Colonial Williamsburg Digital Library

I take pleasure in transmitting a report prepared in the Archaeological Laboratory upon the artifacts from the Archibald Blair Storehouse site (18C), responsive to a request originated by the Curator.

Illustrations are the work of Mr. Thomas L. Williams, Photographer, and of Mr. John V. N. Dunton, Archaeological Treatment Assistant in the Laboratory.

I am handing you herewith the Archaeological Laboratory Report on the material excavated on the site of Archibald Blair Storehouse, Archaeological Area 18C.

This is in response to your request of March 1, 1954.

A report on the findings at Mrs. Campbell's Coffee Shop is now in preparation.

So little material was recovered from the site of the Ayscough House, no report is possible.

INTRODUCTION

The following represents the first effort by the staff of the Archaeological Laboratory to produce a formal descriptive report upon the artifacts found during excavation of an archaeological area of Colonial Williamsburg.

Its general arrangement is in harmony with the system adopted in mid-1953 for presentation of a statistical evaluation of the artifacts found on individual sites, and based upon earlier studies conducted in the Laboratory.

Included in this presentation is the tabular, statistical evaluation, indicative of quantities found, followed by a qualitative evaluation of the metal, glass, stone, and ceramics present, with certain generalizations developed under each heading, or by categories. In cases where it is considered helpful, an attempt has been made to give an itemized description of entire holdings, as, for instance, the metal found on this site. With respect to glass, however, only the more significant items from this collection are described. The ceramic portion of this collection has particular interest, and in nearly each category discussed, a few general remarks are included which refer to the period of use of specific types of ceramics present in this collection and in most cases illustrated by sketches or photographs.

It is well to bear in mind, while using Laboratory reports, that the collections of Eighteenth or Nineteenth Century artifacts found by excavation of any particular site cannot with absolute assurance be identified as having seen use on the site where encountered, although in some instances archaeological field data furnish strong support for such conclusions.

Particular appreciation is expressed for the assistance, artistic and otherwise, which was furnished by Mr. John V. N. Dunton, Archaeological Treatment Assistant in the Laboratory, during the preparation of this report. Mr. Dunton's informed enthusiasm for ceramics has united with his artistic talents in producing the sketches, reconstructions, and scale drawings utilized in this study. Appreciation also is expressed for use of the research notes on ceramics in America, lent generously by Mr. Minor Wine Thomas, Jr., and in this report employed in rendering more interesting the background notes on ceramics found at Williamsburg.

SITE 18C (ARCHIBALD BLAIR'S STOREHOUSE)
TABLE OF CONTENTS

Legend for Archaeological Report - Artifacts

CERAMICS

• 1ABrown Stoneware
• 2AWhite Salt Glaze
• 3AGray Stoneware
• MAMiscellaneous Stoneware
• 1BChinese Porcelain
• 2BChinese Porcelain (Polychrome Enameled)
• MBMiscellaneous English Porcelain
• 1CCrude Earthenware
• 2CSlip-decorated Ware
• 3CDelftware
• 4CWhieldon (Tortoise Shell, Pineapple, Cauliflower, Agate)
• 5CCream Ware
• 6CBlue and Green Edged Ware
• 7CHand-painted Staffordshire
• 8CAnnular Ware
• 9CTransfer-printed Staffordshire
• 10CIndian Pottery
• MCMiscellaneous Pottery
• 1TTile

IRON

• 1.Military Goods
• 2.Tools and Implements
• 3.Harness and Horse Furniture
• 4.Household Hardware
• 5.Cabinet Hardware
• 6.Builder's Hardware
• 7.Nails, Spikes
• 8.Hinges
• 9.Locks and Keys
• 10.Miscellaneous

BRASS

• 1.Buckles
• 2.Ornaments
• 3.Spurs, Harness
• 4.Bronze Winecocks
• 5.Buttons
• 6.Fire Irons
• 7.Cabinet Hardware
• 8.Watches, Clocks
• 9.Military
• 10.Candlesticks and Snuffers
• 11.Household Utensils
• 12.Hardware
• 13.Miscellaneous

CWI 6/1954

SITE 18C (Archibald Blair's Storehouse) ARCHAEOLOGICAL REPORT - ARTIFACTS

Comments on Metal from Site 18C
(Archibald Blair's Storehouse)

The metal found on this site is in no respect unusual or distinctive in comparison with similar material recovered from other sites of Colonial Williamsburg. Both Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century types of metal have been found at this site.

The iron objects described below by standard categories are those remaining after the greater bulk of iron material obviously pertaining to the Nineteenth Century had been sorted out and placed in non-current storage. It is possible, however, that some Nineteenth Century material may still be included with the remaining study collections of iron types which were in use during the Eighteenth Century.

The study collections of brass and other metals, relatively small in comparison with the total volume of iron found on this site, similarly may include some Nineteenth Century objects with the types characteristic of the Eighteenth Century.

Inventory of Iron Material from Site 18C
(Archibald Blair's Storehouse)

• Class 1, Military Goods:
  1 sword fragment, showing tang and 4" of blade (catalogue number 1-147-18C; illustrated in Plate I, Number 13).
• Class 2, Tools and Implements:
  1 wood gouge, fragmentary (catalogue number 2-374-18C; illustrated in Plate I, Number 9); 2 shoemaker's pliers (catalogue numbers 2-97-18C and 2-98-18C); 1 sledgehammer; 1 4" gimlet (catalogue number 2-123-18C).
• Class 3, Harness and Horse Furniture:
  1 wagon fixture (threaded keeper for retaining tail-gate rod; catalogue number 6-240-18C).
• Class 4, Household Hardware:
  2 fragments of iron cooking pots (one of which is a 3-legged, flat-bottomed vessel, 9" in basal diameter, catalogued as 4-205-18C, while the other bears catalogue number 4-220-18C); 1 razor blade, 5 3/8" long (catalogue number 4-107-18C; illustrated in Plate I, Number 6); 1 2-tined bone-handled table fork, with overall length of 6½" (illustrated in Plate II, Number 1; note that Numbers 2, 3 and 4 in Plate II show other handles of bone); 2 kitchen spoons, long-handled (catalogue numbers 4-88-18C, illustrated in Plate I, No. 3, and 4-114-18C); 1 hook, attached to flat metal surface (catalogue number 4-204-18C, illustrated in Plate I, Number 2).
• Class 5, Cabinet Hardware:
  3 drawer-pulls (the first and second, bearing catalogue numbers 5-6-18C and 5-13-18C, are illustrated in Plate I, Numbers 10 and 11, respectively, while the third, not illustrated, bears catalogue number 5-15-18C).
• Class 6, Builder's Hardware:
  1 hook, 4" long, with threaded tip (catalogue number 6-74-18C, illustrated as Plate I, Number 14); 1 hook (catalogue number 6-98-18C); 1 chainhook (catalogue number 6-95-18C); 1 clamp for securing stone slabs, 9/16" wide x 2¼" long (catalogue number 6-68-18C, illustrated in Plate I, Number 5).
• 7
• Class 7, Nails and Spikes:
  5 spikes, ranging in length from 3" to 7 7/8" (catalogue numbers 7-6-18C, 7-55-18C, 7-93-18C, 7-104-18C, 7-144-18C); 3 staples (catalogue numbers 9-11-18C, 9-229-18C, 9-288-18C).
• Class 8, Hinges:
  1 HL type (catalogue number 8-10-18c); 1 strap type, 22" long (catalogue number 8-197-18C); 2 fragmentary hinges (catalogue numbers 8-38-18C and 8-78-18C); 2 pintles (1 of these bears catalogue number 8-257-18C and is illustrated in Plate I, Number 8; the other, not shown, bears catalogue number 8-264-18C).
• Class 9, Locks and Keys:
  1 rim-lock face-plate (catalogue number 9-472-18C); 1 lock-bolt (catalogue number 9-378-18C); 1 hook (catalogue number 9-343-18C); 1 hasp (catalogue number 9-320-18C, illustrated in Plate I, Number 1); 1 door-latch (catalogue number 9-537-18C, illustrated in Plate I, Number 7); 4 iron keys (catalogue numbers 9-166-18C; 9-199-18C, illustrated in Plate I, Number 17; 9-202-18C; 9-209-18C); 1 key, 2 5/8" long, of which length, 15/16" is brass, only the handle being iron (catalogue number 9-197-18C, illustrated in Plate I, Number 16); 1 wine-cock key, 2 1/8" long, on the handle of which remain traces of plating (catalogue number 2-163-18C, illustrated in Plate I, Number 18); 2 large staples, or bar-keepers, for doors (catalogue numbers 9-236-18C, illustrated in Plate I, Number 4, and 9-330-18C).
• Class 10, Miscellaneous:
  Frame of jews-harp, measuring 1 7/8" across the frame (catalogue number 10-8-18C, illustrated in Plate I, Number 19); T-shaped object (catalogue number 6-190-18C); broken object, shoe-horn-like in shape, approximately 5" long, of thin iron and bearing rows of perforations, possibly an epaulette frame (?) (catalogue number 6-99-18C, illustrated in Plate I, Number 12); small horseshoe-like object, of iron 3/8" wide and forming an arch 2 7/8" high, perforated by three nail-holes (catalogue number 6-80-18C, illustrated in Plate I, Number 15).

18 C PLATE I

Inventory of Brass, Copper, and Bronze Material from Site 18c
(Archibald Blair's Storehouse)

• Class 1, Buckles:
  1 brass harness buckle (catalogue number 1-37-18C, illustrated in Plate II, Number 17); wide sheet-brass buckle (catalogue number 1-64-18C, illustrated in Plate II, Number 18); 1 brass harness buckle, 3 1/8" x 2¼", ornamented above by crown and below by running horse, and at corners by roses and thistles (catalogue number 1-2-18C, illustrated in Plate X, Number 2).
• Class 2, Ornaments:
  Finial, 3½" long (illustrated in Plate II, Number 10).
• Class 3, Spurs, Harness, and Allied Equipment:
  Spur, fragmentary; terret (catalogue number 3-32-18C); unidentified brace (catalogue number 7-26-18C). The three objects of Class 3 are illustrated in Plate I, Numbers 7, 6, and 3, respectively.
• Class 4, Bronze Wine-Cocks:
  1, fragmentary (illustrated in Plate II, Number 15).
• Class 5, Buttons:
  2 Virginia military buttons, each bearing variant forms of the present Great Seal of Virginia; 1 mutilated copper coin, possibly used as a cloth-covered button; 6 other buttons. An array of six of these buttons are illustrated in Plate II, Number 19.
• Class 6, Fire Irons:
  Brass knob for squared poker-head (?) (catalogue number 6-12-18C, illustrated in Plate II, Number 12).
• Class 8, Watches, Clocks:
  Brass clock face, 2½" in diameter (catalogue number 8-1-18C; illustrated in Plate X, Number 1).
• Class 12, Hardware:
  Brass hinge-post (?), 3/8" in diameter, 3½" long, and perforated by a 3/16" hole through the post, from side to side (illustrated in Plate II, Number 13); 9 brass door-lock keeper (catalogue number 12-49-18C; illustrated in Plate II, Number 8); door handle escutcheon, 1 13/16" in diameter (catalogue number 12-43-18C, illustrated in Plate II, Number 9); door handle, drop type, fragmentary (catalogue number 7-33-18C, illustrated in Plate II, Number 11).
• Class 13, Miscellaneous:
  Brass knob, ½" in diameter, attached on its tapered end to an inch-long bit of heavy brass wire (illustrated in Plate II, Number 14); 7-pointed star, 4 7/8" across, cut from sheet copper, having small perforations ½" from tip of one point, and bearing on one surface, scratched across the center of the star, three connecting links of chain, as in the emblem of the I.O.O.F. (illustrated in Plate II, Number 16).

18C PLATE II

Inventory of Miscellaneous Metals from Site 18C
(Archibald Blair's Storehouse)

• One silver watch-case back, 2" in diameter, and ornamented with an intricate rusticated cypher of the letters "AG", is among the collections from this site on display in the Archaeological Museum. Hall-marks stamped into its inner surface attest that this metal contains 92.5% silver and 7.5% copper, as certified by the London Assay Office, and that it was made between May 1761 and May 1762. Illustrated in Plate X, Number 3.
• A smooth conical ferrule (or finial) of lead (or soft white metal) about 2½" in length. There is a small fillet at the larger end (¾" diameter) which is hollow and tapered, threaded (on the inside) with coarse threads for about 1". The other end (top?) is solid and formerly terminated in a carved or moulded feature now gone. There is a necking (½" diameter) approximately 2" from the larger end separating the decorated work. It is thought to be later than 18th century and may have been a decorative finial or terminal feature for such objects as clocks, fireplace fittings, and the like.

Comments on Stone from Site 18C
(Archibald Blair's Storehouse)

The collections from this site contain the five stone fragments listed below:

• A six-inch curved segment of the milled edge of a sandstone slab 2 1/8" thick, smoothed and scored on only one face, possibly for use as a mill-stone; catalogued as 3-118-18C.
• A fragment of black veined stone, polished smooth on one flat face, with oyster-shell mortar adhering to the roughly worked opposite face; possibly a piece of hearthstone. Approximate dimensions, 4½" x 3½" x 1¼"; catalogued as 3-51-18C.
• A fragment of sandstone, smoothed flat on only one surface, approximately 7" x 5", and about 5" thick; catalogued as 3-170-18C.
• A worked, broken fragment of dense, gritty gray stone, flat on one face, apparently the end of a slab 4" wide and 1¼" thick, possibly used in grinding or polishing work. Catalogued as 3-18-18C.
• A cobble-stone (?), worn smooth on its irregular faces, gray-green in color, and weighing approximately 8 pounds. Catalogued as 3-171-18C.

Comments on Ceramics from Site 18C
(Archibald Blair's Storehouse)

A study has been made of the ceramic material from this site in its relationship to material in the study collections from other excavated sites of Colonial Williamsburg. This material varies in no appreciable extent from the quantity or range of types or patterns encountered on the average habitation site in Colonial Williamsburg.

This presentation follows a systematic classification of ceramics that through the years has been found applicable, both at Williamsburg and elsewhere within the English trade orbit, for a study of ceramic development in the Seventeenth, Eighteenth, and Early Nineteenth Centuries.

A brief description is furnished of the general types of ceramic material under each category that is represented by sherds found at this site, and specific examples have been selected to illustrate, wherever possible, each category.

18C PLATE VI

18C PLATE VII

18C PLATE VIII

18C PLATE IX

18C PLATE X

Description of Ceramics from Site 18C
(Archibald Blair's Storehouse)

• Class 1A, Brown Stoneware:
  This material consists of sherds of heavy flat-bottomed jugs and jars, none sufficiently well represented to permit a physical restoration of any single vessel, but still adequate to justify reconstruction of shapes, approximate dimensions, and designs or decorations. Many shades of brown are represented. Most handles are of the loop pattern shown in the accompanying sketches (Plates XI and XII); one wide-mouthed jar is equipped with lug handles. Common to Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries.
• Plate XI - Brown Stoneware Jug
  

  Thickness is approximately 8 millimeters, with a basal thickness of approximately 12mm. Ware is extremely hard and glazed.

  The shape and design selected to represent this type, and hypothecated in this sketch from study of uncatalogued sherds, are for a vessel approximately 18" high. The bases of vessels of this category are uniformly flat.

• Plate XII - Design Elements Present in Brown Stoneware
  Approximately full-sized typical necks of jugs, bottles, and jars of this heavy ware are sketched, showing decorative treatment. Notation on the sketch identifies the sherds by catalogue number.

PLATE XI
Brown Stoneware
1A - 18C Blair's Storehouse. Sketched from fragments.

PLATE XII

• Class 2A, White Salt-Glaze Stoneware
  White salt-glazed table ware was developed in England early in the Eighteenth Century and was in vogue in Williamsburg by mid-century. A few sherds found upon this site permitted reconstruction of the scale drawing of the small bowl figured in Plate XIII; it is decorated only at the rim and has a basal rim upon which the bowl stands. Other sherds represent a mug with loop handle, decorated below the rim with a band of rocker-applied ornamentation. The collection also contains fragments of a cobalt-decorated chamber-pot, ornamented with a molded "GR" surmounted by a crown, this medallion having been applied to the vessel before its glazing. (Note the selection of sherds figured in Plate VI).
• Plate XIII - White Salt-Glaze Bowl
  

  Thickness of ware is approximately 4.5mm. at base and thins out to 2.5mm. just below a slightly flaring rim.

  Diameter at rim, 6 7/8"; height, 2 11/16".

  This vessel has as decoration a small ridge 3/16" below the rim on its exterior. Reconstructed from sherd catalogued as 2A-107-18C.

PLATE XIII
White Salt-Glaze
2A - 107 - 18C Blair's Storehouse. Scale - 1:1

• Class 3A, Gray Stoneware
  Gray stoneware, characteristically German in style, workmanship, and probably in origin, was a rough household and commercial ware of the Eighteenth Century, which was still being manufactured in America as late as 1850. Included in this collection are sherds of cobalt- and manganese-decorated jugs, mugs, and chamber-pots, of which some bear rampant lions embossed as moldings in low relief on the surfaces of these vessels, incised rosette patterns, and other floral ornamentation. (Note illustrations in Plate VI).
• Class 1B, Chinese Porcelain
  Chinese porcelain, decorated both inside and out with a characteristic shade of blue and in a profusion of patterns, both realistic and conventional, was popular in Williamsburg in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries. It was advertised for sale in Williamsburg as early as 1718. Fragments of this ware appear on most sites. Several sherds of a very heavy, possibly rectangular-shaped bowl bearing blue decorations both inside and outside the rim, with a naturalistic exterior band of blossoms and leaves of roses and other flowers, were found on this site. Other sherds also found here are of blue-decorated mugs, cups, and platters. (Note illustrations in Plate VI).
• Class 2B, Chinese Porcelain (polychrome enameled)
  The collections from this site contain bowls, saucers, and cups representative of this well-recognized type of thin porcelain, frequently but, incorrectly known as "Lowestoft", which is characterized by delicate ornamentation, usually of colors other than the "Chinese willow-ware" blue, and which are applied as an overglaze enamel. Porcelain of this type was probably present in Williamsburg as early as 1760. (Illustrative sherds from this site appear in Plate VI).
• Class MB, Miscellaneous English Porcelain
  In an effort to meet the competition of imported porcelains, chiefly from China, English potters toward the middle of the Eighteenth Century experimentally developed soft-paste porcelains. Very popular in England, some of this ware was being advertised in the 17 Virginia Gazette for sale in Williamsburg as early as 1766. Almost invariably, Chinese shapes and decorations were used. Only three sherds of this rare type have been identified as coming from this site: one is a fragment of a cup bearing a simple floral pattern; another is a rim-sherd of a small bowl with dragon design appearing on both inner and outer surfaces; the third is a fragment of the base of a bowl having a high basal rim. (These sherds appear in Plate VI).
• Class 1C, Crude Earthenware
  A great bulk of crude earthenware, manufactured almost entirely in England, was imported into Virginia during the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries. Although a feeble beginning had been made at Yorktown as early as 1732, the industry vanished in Virginia with the death of the potter two years later and apparently was not reestablished to any great extent in Virginia until after the American Revolution. It has been widely made ever since. On this site, a considerable variety in shapes and fineness of workmanship is present, as the following examples indicate.
  • PlateXXIV - Crude Earthenware Bowl
    

    The thickness of ware is approximately 7mm., except for the much thinner base, which averages 4mm. in thickness, and the rim, 10mm., in thickness. The ware is brick-red, rather porous, and contains temper formed of crushed sherds and stone particles.

    Diameter at rim, 7½"; height, 4½".

    This vessel is of crude workmanship and is undecorated. Its interior is coated rather heavily with a clear glaze which intensifies the reddish-brown inner surface, speckled with dark-brown particles. The exterior shows evidence of having borne a glaze lightly brushed on, imparting a darker color than that of the interior. The exterior surface has eroded to a greater extent than the interior. This was probably a cooking vessel.

    Reconstructed from sherds; catalogued as 1C-1-18C.

  • 18
  • Plate XV - Crude Earthenware Bowl
    

    The thickness of ware varies from 11mm. to 13mm., thinning out to 7mm. at the rim. This ware is brick-red and was fired quite hard, the sherd producing a ringing sound when tapped. Evidences are present of frit, or temper.

    Diameter at rim, 14½"; height, approximately 3".

    This vessel is of crude workmanship and is undecorated. The marly is approximately one inch wide. The interior is well coated with a clear glaze; the exterior bears a thinner, slightly darker glaze; the base is flat.

    Reconstructed from sherds; catalogued as 1C-2-18C.

  • 19
  • Plate XVI - Crude Earthenware Bowl
    

    The thickness of ware is approximately 10mm., with a rolled rim measuring 20mm. The ware is brick-red and contains a noticeable amount of frit, or temper.

    Diameter, 15"; height, 3½".

    This vessel, very crude in workmanship and with a badly flaked surface, has a slightly glazed inner surface. Portions of the exterior show a black carbonization at the rim, possibly from use in an open fire as a cooking vessel. A pouring lip was formed at the rim and appears on one of the sherds found.

    Reconstructed from sherds; catalogued as 1C-3-18C.

  • Plate XVII - Crude Earthenware Bowl or Pot
    

    The thickness is about 3½mm. Ware is brick-red, hard-fired.

    Diameter of vessel at widest point, 4 13/16". The height cannot be determined, as the upper portion is missing.

    The base of this handled bowl or pot is flat, with no basal rim. A dark brown, almost black, thick glaze, somewhat like "Aubergine Brown" glaze [as identified in the notes made some years ago by a ceramic expert, Miss M. Thring, after working with the collections then in the Laboratory] covers the interior and the upper portions of the exterior of this vessel.

    Catalogued as 1C-4-18C.

  • 20
  • Plate XVIII - Crude Earthenware Jar
    

    The thickness is approximately 12mm. The ware is light red and contains coarse temper.

    Diameter across rim, 9". The height and other dimensions are undeterminable.

    This vessel is covered with a transparent glaze, and to it are attached, on opposite sides, a pair of heavy loop handles. Grooves below the rim and in the area of attachment of the handles supply its decoration. Colors: various tones of brown.

    Reconstructed from sherds; catalogued as 1C-5-18C.

  • Plate XIX - Crude Earthenware Vessel
    

    The thickness is approximately 23mm. Ware is light red in color, containing much frit, or tempering material.

    The interior diameter, as computed from a chord measurable in the two heavy sherds on display in the Archaeological Museum, is greater than 17". A carefully applied ornamental medallion forms an oval 5 3/8" high by 4¼" wide, representing what appears to be a fleur-de-lys and other design elements over the letters "IF", enclosed within a leaf-studded oval border. A heavy arched ridge 2cm. high curves to either side of the medallion, apparently affording a means of lifting what must have been a quite massive vessel, possibly designed for garden display. While one of the two matching sherds was found on Archibald Blair's Storehouse site, the other was identified as having come from Site 28B2, located on North England Street opposite Archibald Blair's Residence. Catalogued as 1C-6-18C.