What the @#*! is this object 2 feet underground - cache? cremation urn? time capsule?

[OhioTrevor]

Last weekend I was metal detecting with a friend at a scout reservation established in the late 1940s. Near the traditional (main) camp fire circle, at the bottom of a grassy amphitheater-like hill where scouts would sit to watch skits, my little 6 inch coil detected a faint high tone signal. Almost half an hour later, I discovered a circular, round iron object 18 - 22 inches under ground. Thumping the top of it makes a hollow sound, as it it is made of sheet metal. Its definitely not solid or cast iron but its also not thin enough to disintegrate when I tapped it with my shovel. There is no sewer at the camp and we were far from any septic system. The fire circle is beside a creek. We had been very careful in excavating the dirt so as not to detract from the site - in fact, when I expanded the hole, I piled dirt onto a tarp. Since we were short of time and not knowing what it was, we decided to not be reckless and try to break through the top. When we did try to get hold of it or pry it up, we were unsuccessful. It definitely goes down a bit further than we dug. We marked the location, filled the hold back in and decided to do some research. I suppose it could be a manhole cover or cap of some kind (do you cap a well?) but it was nearly two feet underground and hollow sounding. Anyone have any ideas? I placed my Garrett carrot on top of the object for scale in the second photo.



I feel a bit (no, a lot) silly asking but should I bother to return and try to expand the hole a bit more to see what it is, or am I wasting my time? You can imagine where the imagination goes...

 

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[vhs07]

You'll never rest until you dig it up. Trust me.

 

[cudamark]

Well cap would be my guess.

 

[halo71]

Curiosity would kill me to leave it and not investigate more!

 

[1637]

i would give it some time and see what the guys on here come up with.

i left someone in the desert one time and i keep thinking about it.one day i just woke up and drove 2hrs to get it.
good luck brad

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

Ohio/PA is loaded with old gas or oil wells. Small ones from the 1920's & that era. Could be a capped well or a boiler for a steam pump. They just left the stuff behind.

 

[OhioTrevor]

vhs07, you are so right. Holding out hope that someone will say, "oh yeah, that a the cap on a drainage pipe and save me from blowing up a gas line or unleashing 2000 gallons a second of ground water.

 

[OhioTrevor]

1637, ha! That's hilarious.

 

[OhioTrevor]

Charlie P., Interesting idea. So basically, if I disturb it or uncap it, what happens next?

 

[xr7ator]

You'll release the hell hounds!

 

[No gold in NY]

Bring a cordless drill and do a test hole.

 

[ARC]

Bring a cordless drill and do a test hole.

Hope its not a natural gas seal.

 

[bradyboy]

i would get some water and wash off the cap
see what it says
could me a valve box that sits over a water valve for valve shut off purposses, generally buried 6 feet or so
if so, cover would be cast iron with the name casted to id lid
Brady

 

[Back-of-the-boat]

Maybe a time capsule a scout group buried.

 

[Madmox]

I’m going with buried 55 gallon drum

 

[Anduril]

Charlie P., Interesting idea. So basically, if I disturb it or uncap it, what happens next?

Well, if you're not careful.... your Garrett Carrot will fall in, never to be seen again!!
(At least, that would happen to me.)

 

[ArfieBoy]

Interesting. You will never know what it is until you dig it up! Any history of natural gas or oil well in that area? Good luck!

 

[digging440yrs]

Could be gold/silver coins under it------dig i say ----carefully

 

[invent4hir]

Before digging anymore, I'd look for old maps/aerial photographs of the area to see if they offer clues. If the county engineer's office doesn't have any, try the Ohio History Connection then the websites for historicaerials and historicmapworks. Check if the historical society in the area has any info on the scout camp. Also ask old timers if they remember the scout camp, and if so, describe what/where you found to see if they recall anything. Lots of ways to go, just depends on how much time you want to spend.

What you have found is much larger than any well cap I've detected.

 

[creskol]

Looks like ashes in the hole.. maybe a plug for an ash hole?