnbrew]

There are two 1881 maps here.

Historic Atlas: Chautauqua County 1881 New York - Historic Map Works

Here is an 1854 map

1854 Wall Map of Chautauqua County, NY

Good luck

 

[Sandancer]

Depending on how much stone there is there may indicate an old family plot, part of the cemetery. Could be a above ground marker or vault type grave marker. Some folks back in the old days had a fear of being buried where lower areas were, not wanting to end up in the ground where there was thawing snow or summer rainfall.This of course is just an educated guess. It depends on what you see there, as we are not actually there.....If I were, I would have already searched it.

I'm with you on this. Likely a marker for a family plot. Looks like the middle of the woods now, but back then probably a clearing. Watch out for them old bones!

 

[USMC18]

There are two 1881 maps here.

Historic Atlas: Chautauqua County 1881 New York - Historic Map Works

Here is an 1854 map

1854 Wall Map of Chautauqua County, NY

Good luck

I actually use these two websites all the time. This is how I find all my house sites.