Letters from Lost TownsWinter 2009

News & Future Events

Saturday Public Lab DaysJanuary 24 & February 21,2009, 9 am - 2 pmIt’s too cold to dig, so come joinus in the lab instead! We willprocess artifacts, offer tours ofthe lab, and the library will beavailable for research. Space islimited, so be sure to RSVP bycalling the lab at 410-222-1318.

Ceramics WorkshopApril 4, 2009, 9 am - 3 pmLearn how to identify historicceramics in this intensive, hands-on workshop led by Jessie Grow.Call the lab at 410-222-1318 toreserve a spot at this event.

Mark your calendars for the2009 Public Dig Days:May 16, July 11, &September 12, 2009!9 am - 2 pm, London TownLost Towns archaeologists invitethe public to help screen soil andfind artifacts, take tours, and at-tend workshops. Call LondonTown at 410-222-1919 to reserveyour spot.

The Lost Towns Project Thanks our Partners and Supporters

As we wrapped up anotherexcavation season at theSamuel Chew mansion site,the discoveries were comingfast and quick. The last threetest units dug in Novemberwere all in search of thestructure’s chimney bases,and proved to be particularlyenlightening. Each were deepand proceeded very slowlydown to the cellar floor. While the unit placed nearest to the front door failed to find the chim-ney, it did produce ample evidence that the main entrance of the Chewmansion led to a room paved with 12” square slabs of black and whitemarble. Since the two colors occur in equal numbers, we assume that thisis the same kind of checkerboard stone floor seen at the Governor’s Palacein Williamsburg and at Rosewell near Gloucester, Virginia. We are stillresearching the two materials involved, but they may be what the colonistscalled “Portland Marble” and “Belgian Marble.” Both are actually lime-stones capable of taking a high polish. The final two test units led to the discovery of the long-sought chimneybase. The cellar hearth was paved with bricks, and showed extensive

More discoveries at the Chew mansion~ Al Luckenbach

A 12” square slab of marble from the site.

The iron ring in the cellar hearth.

Continued on page 2

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Thank You to all of our Sustaining Members!Special ContributorMarvin AndersonCharles and Pat BarlandLinda BoisseauWard BrockettRosemarie CallageRobert and Sally ChestonJohn ChewMr. and Mrs. Robert ChewRon and Melissa ChewNed and Betty CrandellBetty DeKeyserSusan DoddsJeremy DoverMr. and Mrs. Peter EdmondoHarry and Liliane FosterR. Christopher Goodwin and AssociatesWilliam and Norma GrovermannMr. and Mrs. Tommy GrowLillian HallMarjorie A. HeggeJean HicksNancy HuffAnn JensenMary Ann KaucherMechelle Kerns-NoceritoCaptain Byron LeeJames LighthizerRobert and Frances LylesPatrick and Vicki McCorkleDavid McKenna

Bradley McKitrickCamilla McRory and Bob BuglassPaul and Lisa MintzJames and Susan MorrisonWillard and Elaine MumfordLois NutwellJuliet PageEmily PeakeCarol PetersonMollie RidoutDonna Valley RussellJean RussoHerbert SappingtonKeith SchiszikHarold and Elizabeth SlankerEric and Janice SmithMr. and Mrs. Gordon SmithWilliam StorckWilliam StoreyMrs. R. Carmichael TilghmanJudith Van LunenHarold WestJames and Julie WillsonJohn WingRobert and Norma WordenCaroline Wugofski

FamilyElliot and Linda AnderkinThe Beer FamilyMaria Berken and FamilyThe Cleaver Family

Lynda DavisDee DavisonBill and Betty DotyBrad and Linda FerrierMichael and Jo Ann GidosEdward and Carol GrunwaldPhillip HazenHerbert and Janet HoffritzRichard and Marjorie JohnsonDarlene and Zohrab MarashlianJulie McCulloughCharles, Rose, and Melissa McElfishJames and Shirley McLefreshHerbert MorelandWilliam T. MurrayJoseph PeakeMr. and Mrs. David ReyBernard RosenbergSusan and Peter SavageJune SchiszikEthel StephanCharles and Michele WelchBetty Williams

IndividualFrances AblondiLouise AkersonDavid BalterNancy BauerNancy BrianiSandra Bryant

At the start of 2008, the Anne Arundel County Trust forPreservation (ACT) launched a new annual membership pro-gram to sustain the Project’s worthwhile programs in the face ofreduced funding. I am very pleased to report that this effort hasbeen a resounding success, as you can plainly see from the largeand growing list of supporters above. I hope you will consider renewing your sustaining member-ship for 2009, which will help us plan for the coming year. Justreturn the attached form with your contribution, which will bededicated to continuing the operations of the Lost Towns Projectteam, including our excavations at sites around the county andour exciting and popular programs and hands-on activities thatbenefit our local community in many ways. As a reminder, your support is tax deductible, as ACT is501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Again, thanks very much foryour continued friendship and support, and we hope to see yousoon, whether it be in the field or lab!

Membership Update~ John Kille

William V. ChappJeanette ChristmanEdward FeichtMary Kay GanningElizabeth C. GayPenny GoldsteinDiane HaberstichRuth HazenLinda HeadAlex LavishMargaret McRoryJane M. MillerMayor Ellen MoyerJames ParkerMichael ParkerFrances PetinoMichael QuinlanDale Russell RainsMr. and Mrs. Mark SchatzScott ShaneKay SpruellCheryl StanleyAnn TiffanyLaura TomitzPatricia Towle

StudentDavid BrownMr. and Mrs. Allison DivineySally GordonCynthia OlsenChristina Simmons

Continued from page 1

evidence of high heat. Ash and charcoalfrom the last domestic fire were still in place. An unusual feature was discovered onthe center of the hearth floor. An iron ringhad obviously been used to support somekind of kettle, which had been in place sincethe structure was first built. The bricks in-side this ring were not darkened by heat.Given its static nature, we assume that thispot or kettle was being used as part of thecellar laundry. It also should be noted that a number ofChew descendants visited the site this year.Many thanks to those of the family whomade contributions to support our ongoingresearch and excavation at the site. As soon as temperatures permit, we planto return to this amazing site. Most of thecrew are praying for global warming…

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The Leavy Neck excavations atProvidence in 2003 uncovered ashocking find: A body - in the base-ment. Who was this person - andwhat stories might he tell us? The tale of this 17th-centuryburial comes to life when “Writtenin Bone: Forensic Files of the 17th-Century Chesapeake” opens onFebruary 7, 2009 at theSmithsonian’s Natural History Mu-seum in Washington, D.C. The ex-hibit will highlight the burial foundright here in Anne Arundel Countyand will run for two years. Moreinformation on the exhibit can befound at www.anthropology.si.edu/writteninbone. The indentured servant uncer-emoniously buried in the circa 1660strash cellar tells a significant story -one of a nameless young man whocame to the New World but soonperished in the harsh environment.His bones are all that survive to tellhis story, as no written documenta-tion about his life has been preserved.This forensic perspective on theCounty’s early history emphasizeshow important the archaeological

“Written in Bone: Forensic Files of the17th-Century Chesapeake”

opens on February 7, 2009 at the Smithsonian~ Jane Cox

record is in gaining a better under-standing of our past. As this discovery is a key elementof the exhibit, the Smithsonian andtheir partners have given the boyfrom Leavy Neck the royal treat-ment. Included in the exhibit are fullfacial and body reconstructionswhich will anchor the Leavy Neckgallery. There is an associated web

comic “The Secret in the Cellar”which shares the discovery and in-vestigation process, which alsoserves as an educational web-basedtool. View the webcomic atwww.an thropo logy . s i . edu /writteninbone/comic/. See if youcan figure out which character isbased on Al! But wait, there’s more! The ex-hibit will be covered in other mediaas well - including an exhibit com-panion book, a second book gearedtowards children and young adultstitled “Written in Bone: Buried Livesof Jamestown and Colonial Mary-land,” by Sally Walker, as well as ashow on the History Channel.Later in 2009 the Smithsonian willhost a scholarly conference.

There’s even a YouTube clip that in-troduces the exhibit!w w w . y o u t u b e . c o m /watch?v=So6L3s1tc2E Make time in the coming monthsto take a day trip into D.C. so youcan see Anne Arundel County’s co-lonial history highlighted in one ofthe Nation’s premier museums!

Our third field season at Java came to a very pro-ductive end this fall. This season, we focused our at-tention on the circa 1671 post-in-ground structure thatwe can attribute to the Thomas Sparrow family. Theland that we now call “Java” was then known as“Sparrow’s Rest”. At present, we have uncovered at least one roomof the post-in-ground structure, with the hearth situ-ated at the end of the building. The room measures 16ft wide by about 20 ft long and is marked by an interior Continued on page 4

post - one of six large structural posts that we haveidentified thus far. This season, we also excavated fourfeatures both in and outside of the footprint of the house.We are still processing the artifacts and haven’t final-ized our conclusions, but it seems that one of the twofeatures located outside of the house was a trash pitrelating to cooking, as it was filled with faunal material,and the other pit may have been used for drainage or afence line. Inside the footprint of the house, we exca-

The full body reconstruction of the boyfrom Leavy Neck.

The Wonders of Java Continue~ Jessie Grow

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A tiny star-shaped object recovered from an early 18th-century pit atSparrow’s Rest (aka Java) is the subject of this issue’s Mystery Artifact.The artifact weighs less than a hundredth of an ounce and consists of ahalf inch long flat piece of iron with six apparently asymmetrical teeth. Itis possible that up to two further teeth have broken off the object. Itresembles the rowel of a rider’s spur but is far smaller than any exampleswith which I am familiar, and it lacks a central hole for attaching to thespur. A small gear is possible, but the teeth seem far too irregular for that.Perhaps it’s a throwing star discarded by an itinerant band of leprechaunninjas...we really don’t know. If you have any ideas, don’t heistate to contact the lab at (410)-222-1318.

In July and August of 2008, Jane Cox and I hadthe great opportunity to share stories of Anne ArundelCounty history from the perspective of our local wa-terways. With the generous help of a grant from theFour Rivers Heritage Area, we offered four guidedtours of Back Creek and Spa Creek, and the RhodeRiver. The tours were booked, with a waiting list! The biggest surprise, however, was that one of theparticipants in the kayak tours (and one of our dedi-cated volunteers), Rick Morin, nominated us for anaward given by the Four Rivers Heritage Area! Janeand I were presented with an Heritage Product Awardfor our “role in development and implementation ofthe innovative and collaborative ‘Paddle Through His-tory’ Kayak tours of Back Creek, Spa Creek, and theRhode River.” Many thanks for the support from theFour Rivers Heritage Area, the Annapolis MaritimeMuseum, Sarles Boatyard and Marina, theSmithsonian Environmental Research Center (SERC),the participants of the tours, and of course Rick! Thisaward is as much theirs as it is ours! For those of you who were unable to take theguided tour, there are packets available for self-guidedtours. The Annapolis Maritime Museum and SarlesBoatyard and Marina have guide packets for the BackCreek and Spa Creek tour, and SERC has packetsfor the Rhode River tour. Please contact them re-garding their hours and any applicable fees. Thanksagain to everyone who helped make these tours asuccess!

“Paddle Through History”Kayak Tours

wins Heritage Product Award!~Jessie Grow

Mystery Artifact~ Shawn Sharpe

vated two features. One feature may represent a sub-floor storage pit, and the other, located in front of thehearth, represents a cellar consisting of two subfloorpits, separated by a narrow strip of subsoil wall. Basedon the presence of intact wood in small postholesaligned with this subsoil strip, it is likely that the stripcorresponds with the location of a floor joist. Justabout all of the artifacts found in these features date tothe 17th and early 18th centuries, which correlate withthe early occupation of the Sparrows. In the course of our excavations, we have foundan amazing amount of iron slag, a by-product of smelt-ing iron. What is most interesting about the slag isthat it is concentrated in the plowzone layers, and doesnot appear in the features. It seems that ablacksmithing operation was going on sometime afterThomas Sparrow’s tenure on the land. Stephanie hassuggested that the blacksmithing operation may havebeen started to supply the nails and other metal neededto build the 1747 mansion.

Continued from page 3

The pits in front of the hearth, separated by a strip ofsubsoil that likely underlaid a floor joist.

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One of our most recent projectsis a multi-year study of the MiddleWoodland time period of prehistory,sponsored by a generous grant fromthe Maryland Historical Trust. TheMiddle Woodland period, whichspanned from ca. 400 B.C. to A.D.900 in the Mid-Atlantic region, rep-resents a very interesting time in theprehistoric past of Anne ArundelCounty. During this time, the Na-tive Americans in this areawere gradually settlingdown from the more tran-sient lifestyle that theyhad led for thousands ofyears. The populationwas growing, and theywere spending increasingamounts of the year inbase camps locatedmainly along the PatuxentRiver. Although peoplestill roamed across the re-gion hunting and foraging,some archaeologistsspeculate that at this pointin time, early horticulturewas beginning to supplement theirdiets. The artifacts recovered fromlater Middle Woodland sites in thearea show that sweeping regionalchanges were occurring during thistime. In the Early Woodland period,people tended to use local lithic ma-terials, like quartz and quartzite, andalso used a variety of tempers in theirpottery. Artifacts from the MiddleWoodland period show a distinct shiftin material culture. There was sud-denly a strong preference among thepopulation for rhyolite and other lithicmaterials that were not available lo-cally. Also, Native peoples rangingfrom modern-day New York tosouthern Virginia appear to havemade only a shell-tempered pottery,called Mockley. These changes in

Ongoing Research about the Middle Woodland~ Stephanie T. Sperling

the material culture demonstrate thatlocal people were traveling far dis-tances to interact with others, andtraded both goods and ideas. The first step in the MiddleWoodland project was to review theavailable literature relating to the pe-riod in order to understand what ar-chaeologists and researchers havelearned in the past. Some of the ear-liest books and articles were written

over 100 years ago, but most of thescholarly documents come from thepast 40 years. Last summer, I be-gan assembling a list of over 130sources and then annotated, or sum-marized, 45 of the most pertinentdocuments. I also wrote an exten-sive summary of the current state ofknowledge of the Middle Woodland.All of these materials are availableonline at the new Lost Towns Projectwebsite - which is under construc-tion - at www.losttownsproject.org.This summary document also con-tains a number of research questionsthat will guide us as we continue themulti-year project. We hope that re-searchers across the region will findthis a useful “one-stop shop” of in-formation about the Middle Wood-

land that can assist their ownprojects. Since completing the literaturereview in late November, we havebeen busy with the next step of theprocess, which is to visit every singleone of the 170 previously recordedMiddle Woodland sites in AnneArundel County. Their locations andlists of recovered artifacts have beenfiled with the State, but many of

them have never been vis-ited by a professional ar-chaeologist - or at least, notanytime recently. We wantto see how many of thesesites are still intact, andhow many have erodedaway or have fallen victimto the rapid pace of devel-opment. Marc Browne, arecent graduate from theAnthropology program atthe University of Mary-land, College Park, hasvolunteered many hours togather information vital toour site visits. Every week,

we tour the County, photograph thecurrent conditions of the sites anddig a few small shovel test pits tosee what is left below the groundsurface. Eventually, we’d like to ex-cavate one or two Middle Woodlandsites in order to gain more under-standing about this interesting timeperiod that occurred between 1,000and 2,000 years ago. As we conduct these sites visits,we are informing local residents aboutthe project. Everyone that we speakwith seems very excited to learnabout the rich prehistory of AnneArundel County. And don’t be sur-prised if a Lost Towns archaeologistcomes knocking on your door thisspring to tell you about the MiddleWoodland site on your property!

Jane examines a shell midden in an eroding shoreline.

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The “I-house”is perhaps the most common type of architectural style seen throughout AnneArundel County. It is also one of the most threatened, and is quickly disappearing from the land-scape. Many readers have likely passed by a number of these houses, and have not been aware oftheir significance. While some are still structurally sound and hold a sufficient level of historicintegrity, many are in various states of disrepair and are under threat of demolition. The defining characteristic of an “I-house” is its structural form. Typically, the form is twostories tall and one room deep (called “single-pile” in architectural terms). These houses often havea wing (ell) built perpendicular to the main block of the house, giving it an overall shape of an L or T.While some earlier Colonial examples were built of stone or brick, most are of wood frame construc-tion and sheathed in weatherboard. Variationscan be seen in their roofline; some have a simpleside-gable roof, and others have a cross-gableroof, which is commonly seen in Anne ArundelCounty. For the most part, these houses wouldbe considered “plain” in style, lacking the deco-rative embellishments that one would see on aGeorgian-style house, for example. There has been speculation over the originof the term “I-house”. Some architectural his-torians suggest that the term refers to thestructure’s tall and thin profile, while othersbelieve that it refers to the states where thisstyle grew rapidly: Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa.An “I-house” can date anywhere from the 18thto the early 20th century, although the major-ity of the “I-houses” that remain today in AnneArundel County were built ca. 1860-1900. This type of house was the most popularvernacular style house and standard dwellingfor farmers until the early years of the 20thcentury. The popularity of “I-houses” amongthe farming community explains why so manyof them can be found in southern Anne ArundelCounty today. Although development pres-sures have led to demolition of many of thesehouses in the northern part of the County, thenumber one cause for their shrinking numbers in the County is “demolition by neglect”. This is acommon term used in the historic preservation field and is defined as the process of allowing abuilding to deteriorate to the point where demolition is necessary to protect public health and safety. Many people outside of the historic preservation field do not see these relatively small farmhouses as being architecturally significant, particularly when compared to high-style mansions. Thus,these “I-houses” can be overlooked as a building type worthy of preservation. However, the historicpreservation movement embraces vernacular architecture. These were the homes of the commonpeople, of the working class who were the majority in this County during the popularity of the “I-house”. These buildings reflect the time in which they were built, the cultural landscape of post-bellum agricultural communities, and “speak” to the lives of the men and women who built and livedin these structures.

THE

ARCHITecture

column

The Vernacular “I-House”: A Vanishing Resource~ Darian Schwab

Note the architectural similarities and differencesbetween these two “I-houses” above.

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Al Luckenbach....Director/CountyArchaeologistJohn Kille ....Assistant DirectorJane Cox....Cultural ResourcesPlannerDarian Schwab....HistoricPreservation PlannerShawn Sharpe ....Field Director/Conservation SpecialistJessie Grow....Lab Manager/Education and VolunteerCoordinator/ArchaeologistLauren Schiszik....Archaeologist/Intern Coordinator/Newsletter EditorStephanie Sperling....Archaeologist

Part TimeTony Lindauer....HistorianCarolyn Gryczkowski....LabSpecialistSteve Tourville ....Archaeologist/LabSpecialistGabi Harris....AssistantArchitectural Historian

Lost Towns ProjectStaff

Harold West - better known as“Westy”- recently departed thislife at age 89. Westy was a long-time volunteer and supporter ofthe Lost Towns Project. He wasthe original discoverer of theProvidence Site of “Burle’s TownLand,” the home of Robert Burle.His friendship and enthusiasm willbe deeply missed.

In Memoriam

The 2008 ACT Awards ceremony held at the Wiley H. BatesHeritage Park in Annapolis on October 15 proved to be a truly memo-rable gathering. Those who attended this premiere event were treatedto a tour of the facility following the awards ceremony. ACT Chair-man Will Mumford presented the following awards: The Volunteer Award to Ward Brockett for his extraordinaryservice to Historic London Town and Gardens, exemplified by hisoutstanding leadership in the reconstruction of historic buildings, hisdedication to the Education and Horticultural Programs, and his un-wavering support of the London Town Foundation. The 28th Marjorie Murray Bridgman Award to Emily Peakefor her incredible contributions and willingness to share her exten-sive knowledge of the history of Annapolis and Anne Arundel County,including her important research and documentation on the historicSt. Anne’s cemetery. The Special Achievement Award to Tina Simmons for her sig-nificant contributions pertaining to the hundreds of cemeteries lo-cated in Anne Arundel County. She was honored for her ongoingresearch, recordation, and education involving these important cul-tural resources and her books published by the Anne Arundel Ge-nealogical Society, of which she is a long-time member. The 33rd Orlando Ridout Prize to the Wiley H. Bates HeritagePark, an adaptive reuse project, which converted the only high schoolfor African Americans in Anne Arundel County operating before in-tegration (1932-1966) into a multi-use complex. The school nowserves as an independent living facility for low-income seniors, asenior center, and a Boys and Girls Club. Congratulations to the awardees, and many thanks to those ofyou who attended this important event recognizing these achieve-ments in historic preservation!

ACT Hosts Another SuccessfulAwards Ceremony

~ John Kille

Many Thanks to theFriends and Relativesof Eugene Wugofski

and Harold West~ John Kille

We at the Lost Towns Project areextremely grateful for the memorial con-tributions made on behalf of two spe-cial people associated with the Project.Many generous gifts have been madein memory of Eugene Wugofski, latehusband of dedicated volunteer CarolineWugofski; and also in memory of long-time volunteer and supporter HaroldWest. These donations will help us con-tinue our vital programs, and we arepleased that in doing so, we honor bothGene and Westy.

ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED

Become a Sustaining Member of theLost Towns Project!

Name:_______________________________________________________________Address:______________________________________________________________City:________________________________ State:__________ Zip:____________

Daytime Phone:______________________ Evening Phone:___________________Email Address:________________________________________________________

Member Benefits:- 3 newsletters peryear- 20% off LostTowns gear andpublications- Free admission toour lecture series- Invitations tospecial events andtrips

Send this form and checks payable to “ACT/Lost Towns Membership” to:

Anne Arundel County Trust for Preservation(ACT) / P.O. Box 1573 / Annapolis, MD 21404

If you are not yet a sustaining member of the Lost Towns Project, please considerbecoming one, or give the gift of membership to a friend or loved one. Your tax-deductible contribution supports our public outreach and education programs, such asour “Public Dig Days”, our high-quality newsletter publication, and helps us fulfill ourmission to discover, interpret, and educate citizens and students about the history ofAnne Arundel County. We greatly appreciate your support!

$10 Student (send copy of valid

student i.d.) Give as a gift!

Levels of Membership:

$50 or more Special Contributor $30 Family

$20 Individual

Office of Planning and Zoning2664 Riva Road, MS 6402

Annapolis, MD 21401(410)222-7440

Anne Arundel County Trust for Preservation(ACT) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization

and contributions are tax-deductible.