7/31/05

    We were pretty busy in the morning and got started around noon. Steve had some stuff lined up. The first yard we hit was small. Steve had been here before and dug a pit, but only could find the one. We probed it hard, only to find a couple suspicious feeling spots that didn't feel good enough to dig.

    Like a couple kids on a paper route, we made the rounds to see if we could catch people home this time.  I am sure people are home. I imagine they won't answer fearing we are bill collectors or such.  Well, the last one on the route door was wide open. Steve knocked and nobody answered. There was a guy sitting in his car jamming to some tunes. Steve asked dude if the lady was there. He said yes, so Steve went up to beat again. This time she showed up and Steve got a permission.

    Steve and Jeff had been probing in this yard a few years back and found nothing. We were actually setting up for a tunnel job to the next yard. Last year, I found a pit in the neighboring yard. It was in a one foot strip of grass between the fence and a concrete slab. Anyway, I grabbed the long probe and found it right away. Steve headed to the back to check if he missed something on the previous trip with Jeff. I moved over a little and located yet another pit under the fence. Steve told me to come over, he thought he had a pit in this yard. There it was, lucky for me the guys had missed it.

Pit 1

Terrible take: 2 slick mini-meds, 2 vials, fruit jar insert, and a piece of metal

Will work for bottles. The lady just started to mow her lawn, it was the least I could do.

A little action curbside. The police busted a couple guys who had just boosted a power washer. Apparently it not a good idea to do these things mid afternoon.

    We stretched the tarps and dug it down. Unfortunately, the bottles were no where to be found. We sat there and laughed, just our luck as of late. Steve was in the hole and probed the sides to see if there was a pit nearby. No luck. He suggested probing the corner, just in case they missed another one. The cut off sod from the first pit was still sitting on the tarp in corner. I jammed the probe through the works and got pretty excited to find there was indeed another pit.

      Pit number two started out pretty good. Right near the surface we scored a nice light colored blue Hooker's for the throat and lungs. 

Then it took an ugly turn. The crap smooth top bunk jars started to show. It was getting late and we kept on digging anyway. Steve was up got a pretty cool, amber whiskey cylinder from Milwaukee. 

S C Herbst Importing Co. Milwaukee, shoulder seal whiskey. http://www.chiptin.com/brewery/liquor/industry_death.htm A little info on him and the Milwaukee Brew scene.

On my next turn the pit was getting about four feet in depth. I about fell over in disbelief when a crude, but broken aqua, smooth based "Dr. N. Angell's/Rheumatic Gun" medicine was unearthed.

What's under the Gun?

 I was wondering how in the heck the bottles could take a thirty year swing in age. That is when Steve deduced that the screw top crap was in later trash pit installed right in the corner of this 70s privy. Sweet, we had a chance to get some good stuff!

       We were starting to get down to the top layer. This pit was loaded with animal bones. Never seen anything like it. Anyway, Steve was digging and found a very light blue medicine embossed with "Table Spoons" and graduated marks. On yet another turn he got a aqua, 1/2 pint double eagle flask. 

Palest of blue medicine

Steve and the 1/2 pint double eagle.

I was scratching along the bottom wondering when I was going to find something good. Then, I spied a dark insulator laying in the debris. It was a emerald green threadless. Sweet!

Threadless

Color

Lots of broken goodies including a couple embossed baby feeders and 3 other flasks.

     In between digging rounds we each found a couple more pits in the yard. But, it was getting a little late. I can't wait to get back into that yard!