Phase II and Phase III Archaeological Database and Inventory
18BC32 H & S Bakery
Diagnostic Artifact Data
Features
Summary
The H & S Bakery Site (18BC32), also known as Block 1430, consists of buried early 19th century middens and privies, as well as other 19th-20th century rowhouse features in the Fells Point district of downtown Baltimore. The site was originally bounded by the H & S Bakery on the north, South Bond Street to the west, South Bethel Street to the east, and Aliceanna Street to the South. Today, the expanded H & S Bakery sits atop the site. Most of the area surrounding the site is heavily developed. Soils mapped for the area are classified as “Urban Land” meaning that 80% of the surface is covered either by buildings or by impervious surfaces such as asphalt or concrete.
The site lies in one of the oldest areas of the city. The Fells Point area has been inhabited since the early 18th century and was the primary port facility of Baltimore even prior to its official incorporation in the city in 1773. The early decades of the 19th century brought prosperity to the area with an upsurge in grain shipment as a local industry. As the 19th century progressed, however, shipping activities began to concentrate in other parts of the harbor and commercial and light industry began to establish facilities in Fells Point (particularly the canning industry). By the end of the 19th century industrial interest had declined and warehousing became dominant.
Site 18BC32 lies in the area of the very earliest development of Fells Point: Bond Street. The block developed during the late 18th century, but this was confined to structures facing the surrounding streets. Period maps continue to show large areas in the interior of the block undeveloped until the mid 19th century. An examination of mid 19th century city directories shows the local residents to include a wide variety of ethnic (mostly German) and occupational types. Occupations included sea captains and sailors, coopers, carters, sailmakers, ships carpenters, other maritime trades, shoe makers, cigar makers, grocers and butchers. By the end of the 19th century the block was fully developed with a variety of non-residential structures including the Seamens’ Bethel Chapel at the corner of South Bethel and Aliceanna, and a series of stables fronting on both South Bond and Aliceanna Streets. The residents of the area in the late 19th century were generally more transitory, mostly unskilled laborers and street vendors. The structural fabric of the block remained essentially unchanged from the 1890s until the demolition of the standing 19th and 20th century structures at the site in the 1970s and 1980s.
The only documented archeological work conducted at 18BC32 occurred in 1981 and 1982. At that time, the adjacent H & S Bakery was proposing to expand their facilities into the lot encompassing the site and required HUD approvals in order to proceed with demolitions and expansion of the bakery. This HUD request triggered Section 106 compliance and the need for an archeological survey. Survey work was carried out to delineate the nature and significance of any archeological remains located on the block proposed for development.
Site 18BC32 was tested by excavating 8 trenches across the site with a backhoe. This totaled roughly 152.4 linear meters (500 feet) of exposure. The trenches varied in width from 91-152 cm (3-5 ft) and in depth from 61 to 183 cm (2-6 ft). This allowed approximately 12% of the surface area of the building site to be exposed. Ten subsurface features and numerous structural remains (i.e. brick and stone foundations) were encountered.
Three pit/shaft features were encountered in Trench 1. Feature 1 was a shallow refuse pit. This was situated directly beneath the remains of a late 19th century Belgium block courtyard. It contained a large number of oyster shells, mammal and bird bones, and early 19th century ceramics. Feature 2 was an unlined shaft feature, probably a privy. The feature was capped by a 17.8 cm (7 in) layer of white sand which began 40.6 cm (16 in) below the site surface. Feature 2 was approximately 91 cm in diameter and extended to a greater depth. It contained a large quantity of bone, early 19th century ceramics, shell, cut nails, and glass. Feature 3 was another shallow pit containing brick and mortar fragments, mid 19th century ceramics, and bone. Also discovered in Trench 1 was an artifact-bearing layer of dark brown soil which extended over 12.2 m (40 ft) along the trench. This soil layer, which ranges from 30.5-50.8 cm (12-20 in) in depth, contained a large quantity of material, including ceramics related to the first half of the 19th century, glass, cut nails, bones, and shell. This deposit may be a sheet midden related to the occupation of the area. This midden would have been built up in the undeveloped areas of the block by the disposal of trash and other refuse in the backyards of the 19th century residents. A brick wall was noted by the excavators in the north wall of Trench 1. It did not appear to relate to the late 19th century structures known and may have related to an earlier structure at the site.
At the eastern-most end of Trench 2 a roughly circular pit was encountered. This pit, Feature 4, was filled with white stones of recent origin. Three wall foundations were also encountered in Trench 2. The eastern-most wall, near Feature 4, was made of brick. A metal pan, a chisel, bones, a bone handle, and a Listerine bottle were found in association with this wall. It appeared to correspond well with a late 19th century map showing the structures on-site. A mortared stone wall was found approximately 6.1 m (20 ft) to the west of the above mentioned brick wall and also appears to correspond to late 19th century representations of the site. West of the stone wall an area of brick rubble was encountered 1.22 m (4 ft) deep. At the base of the rubble layer, and next to the stone wall, a small test window 30.5 cm (1 ft) square was excavated by hand. This test window revealed several different layers of soil. The bottom-most (and thinnest) layer contained ceramics and bottle glass dating to the second quarter of the 19th century. This layer ends at the same depth as the bottom of the stone wall. The deposit may be reflective of and early dirt-floor basement or cellar. The 3rd wall in Trench 2 was of brick and corresponded to a mapped 19th century building. A portion of the possible sheet midden from Trench 1 was also found in Trench 2.
Two features, 5 and 6, and one stone wall were encountered in Trench 3. Feature 5 was an early 20the century pipe trench. Feature 6 was a deep pit feature containing early 19th century ceramics and window glass. At the southern end of Trench 3 the back wall and rubble-filled basement of the structure which once stood at 1606 Aliceanna Street was encountered.
At the northern end of Trench 4 a brick-lined shaft roughly 1.5 m (5 ft) square was found. The upper 91 cm (3 ft) of fill in this feature (Feature 7) contained ash. Beneath this ash layer was a brown clayey loam containing 19th century glass and ceramics, as well as items of bone, metal, and stone. At the southern end of Trench 4 the western wall of the structure that once stood at 1608 Aliceanna was encountered.
No cultural remains were encountered in Trench 5.
Features 8 and 9 were exposed in Trench 6. Feature 8 was a rectangular pit of ash and refuse lying beneath brick fill. The feature was approximately 3 meters (10 ft) long and contained artifacts from the first half of the 19th century. Feature 9 was a brick wall with a layer of highly organic soils to the south. The organic soil contained mid 19th century ceramics, glass, and oyster shell. It was thought to represent the remains of a disturbed privy.
Trench 7 exposed the remains of a brick wall and Feature 10. Feature 10 was a shallow ditch filled with broken brick and shell. It may have been the remnants of an old fence line.
Trench 8 exposed the back wall of the Seamens’ Bethel Chapel building.
No inventory of artifacts is provided in the extant site report for 18BC32. Site files do mention that over 25,000 items were recovered during the 1981-1982 excavations. These have been recorded in the tables above simply as miscellaneous objects.
Based on the findings from 1981 and 1982, full data recovery was recommended. This appears to have been cost prohibitive for the H & S Bakery. Site files suggest that they “refused” to fund additional work, but a deal was worked out whereby the expansion could be constructed on a concrete slab. This concrete slab effectively preserved 18 of the 22 features beneath the present H & S Bakery building. The presence of intact features and middens dating to various stages in the 19th century development of Baltimore suggests that the site is significant and retains research potential. It has been determined eligible for listing on the National Register.
|
