Phase II and Phase III Archaeological Database and Inventory
18BA409 Historic Site #1
Diagnostic Artifact Data
Features
Summary
Historic Site #1 (18BA409), also known as the Hoff Site or Dorsey Site, is a multicomponent site with a Middle Woodland camp occupation and a late 18th to early 19th century occupation. It is located within the Red Run drainage, just west of Owings Mills in Baltimore County, Maryland. The site soil is classified as Glenelg Loam, 3-8% slopes, moderately eroded. This is a deep and well-drained soil good for farming.
Site 18BA409 was identified during a Phase I cultural resources survey that was undertaken in 1991 for the proposed 5.15 km-long (3.2 mile) Red Run Boulevard. The primary goal of the Phase I research was to identify recorded and new sites within the project area and to evaluate the potential for each to be nominated to the National Register of Historic Places. The Phase I survey also included an evaluation of historic standing structures within the project area but this had no relevance to Site 18BA409. The study corridor width varied but measured about 18.28 meters (60 ft). The center line for the alignment had been previously surveyed and staked at 15 meter (50 ft) intervals. The alignment roughly parallels the Red Run stream channel and crosses several of its tributaries. The alignment also crosses several roads. A review of maps did not indicate the presence of any structures along the road corridor.
Archival research was conducted as part of the archeological testing program. Land patent records showed that the site was located within the region originally known as the Upper Patapsco Hundred. In 1733, the Hundred was subdivided in to several large tracts. Between 1747 and 1781 four large tracts of land were acquired by Samuel Owings (d. 1775) and his son Thomas. Then in 1795, Thomas Owings conveyed the four properties as a single parcel of land to Thomas B. Dorsey. The Dorsey Farm remained intact until 1859 when it was broken up into several different tracts. Site 18BA409 was specifically associated with the 17 hectare (42 acre) tract that Thomas Owings purchased in 1781 and with the period of occupation by Thomas B. Dorsey which began in 1795 and ended before 1820. At the time of Dorsey’s death in 1827, the property was abandoned, marginally occupied by tenants, or used for activities other than domestic occupation. The property exchanged hands until in 1866 it was purchased by Henry Hoff. Hoff’s residence was located on a different part of the property and was not associated with the earlier domestic component identified at the site. Following Hoff’s death in 1893, the property changed hands several times. In the 1970s, 6.47 hectares (16+ acres) inclusive of Site 18BA409 were sold to Mr. and Mrs. James V. Valenti and the OAO Corporation. In the 1980s, that parcel was consolidated with another parcel as the Daniel Mills Venture property.
Subsurface testing conducted in 1991 included the excavation of shovel test pits (STPs) along the previously surveyed and staked line. At each testing interval, 2 STPs were dug, one on each side of the staked center line. Tests were staggered left and right from the center line at alternating intervals of 10 meters and 15 meters. A series of STPs were excavated in addition to a single 0.61x2.4 meter (2x8 ft) test unit. The site consisted of a surface and subsurface scatter of historic artifacts. A depression was noted near the center of the scatter. A brick fragment pattern appeared to extend out from the depression. The depression was interpreted to be a possible cellar hole from a house. However, further investigation of the feature through the test unit excavation revealed it to be natural, and not cultural, in origin. The investigators also noted that a rutted earthen road bisected the eastern part of the site in a north-south direction.
A total of 71 artifacts were collected during the 1991 Phase I survey. Architectural material included 8 brick fragments, 8 pieces of window glass, and 2 cut nails. Kitchen-related materials included 30 bottle glass fragments and 22 ceramic sherds (6 red earthenware, 14 white earthenware(recorded as whiteware in the table above), 2 vitreous earthenware). The only miscellaneous item was 1 charred wood fragment.
After the initial site testing in 1991, it was suggested that the site lacked sufficient data and integrity for listing to the National Register of Historic Places. No features were evident at the site and only a small quantity of tightly dated artifacts was recovered. This led the investigator to conclude that the site contains no important research potential.
Then in 1995, additional Phase I and II investigations were undertaken along the length of the proposed Red Run Boulevard. A look at the maps from the earlier Phase I study and from this Phase I/II study suggest that the proposed alignment was shifted between 1991and 1995 necessitated further investigations of the area of potential effect. The investigations included a Phase I survey of all the undisturbed portions of the 36.58 meter (120 ft) wide corridor and a Phase II investigation at 18BA409. The survey area was divided into several segments. Site 18BA409 was located in Survey Segment 5. Specific goals of the Phase II research at the Hoff site were to identify the boundaries of the site, identify likely activity areas located within those boundaries, determine if the resource maintains any stratigraphic integrity, make an assessment of the research potential of the site, and present recommendations for Phase III evaluation as needed. Field methods included surface examination of 100% of the site area, the excavation of 61 STPs at 10 and 20 meter intervals with judgmentals dug at 5 and 10 meter intervals, and the excavation of seven 1.524 m² (5 ft²) test units in areas with artifact concentrations and/or features, as well as in the more marginal portions of the site. During the 1995 Phase I shovel testing, 15 STPs produced 33 historic artifacts, many of which dated to the late 18th century, and 4 STPs produced 9 prehistoric artifacts. The mix of materials in conjunction, with the tight clustering of artifacts, led the investigators to suggest the presence of a domestic site with good integrity.
The Phase II evaluation of the Hoff Site resulted in the horizontal exposure of 24.6 m² (265 ft²) of the site. Several features were also identified. Excavation in Test Unit 1 revealed a small trash pit or midden. The midden, identified as Stratum II, cut through Stratum I and into the underlying substrate (Stratum III). The pit yielded a number of materials diagnostic of the mid-late 18th century. The northwest and southwest corners of a stone foundation were encountered in Test Units 2, 3, and 4. The northeast and southeast corners and a stone footer for an exterior chimney were identified during probing on the north side of the structure, which were further exposed by raking off a thin humus layer from around the foundation. The stone walls were approximately 0.609 meters (2 ft) wide and it was postulated that the structure represented by the ruins would have measured about 6.096 long by 5.486 meters wide (20x18 ft). Artifacts found in association with the stone foundation included mid-18th to mid-19th century ceramics, bottle glass, and nails. The trace of a 3.048 meter-wide sunken road, oriented in a north-south direction, was encountered just to the east of the stone foundation. The road had visible traces of wagon wheel ruts. A large oval to sub-rectangular shaped depression was located southeast of, and adjacent to, Test Unit 6. Excavations from the test unit recovered 18th century materials although no diagnostics were found in direct association with the depression feature itself. The depression may be of relatively recent age or it may represent the remains of a partial basement or cellar originally situated under an outbuilding. Test Units 5 and 7 yielded a mix of 18th century and more modern material but revealed no features.
An assessment of the artifact distribution indicated that historic artifacts recovered from the A-horizon/plowzone were clustered near the west-central portion of the site. A few positive STPs were also identified in the peripheral east-central and north portions of the site. The distributions of 18th century ceramics and bottle glass were also patterned. Disposal appeared to primarily cluster to the east and south of the stone foundation. Faunal material was primarily collected from the area north of the stone foundation, indicating this would have been the back or side yard of the structure during the time it was inhabited. Two clusters of architectural materials were also identified, one around the stone foundation and the second just northwest of the depression identified in Test Unit 6. These clusters suggested 2 structures, one a residence represented by the stone foundation and the other possibly an outbuilding located either on top of the depression or just northwest of it.
Prehistoric artifacts tended to cluster near the center of the site and in the southwest portion of the area identified as the core of the site, which measured roughly 697 m² (7,500 ft²). Along with several pieces of debitage, a Fox Creek point was found which dates to the Middle Woodland period. The prehistoric assemblage was interpreted to reflect a small hunting camp. It exhibited a narrow range of activities, such as the procurement and processing of foodstuffs and possibly the manufacture and maintenance of tools from locally procured materials.
In all, 819 historic artifacts and 27 prehistoric artifacts were collected as a result of the 1995 Phase II investigations. The investigators suggested that Stratum I represented a historic plowzone level that post-dated abandonment of the site. Stratum III likely represented an undisturbed substrate that had characteristics of an A-horizon. The identification of a feature (the trash pit or midden) at the interface of Stratum I/III, combined with the recovery of large artifacts from the feature, all suggested that this was an undisturbed horizon underlying a 19th century plowzone.
A total of 852 historic artifacts were collected during the 1995 Phase I/II study at 18BA409. The 3 activity-related items were fragments of lamp/chimney glass. There were 492 architectural artifacts in the assemblage. More than half of the material was comprised of 298 brick fragments. There were also 11 wrought nails, 3 rosehead nails, 28 fragments of window glass, 150 pieces of other flat glass, 1 fragment of mortar, and 1 metal washer in the architectural group. The kitchen group of artifacts consisted of 216 fragments of bottle glass, 110 ceramic sherds (40 white earthenware (recorded as whiteware in the table above), 1 buff-bodied earthenware, 3 unidentified earthenware, 9 creamware, 10 pearlware, 3 porcelain, 13 gray salt-glazed stoneware, 3 white salt-glazed stoneware, 20 glazed redware, and 2 unidentified sherds), 1 tin can lid, 5 animal bone fragments, and 1 shell fragment. The remaining historic artifacts (n=24) from the site fell into the miscellaneous group. There were 18 pieces of unidentified glass, 3 unidentifiable iron objects, 2 pieces of slate, and 1 piece of coal.
A total of 36 prehistoric artifacts were collected during the 1995 Phase I/II study at 18BA409. This included 32 pieces of debitage (5 quartz, 23 rhyolite, 1 chert, 1 quartzite, 2 argillite), 1 rhyolite preform, 2 bifaces (1 quartz, 1 rhyolite), and 1 Fox Creek point assigned to the Middle Woodland period.
Data Recovery was conducted at 18BA409 during June and July of 1996, again in association with the planned construction for Red Run Boulevard. Phase III work began with the re-establishment of the Phase II excavation grid over the site area, as well as the establishment of elevation stakes to indure vertical control over the excavation. Site preparation entailed the removal of small underbrush, leaves and dead tree limbs from the excavation area. Phase II STPs and hand-excavated units were then mapped onto the Phase III base map.
Prior to the initiation of unit excavation, pint-sized samples of soil from the interface of the A and B horizons were obtained. The soil chemistry samples were hand-excavated with shovels at 3.05 m (10 ft) intervals across 1161.29 m2 (12,500 ft2) of the entire site. One hundred and forty-two soil samples were recovered from the A/B Horizon interface. The samples were tested for the presence of potassium, phosphorous, magnesium, and calcium, and a pH reading. The data was then used to guide the placement of many judgmental units and subsequent machine-stripping of areas of the site. Exploratory probing was also used prior to formal excavation. A metal probe was inserted about 45.72 cm (18 in) into the soil at 61 cm (2 ft) intervals across a 30.5 by 12.2 m (100 by 40 ft) area on the west side of a historic road in order to explore an area which contained a heavy rock concentration. All positive indicators of rock were marked on an overlay map of the core area. A separate symbol was used to denote areas where very soft spots occurred. Bulk soil samples (18.9 liters/5 gallons) were retained for flotation purposes from 20% of the hand-dug excavation units. On and off-site soil samples were taken for control purposes. Soil samples for chemical analysis were taken from certain features if it was determined that the data might aid in defining site layout and composition.
Rainy weather was a constraint during the excavation. Heavy downpours caused some site deterioration, and made bailing water from the bottom of features or units a necessity before excavation could proceed. Site vandalism was also a problem over the weekends, when the site was unattended. Although efforts were made to cover up or disguise any excavation visible from a nearby road, some unauthorized digging in a large depressed area occurred, but apparently ceased when only rocks and bricks (rather than bottles) were uncovered. The damage accruing from natural causes and pothunting was relatively minor.
The basic unit of provenience used during the Phase III excavations was 1.524 X 1.524 m (5 X 5 ft) units, designated by the coordinate in the northwest corner. Due to the topography across the site and the presence of large trees, some units varied slightly from this size. Excavation was performed by following natural strata of deposition into “culturally sterile” substrates. All hand-excavated soil matrices were removed by hand-excavation with shovels and trowels. All soil matrices were screened through hardware cloth to ensure standardized artifact recovery and comparable data sets. All individual units were excavated by natural strata.
Unit recordation procedures included field notes, profile drawings, and photodocumentation. Plan views were drawn as appropriate, particularly if features were found in either the A Horizon or at the A/B interface.
The first six units to be excavated were located on the east side of the historic road. These were followed by ten units situated west of the road. A random sampling strategy was used for the placement of these 16 units. Additional units were then judgmentally placed based on data obtained from chemical analysis and combined Phase II/III artifactual information and feature identification. The 100 judgmentally-placed excavation units of the Phase III study (which included 7 re-opened units from the Phase II work), along with the randomly placed units, resulted in a total sampling of 116 formal test units. In addition, five shovel test pits were dug to determine the presence or absence of architectural debris along the southwest portion of the “core” area of the site, near the intact structural foundation (designated Feature 1).
Features were completely exposed and recorded in plan prior to excavation. They were then cross-sectioned, and, in most cases, the south half of each feature was removed while the north wall profile was exposed for recordation. Flotation and chemical soil samples were taken from the north half of each feature while observing the internal stratification, if any. Features were also exposed by the machine stripping of A Horizon soil from within both portions of the “core area” of the site and from “peripheral areas”, based on the results of unit excavation and soil chemistry.
A total of 37 in situ features were found across the site during the Phase III excavations, including at least one structure. Two of these features were exposed and sampled during Phase II work, but were fully excavated during Phase III. The resulting artifactual and stratigraphic data from these two features was integrated with the Phase III data for the final report. The features investigated can be divided into two main activity areas, divided by an historic roadbed. “Area A” (the westernmost part of the site) contained the in situ foundation walls of a primary structure (Feature 1), as well as eight other cultural features related to, or in close proximity to the structure. Among the eight related features were a brick chimney pier, 3 postholes, a 4th posthole and mold, and architectural rubble concentrations. Area B, on the east side of the old road, was interpreted to be an activity area containing a 5.2 X 7 m (17 X 23 ft) oval depression in the ground. A remnant of a structural wall was found running parallel to the historic road bed. Sixteen features were found within, or adjacent to, the depression (mostly amorphous stains and middens alogn with a few postmolds). The features included one prehistoric hearth remnant on the southwest corner of the depression. An additional six features, including numerous historic middens, were located within Area B between the road and the depression. In addition to Area A and Area B, there was the historic road itself, a related rock concentration, and a large stone road marker identified off-site. This stone marker showed a relation between 18BA409 and the transportation context of Old Reisterstown Turnpike, which one ran in a north-south direction through the area.
The assemblage produced during data recovery included 15,101 historic artifacts and 183 prehistoric artifacts. The historic assemblage consisted of 17 activity items, 10,265 architectural artifacts, 20 clothing items, 3,807 kitchen-related artifacts, 418 personal objects (medicinal and ointment containers and a man’s straight razor), 37 tobacco-related artifacts (4 tobacco pipe fragments and snuff bottles), and 8 arms objects (19th/20th century rifle and shotgun shells). Activity items were an earthenware marble, 4 coins (thought to be related to tollhouse activities), 2 writing slates, 8 slate pencil fragments, and 2 horseshoes. The architectural assemblage included 5,451 brick fragments, 175 nails, 4,562 small pieces of window glass, a wrought iron hinge, and some other miscellaneous items (glazier’s lead and daub fragments). The clothing artifacts were 8 buttons, fragments of a woman’s shoe buckle, and fragments of a man’s stock or knee buckle. The kitchen-related assemblage included 1,367 ceramic sherds (7 Jackfield, 88 tin-glazed earthenware, 463 creamware, 105 pearlware, 61 porcelain, 349 redware, 27 white salt-glazed stoneware, 259 miscellaneous stoneware, 8 unidentified ceramics), 2,263 glass fragments, a table knife, 22 faunal remains (17 animal bone fragments and 5 pieces of shell), and 154 other kitchen related items.
The artifact data recovered during Phase III work indicates a somewhat anomalous assemblage in terms of domestic and/or residential use and does not support the use of the site as a full-time residence or farmstead. Items missing from the assemblage (and which would normally be present) include almost the full range of kitchen-related items associated with cooking and/or with the preparation and/or storage of agricultural commodities for purposes relating to subsistence and participation in a local and/or regional market system. Personal and activity items (when excluding medicinal or ointment containers) are also under-represented in the assemblage, and some items relating to the activities and arms group are not present at all. The low-frequency of kaolin tobacco pipe fragments is troubling, given that large quantities of alcoholic beverages appear to have been consumed on site. However, that absence is somewhat mitigated by the presence of several snuff bottles. The absence of gun parts, shot, and flints is also unusual on an historic site of this period. The absence of tools of any sort also tends to indicate that the site was not a working farmstead. Additional negative data pertains to the almost total absence of some types of gender-specific artifacts, particularly those relating to the presence on-site of a woman, as well as other items such as toys which would indicate the presence of children. Such materials would be expected if the site was occupied by a family. The only gender-specific artifacts which were recovered from the site include some buckle fragments for work boots/shoes, and the remains of a straight razor. Another anomalous finding pertains to the mix of vessels represented in the assemblage. There clearly are no “sets” of dishes represented, and almost all of the items are unique in terms of their representation within the assemblage. This may indicate that many of the ceramics may have been cast-offs or vessels which were brought to the site in a piecemeal fashion throughout the period of occupation and/or use.
The overall layout of the site clearly indicates that the site was oriented to the historic road which bisects it, and suggests that the structures and/or the functions undertaken therein may have been related directly to that road. There are at least two possible interpretations including the possibility that the site may have represented some sort of way station or inn/tavern, and/or the possibility that the site was in-fact a toll house directly associated with the historic road. The dates of occupation are fairly-well bracketed by the archeological assemblage. The mix of artifacts indicates an occupation which could potentially have encompassed the whole of the 18th century and the first quarter of the 19th century. However, the preponderance of the data suggests a much tighter period of occupation starting no earlier than ca. AD 1780 and ending no later than ca AD 1810. The items which predate the likely period of occupation are few, and most likely represent items which were curated, and were in fact, antique at the time of occupation. There is a slight offset in the mean ceramic dates obtained for the portions of the ceramic assemblage recovered from the east and west sides of the road. The ceramics recovered in association with the oval-shaped depression feature, and from the area between the depression and the road, are marginally earlier than those recovered to the west of the road. The difference in the dates is not statistically meaningful. However, when viewed in conjunction with the distributional data and the early and later patterns of disposal noted for the assemblage, it is not unreasonable to suggest that the area of the oval-shaped depression was at least in use prior to the area of the stone foundation, and may indicate the presence of an earlier structure. The architectural evidence for the structure located east of the road is very ephemeral and very little can be said about it except that it was there, it was not built on any sort of substantial foundation, and it probably was not there for long.
The stone structure located to the west of the historic road, although marginal in its own way, was considerably more permanent than the structure to the east of the road. Based on the foundation (which was relatively shallow and unmortared), and in conjunction with the nature and composition of the structural remains recovered in the course of the data recovery, it is possible to suggest several things about the original structure. The structure had an interior dimension of 4.6 X 4.6 m (15 X 15 ft) in extent. The entranceway was most likely located along the east façade fronting on the historic road, and there were probably windows on at least three sides including the rear façade and both of the gable ends of the structure. The primary source for heat in the structure is likely to have been a wattle and daub chimney which may have had a brick base and/or firebox, and was centered on the west façade. The structure is likely to have been of log construction with a shake roof, and given the shallow depth of the foundation, is unlikely to have been more than one to one and a half storeys high. The structure contained few interior and/or exterior features which would indicate the presence of a wooden floor or any interior partitions, and neither was there any evidence of a packed earth floor. The patterning observed in the distribution of the architectural materials near the foundation also indicates that, after the site was abandoned in the first decade of the 19th century, the structure may have been removed intact, put on carts or rollers (as was common practice at the time), and moved to another location. There are also clear indications that most of the original foundation stones were also removed, also probably to be re-used either at the new location of the structure or for some other construction project.
Generally speaking, the features and artifacts recovered from the Dorsey Site suggest a locus which was briefly occupied during the last two decades of the 18th century. The occupation layers were relatively shallow, and the features were poorly defined, suggesting that spatial utilization was unorganized and, although behavior may have been ongoing during the period of occupation, it was not repeated according to any consistent pattern. The absence of certain types of artifactual evidence such as vessels associated with the preparation and storage of food as well as the absence of faunal remains strongly suggests that the site was not occupied by a household or any other establishment where meals were regularly prepared and consumed. However, the presence of artifacts such as teaware, glassware, and bottles associated with the storage and consumption of various beverages suggests that the site may have served as a place of public accommodation. These characteristics of 18BA409 are compatible with the occupation of the premises as a toll house associated with the original Reisterstown Turnpike, ca. 1787-1800.
A minor prehistoric component on the site was evidenced by the presence of stone tools and a remnant hearth. A total of 183 prehistoric artifacts were recovered. They are cataloged here as flaked lithics, although some fire-cracked rock was also recovered. The prehistoric assemblage is not described in the body of the final site report. The artifacts recovered from the site indicate that specialized transient use of the area may have occurred as early as 3000 BC as evidenced by three Brewerton Eared points of rhyolite and quartz, on up into the Middle Woodland Period (ca. AD 200) as evidenced by the presence of Fox Creek points.
Based on the data recovery at 18BA409, the site primarily represents historic roadside commercial activities. It may represent the remains of two subsequent tollhouses associated with the Old Reisterstown Turnpike. The major use of the site area occurred during the fourth quarter of the 18th century and into the first decade of the 19th century. No evidence was found to indicate later use of the site. The exposure of 37 intact features speaks to the integrity of the site at the time of its mitigation. Construction of the road significantly impacted the site. Its primary research potential now lies in further examination of the extant assemblage and further exploration of the possible tollhouse function.
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