nIEARCHAEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION OF A SEVENTEENTI!·
CENTURYBlACKS MITH SHOP AT FERRYL\ND.I'o"EWFOUNDLAND
by MatthewCarter
A thesis su bmiltt'dto the Schoolof Gradll8teSlndies inparti alfnIfi.Imentofthe
requirementsfor tbedegree of MasterofArts
DepartmentoCAnthropology Memorial University of NewfouncllaJtd
October 1997
St.John 's Newfoundland
Abstract
Thisthesisdealswithablacksmi thshopwhichoperated at Ferryland duringthefirsthalfoftheseventeenth cen tury.Firstdiscovered during the summerof1984inan area ofFerry landcommonly referr ed to as the"Poo l" the smithy was notcompletelyexcavateduntil the1994field season. Many of the featur esandartifacts wereanalysedto de terminethe structural characteristicsand ge nerallayoutofthesho pinadditionto the kinds of activiti esin whichthe blacksmithswere engaged. Itwill besbown thatthissmithywaslilcelybuiltin 1622byCaptainEdwardWynne and hiselevencolonists.
Structural characteristics oftheshopinclude a wooden frame building havingbothadirtfloorand aslate roof. The positions of such featuresas the anvil.forge.bellowsand slack.tubwere clearly visible andhel pedto determine the layoutofthe smithy.Bla cksmithsinthe seventee nthand eightee nth centuri es commonlypractisedanumberofdifferenttrades.This was eviden tlythesituation atFenyland sincethe artifactanalysis determinedthat the smithswerealso farriers, coppe rsmiths , locksmiths and gummiths as well as blacksmiths. Evidenc e for these tradesisdiscussedinchapte rsix.
iii Thefinalsection ofthisthesiswilldeal with a preliminary metallurgic examination of someof theslag thatwasuncoveredduringexcavations at both the smithy and the southwest comer of Area C some fortymetres to the east.
Since concentrationsof slag werelocatedat two differentareas.itispossible that the slag eitheroriginated from the same smithy orisrelated to another blacksmithshopthatwasoperating in thearea. The analysis established that since the two samples weresimilar metallurgically,itislikelythat the two groups of slagoriginat ed fromthe blacksmithshopexcavatedatAreaB.
iv Acknowledgements
The author wishes to thank the many people who helpedhim incompleting this research.Interms of academicguidance.Dr.James Tuck deserves themost recognition. Dr.Tuck provided mewith myfirstjobinarchaeologyand was instrumentalingetting me interestedinthe field of historic archaeology. During the course of my work his constructive criticism and careful editing of my written work proved tobeinvaluable.[would also like the thank:allthe members of the Archaeology unit and Anthropology Department faculty who provided guidance and support during my course work.
CathyMathias, the conservator of the Archaeology laboratory, Memorial University,isdeserving of much thanks. [am very grateful for ber assistance with many of the artifacts and allowing me to use the ArchaeologyLaboratory.Sheis an extremelybusy person and the fact that she took time out of ber hectic schedule to helpmewithmy analysisisgreatly appreciated. She was also instrumentalinhelping me obtain the financial assistance that was necessary to carry out the metallurgicanalysison the slag. I am also very gratefulto Ellen Foulkes whois the curatorincharge ofallthe arcbaeologicalcollections at Memorial University.The fact that shespentso much time and effort locating artifacts that were storedinthe collectionswasmuch appreciated. Also thanks to
Or.Peter Pope, of Memorial University, for allowing me to use his site profile map of Area Bin thisthesis.
Financial assistance cameinthe form of grants from both the Institute of Social and Economic Research and theJoseph R.Smallwood Foundation.
Consequently, I would like to thank all the people who wereinvolved with these funding agencies. Their support was greatly appreciated. I would also thank The School of Graduate Studies for supporting my studies with a University Fellowship.
Pam King and Micbael Tubrett, who are both faculty members of the Earth SciencesDepartment of Memorial University are alsoinline for many thanks.These people carried out the actual metallurgicexperiments on the slag so I thank them for their time and effort. I wouldalsolike to thank arcbaeological graduateScott Andrews who assistedinpreparing the slag samples.
Another group of people whoshould beacknowledgedis the crew of the Ferryland Archaeology Project. Through both careful archaeological excavation and intense artifact conservationboth the lab and field crews have bad a very important roleinthe outcome of my thesis. I would alsothank:them for their hospitality wbile staying at Ferrylandand for all the great times. Thanks should
vi alsobegiven to Debbie Barnable for ber excellent artifact drawings that appear Inthis thesis.Iamalsovery grateful to my graduate student friends.especially Barry Gaulton and StevenMills.who indirectly helpedwith thisthesis. Special mention must also go to Karen Woosley forbeing very kind and supportive.
Karenwasalways available to offer a helping hand.
Finally, I must givethe mostthanksto my family and Janet Hutchings.
These people haveplayed afarge roleinhelping me during my Master's Program and alwayssupported me throughout my academic career. [would also like to thankthesepeople for the timethey spent editing my thesis.
vii TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Abstra ct _._ i
Ackn owl edgements. ...•• • •• • •. •.. ... .... . ..•. •••.••.... .•.... iv
Table ofContents vii
Listof Maps Listof Plates
••••.••• •... . . ... .... ..•••...•.. ...•. ...•...•x
•••.••••.. . . ... . .. .. . ...•..•.•• . ....•... ...•x
list ofFigures xii
listofTables.... .. . . ... ... .. . . .. .. .. . .. .. ... . . . . .... . ... xiii
Cha pte r 1 Introduction
1.1 lntroduction... .... ... ... .... .... ... . . . ..1
12 Research Problemsand Methodology 3
Cha pter 2 Earl yHistory
o r
Ferryland(c.1504)..1700)2.1 Background History 8
Chapter 3 History ofExcavation
3.1 ArchaeologicalExcavationsatFerryland ....17 Cha pte r 4 Constru ction or theBlacksmithShop
4.1 Introducti on ... ...•... ... ...31
4.2 Exterior Features ofthe Blacksmith Shop 32
4.3 InteriorFeaturesof theBlacksmithShop 34
viii Chapter 5 Chronology and Artifact Models
5.1 Dating theForge 44
S2 Clay Pipe Analysis .•• ..• • • • •. • •••• .•• ••• ••.. • .... . • . •45 5.21 StatisticalDatingofClayPipeStem Fragments 46
5.2.2 ClayPipeBowlAnalysis 50
5.2.3 MakersMarks 52
52.3.1 Initials 54
52.32 Symbols 56
5.3 Ceramics 57
5.4 Glass S9
5.5 Jetton 61
S.6 Summary 61
Chapter 6 [ron Artifact Assembledge
6.1 lntroduction. .... . . . .... . . . ... .. . .. ... . ... . . ... ..62
6.2 Blacksmith'sToo ls 63
6.3 WoodworkingToo ls 72
6.4 AgriculturalTools.... .. . . . .. . .. .. ...•. . . .. .... . ..
n
6.5 FarriersTools 80
6.6 BuildingHardware 83
6.7 FurnitureHardware 94
6.8 Gunsmithing. . ... . .. ..• ... .. .. .. .... ... ... ....96
6.8.1 Gunsmith'sTools 97
6.8.2 Gun Parts 98
6.8.3 Gunflints... ... .. .. 102
6.8.4 lead Shot 105
6.9 Trapping... . .... ... . . .... ... ... ... .. 106
6.10 Locksmithing 108
6.11 Coppersmithing 110
6.12 Fishing Related Imple ments ... .... ... .... . ... 112
6.13 Miscellaneous 114
6.14 Discussion 115
ix Chapter7 MetallurgicAnalysis of Smithy By-Products
7.1 Introduction .. . . ... .. ... . . . . ... ... 121 7:l Analysisofthe Artifacts Excavatedfrom Event 229 122
7j PreLiminaly Examination of theSlag 124
7.4 X-rayFluoresce nceSpectrometry(XRF)Results 126 7~ Summary... . .... . . ... ... . ... •.• . • • ..•....1311 Chapter8 Conclusioas
8.1 SummaryofResults.. . ... . . . •.... ... ..• . • •.. ..•.132 82 Conclusion ..... . ... .. ... . . . .... . . . .. ... .. 137
Refe rences Cited 139
Personal Communications 151
Maps 152
Plates 154
Figures 192
Tables 202
Appen dixA(ClayPipe Typology) ... ..•... .. •.. . . •.• . ... •.218
Map 21 Map 3.1
UstorMaps
Map of the Avalon Peninsula 152
Location of Sites (Areas) A-G,Ferryland,Newfoundland..• . . 153
Ust ofPlates
Plate 3.1 Aerial photographof Ferryland -Pool-... .. .... . . ...154 Plate4.1 Archaeological excavationof the blacksmith shop duringthe
'94field season 155
Plate4.2 Three roofslates that wereexcavated from the blacksmith
shop 156
Plate4.3 Stone forge(Feature26)•. • • ••. ..•... ... . ... .. 157 Plate 4.4 Anvilpost molds (Features28 and 29)... .... ... . . . ..158 Plate 4.5 Bellows post molds (Features 78 and 79) 159 Plate4.6 Fragmentsof coal excavated from the forge floor. . ... . ... 160 Plate 5.1 Pipebowlsexcavatedfrom the forge (typesA,B,C.0,E,F,
G and H) .... . . ...• ... ... ... ... ... .. 16 1 Plat e 5.2 Pipe bowls excavated from the forge(typesI,J,K, L,M. N
_~
m
Plate53 Pipebowlsexcavatedfrom the forge(typesX.P, Q.R, S
and U) 163
Plate5.4 Nuremburg counter (c.1580-1610) 164
Plate 6.1 leonfile 165
Plate 6.2 Bench Shears 166
Plate 6.3 Han d Vise.. ... . . ... . ... . ... .. .. ...167
xi Plate6.4 Coldchisel fragment andtwohandanvils ...••..168 Plate 6.5 Nail header. . ...•.. . .. ... ... . . . ... 169
Plate6.6 Axes 170
Plat e 6.7 Axewithdetached eye 171
Pla te6.8 Gimlets that were excavated atFerryland 172
Plate6.9 Woodworkingtools (t,e.forming chiselplum b bob.
caulking wedge and iron planebit) 173
Plate 6.10 Mattock 174
Plate 6.11 Farming tools (Le.band scythe and spade) 175
Plate 6.12 Farri er's tools(Le.clinch cutter,horseshoeand
horseshoenail) 176
Plate 6.13 Nails and spikes
In
Plate 6.14 Building hardware(Le.hinges,sta ples, eye bolt,pintle) 178 Plate 6.15 Furniturehardware (i.e.handles and hasp) .•...• . •..• . .179 Plate 6.16 Gunsmith'stools and associated items(I.e.reamer,gunbarrel
and frizzen)... .... ... . ... . . ... ... . .. 180
Plate 6.l1a Englishdoglock (left side) 181
Pla te 6.17b English dog lock (right side) 182
Plate 6.18 Gunflints 183
Plate 6.19 Leadshot ... ... . ... . ...•... ...184
Plate 620 Trap jaws and trap spring 185
Plate 621 Stocklock andkeys 186
xii Plate6.22 Various copper artifacts.• • • • .•• • • ••••• • ••... •..•. ••• •187 Plate 6.23 FLshing items (i.e.fish hooks,ancbor Dulce and fish procgs)••.188 Plate 6.24 Fireplacetongs ••.•..•....•...•. .. ... .. ...•... 189 Plate 7.1 Slag excavated from smithy(Area B) and event 229 (Area C) . 190 Plate72 Caked-sbaped slaghavinga eoevex base and concave upper
surface •.•.•.•• .•..••• • ••• • •••• .•.. •..•... •. •.•.•191
Listor Figures
Figure4.1 Excavationprofile of blacksmithshop 192 Figure 42 Layout of the blacksmithshopshowing location of various
featur es 193
Figure 4.3 Possible layoutof blacksmithshop. ... ... .. . .... 194 Figure4.4 Anotherpossible layout oftheblacksmith shop .. •... ... 195 Figure4.5 floor plan ofblacksmithshop,showing perce ntagesofslag
perunitsquare... . .• . ..•.. . ... ... ...196 Figure4.6 Floorplan of blacksmith shop,showingpercentages of copper
per unitsquare ....• •... . . ... .... . ... ... ...•191 Figure 4.7 Floorplan of blacksmith shop,showing percentages of case
bottleglass fragmentsper unitsquare ..• ... ... 198 Figure 4.8 Floor planof blacksmithshop,showing percentagesof pipe
fragmentsperunitsquare .. . ... .•.. .... ...199 Figure 4.9 Floorplan ofblacksmith shop, showingper cen tages of ceramics
perunitsquare 200
Figure4.10 FenylandArea C east69profile 201
xiii Ust orTables
Table5.1 Bore diameters and associated mean dateof whitedayplpestems excavated from forge floor(event 154).•..• •... . ....202 Table5.2 Bore diameters and associatedmean date of whitedaypipestems
excavated fromstra tum.2C ... .•...•... ... . .... . . . 203 Table 5.3 Bore diametersand associated meandateof whiteclaypipestems
excavated from stratum 3A ...•.. ... .... .. ... .•.204 Table 5.4 Borediameters and associated mean date of white day plpestems
excavated fromstra tum 3C ... .•... ... . .. ... . ... .205 Table 5.5 Borediametersand associated meandateof whiteclaypipestems
excavatedfrom event136 206
Table5.6 Bore diameters and associated meandateof whiteclaypipestems
excavatedfrom stratum 28 207
Table5.7 Bore diametersand associatedmean dateof whitedaypipestems excavatedfrom event229...•... ... .. ...208 Table 5.8 Percentage ofdifferent potte rytypesexcavatedfrom the
smithy.. . . ... ... . ...• .... .... ...209 Table6.1 Measur emen ts and descriptionsofblacksmithshopgunflints ..210 Table7.1 Compositio n ofthestandardsusedinXRF analysis 211 Table 7.2 XRF results of slag excavated from Area B 212 Table7.3 XRFresultsof slag excavated from Area C 215
Chapter One Introd uction
1.1 Introduction
The study ofseventee atb-cermrry Newfoundland through theanalysisof archacologicaldatastill remains arelativelyDCWendeavour.However, recent excavations carried out at Fcrryland have uncovereda large amount of seventeenth-centurymaterial in associationwithanumber of architectural features. One significant feature excavated was the remains of ablacksmithshop.
A forge of stoneconstruction,measuring approximatelyfourbysixfeet(1.2by1.B metres),was excavated alongwithan immense amountofIron andslag (Tuck and Robbins 1985:240).Analysisof the artifactsindicates that itwasinusc somctime beforethemid-seventeenthcentury.Consequently,itispossiblethatthisforge maybetheone referredtobyCaptain Wynne, when00July28,1622 he wrote
"tbe forgehath been finisbedthisfiveweeks"(CeU1982:196).
Thearchaeologicalstudy of blacksmith shopsisve ry significantsince itcan reveal a substantial amount of information about the society in which the craft was practised. Many tradesdepended uponthe blacksmith'swork,andsmiths wereconsidcredtobave avitalroleinalmostallaspects of village life. For example.the blacksmith manufactured and repaired mostof the tools that were
usedbythe othercraftsmen of the settlement as wellasmakin g manyitems necessary for the community to survive.Producing andrepairing items such as iron nails,axes,knives,hamme rs,scythes,binges,ho rsesh oe s, books, and ship partsensur ed thatthe community would continue to functionproperly. Asa result, an examination of the Ferryland blacksmith shop shouldreveal a greatdeal aboutseventeenth-ce nturycolonialsociety.
Inthe early years of colonizationany settlement that aspiredto become a permanentoutpostwouldhave consideredthe construction of a forgeto have been of the utmost importance(Arth ur and Ritchie1982: 22).Even though many iron tools and items couldhave been imported, the advantages of having an on- sitesmithy tomanufactureand repair a variety of objectswould have made everydayLifeconside rably easier. Asa result, blacksmithingwasconsideredone of the mostimportant tradesinthe seventeenth century (Watson 1968:93).
Thereisconsiderableevidence,both documentary and archaeological,that seems to confirmthe notion thatiron-workingwas consideredan integral part of colonialsettlement.The listof the colonists whosettledJam estown. Virginia,in 1607 included a blacksmith namedJames Reed (Watson 1968: 94).Also, excavations at the Frenchsettlementof Pentagoetand theJesui t missionof Saint e-Marie among theHuron uncovered the remainsof blacksmithshops
(Faulkner1987:135-164;Kidd1949: 59-61).John Guy'scolonyatCupidsalso apparently bad a forge.whilealist ofthe early occupantsof the ColonyofAvalon men tionstwoblacksmithsnamed ThomasWilsonand JohnPrater (Tuck1993:
301).Itseems conceivable,therefore, thatthe people whowereincharge of developing these colonies orfrontie r settlements consideredthe construction of the smithy to beoneofthe irfirstpriorities.
The smithythatwasuncoveredat Fenylandis a verysignificant feature, since it is likely the mostcomplete seventeenth-centuryAnglo-Americansmithy thatbasyet beenexcavatedinany colonial settlement. Asaresult, the information retrieved fromthisexcavationwillserve as amode l forsmithiesin otherseventeenth-centurycolonial settlementsandwillbeof considerabl evalue to historical archaeologists.Byusing theexcavated materialIhopeto addressa number ofspecificissues relating to seventeenth-centurycolonial bladcsmitbing.
1.2 Researcb Problemsand Methodology
Oneofthe primaryobjectives ofthisstudyis to determinethe period during which the forgewasinuse.Toaccomplisb thisanumberof different classes ofartifactswasanalysed.One of the mostimportantdiscoveriesin the past centuryrelating to the fieldof historicalarchaeologyisJ.C.Harrington's work onthedating ofclaypipestem fragments (Harrin gton 1954:9-13).By
analysingall thepipebore diameters andtallyingthepercentages ofeachsize found.a date range canbeassignedto the particu1acsiteorstra tuminquestion.
Fortunate ly,excavationsatAreaBproduced hundreds ofpipestemfragments witha large proportionlocated on the floor of thesmithy.This provideda large sample which allowedforthecalculationof anaccurate time period. Excavations at AreaBalsouncovereda veryhighnumberof completepipebowls. Starting around 1570.claypipebowlswent through aseriesof stylisticchanges which can be effectively used as a techniquefordating (NoelHume 1970:302-303).The same is also true of makers marks thathave beenstam pedonto the footofsome of the pipe bowls (Oswald 1975:29-89;Allan and Barber1m:241·244).Other typesof artifacts, suchasceramics, bottle glass and jertc ns,werealsoexamined in order toestablishthe occupatio n period ofthe smithy.
Anothe r objective ofthisthesisistodetermine boththeinte riorand exte rior fea turesoftheFerrylandblacksmithshop. Identifyingthelocation ofthe interiorfea turesofme smithy (e.g, forge,anvil, bellows. andslack tub)involved a combination of carefularchaeological excavationand artifact analysis.Similar studies have been done atsmithies excavatedat Penragoet, Fort St.Joseph, and Fort Vancouver (Faulkner1987: 135-139; Wylie1990:7l~76;tightandUnglik 1984:6-12; Ross, Thomas, Hibbs,andCarley1975).
Unfortuna tely,the excavationdid Do t uncovermuch informa tionre lating to thestructural features of the smithy.Exceptfornails.a fewsmall fragmentsof poorly-preservedwoodwhich mayormaynotberelated to thebuilding., and severalpostmo lds, otherstructuralinformation waspractically non-existent(tuck 1989:297). Nevertheless.anattemptwillbemade to usethefewdata thatare availabl etomakeanum ber of generalsuggestionsastohow theshopmayhave originally look ed
A majorfocus ofthisworkis to identify the role of the blacksmith(s)in the colonial environmenL Intheseventeenth and eightee nth centuries itwas common for village blacksmithsto engageinhighlydiversified activities and topra ctice a variety of tradessuch aslocksmithing. farriering, gunsmithing, armoring. and metalsmitbing (Faulkner1987: 135).Therefore,establishing whattypesofite ms weremanufactured by the blacksmithswillinvolve an analysisofallthe differe nt artifacts (i,e.gunflints.,gunparts,lock:fragments.lead and copper,building hardware,erc.) that wereexcavated fromthe smithy.
Artifactanalysiswillalsodetermin e the importan trole thatthe blacksmithts)hadinterms of the other tradesmenwhoresidedatthesettlem ent sinceinmost casesthesmithsmanufactured andrep air ed many oftheirtoo ls.
Conseque ntly, anexamination of theironartifacts sbouldalsorevealwhat other
trades were beingcarried out atFe rryland during the periodthatthesmithy was inoperation. Besidesmakingtools, the blacksmithalso manufactured and repaired items ranging from cookingute nsils to building hardware.Evidenceof such manufactureshould help de te rmine whatrole the blacksmith(s)hadinthe colonialsociety andhowimportantthey were to everydaylife.
Finally, twoconce ntra tions of smithyslag that were found at differ ent locationsintheFerrylan dsitewillbe analysed metallurgically. Besidestheslag associated with thesmithy,concentr ations were also foundduring excavationsin the south-west comerof Area C about 40 metreseastof the smithy(Tuck and Robbins 1985:241).The presenceof slagattwodifferentlocations could mean therewaseithermore than oneforgeinuse at Ferrylandduring the seventeenth century or thatthe two deposits of slag originatedfrom the same forge. Byusing theresults obtained through both theme tallurgical analysis of the slag andthe artifacts recoveredfrom thetwo deposits, somesuggestions are put forth regarding the possibleorigins of theslag. A similarstudy was done byHenry Unglik andJohn Light during the analysis of the Fort51.Josephbla cksmith shop (LightandUnglik1987:93-130).
Before answering these questions. a brief description concerning the history of seventeenth-century Ferryland and the previous archaeological excavations that have been carried out atthissettlementwill beconducted.
ChapterTwo EarlyHlsteryof renyland(1500-1700)
1.1 BackgroUDdHist ory
Ferry-landisan outportcommunityloca tedon the SouthernShoreof the AvalonPeninsula approximately8Okm.southof SLJohn's (Map 1). For thepast 500 yearsthissettlementbasplayedanintegral roleinshaping the earlyhistory of Newfoundland.Beginning with the Beothuks andEuropean fishermaninthe sixteenth centuryand theearlycolonialventuresbyGeorge Calvert andSir David Klrkeinthe seventee nthcentury,Ferry-landbasbad awideandvarie d past, The first mentionofFerry lan dcanbefoundinVerrazano'swor ldmap of1529where itisreferredtounder its original nameofFarilham. whichispossiblya corruption of thePortugueseword"fare lhao" meaningstee p rock. reef or point (Pope 1986: 1;Tuck 1996:21).
Duringthe sixteenthcenturymanyEuropeannationswere involvedinthe lucrativ ecodfishe ryoff thecoastof Newfoundland.Asear ly as1520, both the Fre nch and the Portuguesewere sendingas many as 100 shipstothe fishing groun dseach year(Matthews 1973:69). Although itisnot certain wheth erthis earl y fishery was pred ominat e lywet ordry,theshores ofFerry landwould have provided an ideallocationtoprocess fish and replenish sto res of water andwood.
When processingfishusing thedrycuremeth od,theywer efirstlightly saltedand thenwinddried. Consequ en tly,the cobblebeachesatFerrylandwould have served as anexcellentlocationto practicethisdry curing technique. Excavations undertakenat The Pool (l,e.Area B)haveuncover ed twolayers ofroughly laid cobbleswhichpossibly served as drying platforms forfish whenthenatural beach became filled to capacity(ruck 1996: 29). Even thoughfragments of Nonh Devon ceramics werefound in association with these cobblefeatures, no tob acco pipe fragments were discovered.This implies that thesecobbleplatformswere built no later than the third quarterof the sixteenth ce ntury, likelybyWest Counuy fisherman (ruck1996: 29).Excavations alsouncoveredSpanish.
Portuguese,Basque andposstblyBreton or Norman potteryfragmentsinlayers belowthiscobble platform suggesting thatFenyl and servedas a majorseasonal fishing stationformany European countries throughou t thesixteenthcentury.
Intheearly panofthe sixteen th century,Ferrylandwasalso visitedbyme BeothukIndians. Inthe lowestculturallayersof AreaB,excavatio nsrevealed nume rous stonetools in associationwithvarioustypesof European potteryand small fragments of Iron, Eventhough none of the iron wasmodified into too ls such as projectilepoints or scrapers itisconceivable that the Beothuk were visiting Ferryland primarily to obtain iron eitherthrough tradewith theEuropean
10 fisherman orthrough scavenging.Sinceironwasa favoured raw material for the Beotbukpeople,itisDotsurprising that theyvisited Ferryl andforthispurpose (Pastore 1992:31).
The firstquarterofthe seventeenthcenturywasa very important period for Newfoundlandhistory since itwasduringthistime that the firstserious atte mpts atcolonization were undertakenat such places as Cupids. Renews, Bristol'sHope and Fenylaod.These permanentoverseascolonies.,which were primarilyfundedby joint stockcompanies, weresetup to bette rexploitthe lucrativecod fishery.
The firstcolonizationattemptundenaken atFenylan d beganin1620 when George Calvertbecamethe proprietorof a parceloflan d betweenAquafon e and CaplinBay.The followingyear Calvertse nta groupoftwe lvemen including CaptainEdwardWynneto Ferryland to beginwork onthe Colonyof Avalon. In a series of lettersto Calvert.Wynne mentionshow he and his men builta number of structures includinga44by15 foot mansion house,sto re ho use. saltworks, forge. he nhouseand bre wh o use (Pope 1993:12). Wynnealsoprovidessome info rmationastohow someofthesebuildingwereconstructeddescribinghow they dug intothe earthfora cellar anda kitchen room. Besides constructing a numberofbuildings thecolonists also CUl enough treestoenclosethefour-acre
11 plantationwitha seven-foothigh-palizado·whichaccordingtoWynne would
"keep offbothman and beast" (pope1993:12). Recent excavations of the area surrounding ThePool have determinedthattheear ly colonistsalsoconstructedat least onc stonebuilding measuring56'by16'.Thisstructure,which wasbuiltin conjunctionwitha massive stone waterfr ont. servedasthecolony's sto rehouse (Gaulton 1996:personal communication).Thesetwovery impressi.vestructures are importantinthattheygive ussomeindication as tothe degree to which Calvert invested into thecolony.Calvert's sonCecillate r claim edthat hisfather invested as much as £20.000to00.000 intotheFerrylandcolony.Eve n thou gh thisfigure maybeinfla ted,itisobvious that GeorgeCalvertdidinvestquite heavilyinhiscolonial venture(Pope 1986:18).
In1622Wynne stated that the colony bad already grown to32 people.In additionto peoplerelatedtofishin g.thisearlypopulatio n wasalsomade upof a skilled workf orceincluding such tradespeople asblacksmiths,Slonelayers, quarryman, carpenters, tailors.and coopers(Pope 1993: 19). Duringthesenext few years thecolonists became involvedinagric:ultureand husbandry thereby expanding the colony'ssubsistencebase (Pope 1986:19).By1625 thepopulation bad grown to 100people (Pope1986:19).
12 In1627George Calvert,nowLordBaltimor e. arrived at Ferryland.He wasso impressedwiththe colonythatthe foUowing yearhebroughtmost ofhis familyacrosstheAtlantic to takeuppermanent residence atFerryland (Pope 1986:20). Unfortunatelyfotthe Calverts,their first yearat Ferryland turned out to be very unpleasant. First, they encounte reda very bard winte rwhichcaused much sickness throughoutthecolony.Calvert, clearly disappo inted,wroteto Charles I:
-I haue fowned by toodeaceboughtexpe rien ce. whichothermen for their private interestsalwaysconceal ed frommethat from themiddestof October,tothe middes t of Maythereisasaddface of wynter upo nallthis land...mybousehath been ea bospitallallthiswynter, oftOOpersonsSO sick atatyme,myselfbeingone andnine orten of them dyed.c.lam determined to committthisplaceto fishermenthatareableto encounter stormesandhardweath er, andto remove myselfwithsome 40 persons to your maiestiesdo minion of Virginia.._-(Pope 1986:21).
Inadditiontothe inclementwea the r and sickness Calvertalsohadto dealwith Frenchharassmentofmanyof theEnglisb settlementslocated alongthecoast (Po pe1986: 20).The constant threatofFre nch attack meantthatmucb of the coast would baveneededmilitaryprotectionwhich.in
nun.
wouldhave caused a seriousfinancialdrainon Calvert,Toprovide the requirednaval protectionbe wouldbavebad to obtainpermission fromtheKing authorizinghimto collect revenuefromallthe fishin g maste rswho would be nefit fromthisprotection.Unfortunately,thispermiss ionwasneve rfortbco ming (Po pe 1986: 23).Anoth e r source oftrouble forCalve rtduringhis first year atFe rryland was the Re v.
13 ErasmusStounon. Rev. Stourto a, aChurch of England clergyman.wasin constantdisagreementwithCalvertandmany ofhis colonistssincemany followed the doctrine of theChurchofRome.Asa resultthere was muchideological frictionbetweenthe two(Po pe1986:20;Pope1993: 25).Finally, itseemsthat Calvertwasbecomingincreasin gdisappointedwithhis colony atFerryland since bewasDOtmakinganyprofit.DuringtheperiodthatCalvert wasinFerryland, the fisherywasinthe midstof a depressionwhich ultimatelyresultedintbe proprietorshipbecoming a commercial failure (Pope1986: 21). Withallof these inheren tproblemsCalvert decidedto leaveFeny landandsetup anewcolonyin whatisnowthe stat eofMary land.
Eve nthoughCalvertleft Newfoundlandin1629, hisfamilyretained possessionofFerryland asla te as 1637. Inthefollowing year,howeve r,the propri e torshipwas grantedto Sir DavidKirkeduringwhichtime he convinced Calvert'sagentCaptainWilliamHillto relocateto the otherside of the barbour (Pope1986: 23-24). For thenext 13 years Kirke continuedto manageFerryland but unlikeCalverthe successfullymanaged to maketheresidentfisherywork ecoaomicaUy.TodothisKirke collecte d rent from residentplanters for fishing roomsandcollect ed licensefeesfortaverns. Healsocollectedafivepercenttax from the WestCountryfishin g masters who shipped their cargoinfore ignvessels (pope 1986: 24-25).In1651Kirke' s overseeingofFerryl and ende dwhenhewas
"
recalled to Londonbythe Commonwealth for an accounting ofhis proprie torship (pope 1986:Z7). Even thoughKlrkediedina London prisonin1654,hiswife and three of herSODSremainedatFerrylandthrougho utmostof theremain der of the seventeenth century (Tuck 1996:22).
Duringthe sameyearthatKirkewas returne dtolondontheCouncilof Sta te authorizedJohn Treworgie and five othe rstotakecontro l ofallofhis assets. Treworgie remainedatFerrylanduntil 1660durin g which timehe actedas akindof governorto these ttlement (Pope1986:28).SoonafterCharles Il's ascende nc:yto theEnglish throneboththeCalvertandKirkefamili es renewe d theirelaimstothepropri e tors hip of Fe rryland. Even thoughthe suitwas officially decidedinthe Calverts'favourin1661,the Kirkesstill remainedatFe rrylan d andindoingsoretained controlofmany ofthefishingpre mises(Tuck 1996:29).
The latterpartofthe seventeenthcentury provedto be a verytumultuousperiod forthe people ofFe rrylan d.In1673 the colo nysuffe red aseve resetback when fourDutchshipsunde rNicholasBoesraidedthesettlement,The Governorof NewYork,Dudley Lovelace.whowasaprisoneronboardoneof the ships.
descri bedthisevent whenhewrote"theenimieplundered. ruined. fired and destroyedthe commodities, cattle, bouseholdgoods, andotherstores" (Pope 1993:107).
15
In1696Ferryl and was sackedagain.butthistime by a groupofFre nch ships.Alett er, writtenin1697byFenylandresidentJohnCleppe,described bow theFre nchburn edallthe irhouses. householdgoods.fish,oil.trainvats, stages, boats,nets, andalltheirfishing craftto the value of twelve thousandpounds sterling (pope1993:144). After the attack,manyof the Ferryiand colonists were taken prisoner andsent backtoAppledore,Devon.where they resided forthe winter (Pope1986:31). Inthe years following theFren ch raid,many colonists resettledat Fe rrylan d.Thisresultedinthe main focus of senlementchanging from theoriginal siteofthe colonytoother parts of the barbour (Tuck 1996: 23).
Thischapteroffers onlyabrief descriptionofthe backgroundhistory of Fe rryland, Fo r a more de tail ed study concerningthepolitical. economic, and socialhistoryofthisareaoneshould referto Dr.Pet e rPo pe' sMA thesis
"Ce ramicsFro m Sevenree ntb-CenraryNewfoundland-andhisPhDdissertation
"Ibe South AvalonPlanters. 1630 to 1700: Residence.Labour, Demand and ExchangeinSevemeentb-Century Newfoundland",Also available forStudyisa collectionofover200pag es ofprimarydocumen ta tion compile dbyDr.Pope dealingpredomin a te lywithFerrylandbetween1597 and1726.
16 Unfortunate ly primary documentationbyi.tselfisunableto answermany importantquestio ns concerni ngseventeenth -century Ferry lan d,includin g those that deal with the lifestyleof the average person. Since mostdocume ntationis concernedeitherwithsignifican tevents aDd/orimportant peoplemost histories tendtoexcludethe majority of the populationandtheirroleineverydaylife.
However,when one uses historical documentationinconjunctionwitharchaeology thereisa greaterchance of illuminating the lives of the illiterateandtheignored (Pope1986: 33). Consequently,thisresearchwillfocuson aseven tee nth-century blacksmith sho pthatwasdiscoveredatFenyland and the Important role thatit would haveplayedinthecolonial settlement,
17 Cbapter'I'hrec
HistoryorExcava tio n
3.1 Archaeological Excavations at Ferryland
Foroverthe past 100hundred years, amateur archaeo logists,historians, andprofessio nal archae ol ogis ts haveallattempted touncove r evidenceof the earlyColonyofAvalon at Fenyland.Thefirstrepone dexcavationwascarried outin1880 byBishopMichaelF.Howley. BishopHowley,inhisbook
.Eccksiastir:alHistoryofN~oundland·.mentioaedthateven thoughvery Little
remainsof the originalcolony.the foundationsofLord Baltimore' sbouse were stillvisib le(Howley1979:124 ).Unfortunately,theexactlocationof his excavation stillremainsunknown(Pope1989:78). He alsoreponed that excavations uncovereda numberof artifacts includinga silversnuff spoon.
Interestin gly,thisspoonbadtheinitialsG.K.inscribed untoit which le dBish o p Howleyto believethat it originallybelonged to GeorgeKirce, oneof the SODS of Davidand SarahKirke (Howley1979:124).In1937,Dr.Slanl ey Brooks conducte dfurther excavations aroundThePool andon theadjacentmainland west ofthesite.Inabriefunpublishedreport and subsequent newspaperarticle Dr.Broo kssuggest ed that theMansionHouse wasloca tedsomewherene ar the fannerSt.Josephs schoolor whatisnow the Colon y of Avalonvisitorcenter (Brooks 1937:1;Pope1986:71-78).Broo ksbasesthisideaon alett erwrittenin
18 1622byFerrylan d colonistDanie l Powellinwhichbe describes theloca tion of the mansion bouse-a t the foot of an easieascendinghill-(pope1993: 15).
According to Brooks thehillPowell wasreferring to was The Gaze. ahillsituated to thewestofthe settlement, Brooksalsoclaims tohave locateda depress ionin the same area that hadmeasure me ntsvery closetothe dimeosions ofthe Mansionbouse given byWynne (Barakat1976:16).
In1959,J.R.Harperof the HistoricSitesand Monumen tsBoard of Canada beganan excavationintheFenyland Poolarea During thecourseof the excavation.Harperdugasixbysix foottest squareinanabando ned garden somewherenearthe present loca tion of AreaB(Harper1960: 111).Harper stated thatthe recovere dartifacts showevidence of occupatio nat this site from the first quarterof the seventeenth centuryuptothe nineteenthcentury.Healso suggested thatartifactsfromthelowest level of thetes t square. whichdatefrom about1625-1650.,represent obje ctslocatedin"a wing or outbuilding ofthe main Baltimorebousejustto the west" (H arpe r 1960: 111; Pope1986: 78).
Dr.Jam es Tuck of Memorial Universityconducted an excavationat the Ferryland Poolareain1968inthe prese ntlocation of thesalt beef plant. During thisexcavationDr. Tuck and his crewdiscovered a sla te drain and a quantity of seventeenth-centuryartifacts (Tuck1996:24).
19 In1976, R.K. BarakatofMemorial Universitycarriedout aseries of excavations to the east of Harper's test squareandonBouysIsland. whichis located just north ofFerrylan dHead (Tuck 1996:24;Pope1986:SO).According toPope. the artifacts thatwererecovereddateprimarilyto the eighteenthcentury (Pope 1986:80).
In1984.1991.and 1m.theFerryland Poolareawasalsothesubjectof underwater archae ologicalwor k.In1984 Skanesand Deichmanncarriedout an underwatersurveyofthe northshoreofThePoolalong with ananalysisof artifacts thatwererecoveredfromfillthat was previously dredge dfro m thesame loca tion(Skanes and Deichmann1984: 398). Boththe underwater surv ey and the analysisof the artifacts excavated from The Poolfillshowedevidence of the Ferryland Harbour having been usedbyEuropeans during mostof the historic period(Skanes and Deicbmann1984:401).Even though Skanescarried out mor e underwatersurveysin1991and1992.resul ts ofthiswork are unavailab le.
In1989,M.AStapp didsome salvageworkatthebeginning ofthe Lighthouse road just to the westof the Williamsproperty. Excavationof a four byone meter trench uncoveredanumber of artifacts rangingindate fromthe seventeenth to the twentiethcentury.Two identifiable fea tur esinthe form ofa cobblestoneroad and the remainsof a stonewallwerealsouncoveredinthis
20 uench(Stapp 1989:iii). BeginningIn1984,acrewfrom M.U.N..under the direction ofDr.JamesTuck, start ed anintensive archaeological program in The Poolarea to assessthe potentialof the site.thedegreeofdisturb ancecausedby recen t construction,andto bopefully findsomephysicalremains oftheColonyof Avalon(Tuck1993:296).Duringthe next12years(itshouldbenoted that excavationswe redelayed from 1987to 199 1) sevendifferent areaswereexcavated (Areas A-G) uncovering nolessthannine different structures and an immense amount of seventeen th-centurymaterial(Map 2)(Pla te1).In the following sectionseach of theseparticular siteswill bedescribedindetail.
AreaA
Itwasduring the firstfieldseasonthattwo locations,Areas A andB,were excavated. AreaAconsisted of four excavatedODemeter squaresat the western marginofthe siteinwhich some seventeentb-cenrury material,butnofea tures.
werefound (fuck1993:297;Tuck1996: 27).
AreaB
During the1984and1985 field seasons excavationsat Area B uncover ed the remains of a stone forgeand a vast number ofseventeenth-century artifacts including materialassociated with blacksmithingsuch asslag. iron, charcoal,coal.
andcoppe r.10 totalaboutsixtysquaremeterswere excavated, although no tall
2\ were takendownto the sterile subsoil(Pope1986:83). Itwas not until the 1994 fieldseasonthatwork:wascontinuedat AreaB,.duringwhichtimetheblacksmith shopwascompletelyexcavated. Theseexcavationsreveale d theOoo r ofthe smithyplus an enormous number ofartifacts.
Lateintothe1994field season and throughoutthe1995 seasonexcavations of the originalsandand gravelbeach at the lowest levels of AreaBuncovered a number ofsmall beanhsof fire-shatteredrock and a quantity ofsto ne tools.
These stone tools.whichincluded. small projectilepoints,bifaces, and a chopper wereaUmadefrom regionally available chert, Tuck states thatthe small projectile pointsarealmost identical tothose foundonBeothuk sites excavatedin other areas ofNewfoundlan d such as Boyd's Coveand Russell'sPoint (T uck 1996:27).Inaddition to these stone toolspieces of burned bone.seeds.fir needlesandhundredsofchenOak es were also uncovered.
Atroughly the same levelinwhich the Beothuk materialwasloca ted.
excavationsalsouncovered evidencepointingtoanearly Europeanpresence at Feny land. This evidence.whichisinthe formofwellpreserved ceramic fragments.havebeen identified ashaving eitheraPortuguese and/or Spanish origin. whileother pieces were identical to thoserecovered from excavationsat the sixte enth centuryBasquewhalingstation atRedBay,labrador (Tuck 1996:
22 28).Also. anothertypeof ceramic.whichisof a formyet unidentifie d.mightbe ofNorman or Breton origin (Tuck1996: 28). Whatisimportantaboutthese ceramicsisthat theyprovide valuable informa tio npenainingtothenationali ty of the Europeanswho wereinvolvedintheNewfoundl andcodfishery duringthe sixteenthcentury. Eventhough archaeologybas ascertained thatboth Europeans and Beoth uksfrequented Ferrylandduringthe sixteenth century itisunknown whether thetwopeop les cameinto contactwithoneanothe rand.ifso,whatthe nature of these encountersmighthave been.
Duringthelatter pan of the 1995 fieldseason.excavations alsouncover ed aportio nofa cobblest one road and thefound ation andfireplace ofadomestic reside nce.Theexposedportionofthe cobblest one str ee t measuredapproxima tely 30metresinlengthand four metresinwidth (98'by13')and mayrepresent the originalstreetthat CaptainWynneissupposedto have builtin1622. A brief examinationof the excavated bouse seem to suggestthatitwas awoodframe structurebuiltupon a stonewallfoundatioa (Tuck 1996:31).
AreaC
In1986excavationswer ealso undertaken at AreaC, approxima tely 40 met ers northeastof AreaB.Theseexcavati onsuncoveredevidence of astone structureand thousands of seventee nth-cen turyartifacts. Afterthis1986field
23 seasonitbecame apparent thatthe Fenylaod sitewasso richinartifactsthat future excavationswould bavetobedelayeduntilconservation capabilities could beincreased (ruck 1989:303). In1992, archaeologicalworkwasinitiated once againwithexcavatio ns concentratedat AreaC.Over the next five yean.
excavationsat AreaCreveal e d atleasttwodifferentston ebuildings. a stone privy,and a massiveseawall structurealong with an enormousnumberof seventeenth-century artifacts.
The only complete building that wasfullyexposed at Area C was alarge sto ne structurewithan Interiorspace measuringapproxima tely 56'by16' (G aulton1996:personalcomm unication).Thisbuilding. which contained artifacts datingtothe first balfoftheseventeenth century, likelyserved as thecolonists' sto re house. Excavation ofthisstorehousehavedete rmin ed thatthisstructure was roofed complete lyinstonesla tes. Incorpora ted intothisbuilding onitsnonh side wasamassive stonewallThisstonewall.whichbasasinglefinishedface only on its nonhside,like ly served as a seawall thatformed aquaysidealongthe southe rn edgeofThePool. Recentexcavationshaveshown thatthis seawall continues westward along the innerperimeter ofThe Pool for approximately another50 metres and turns to the north at the eastern end of The Pool (Tuck 1996: 32).
Inthewestern sectio nof thestorehouseexcavationsuncovered asto ne-
2' linedprivy.Thisprivy,whichmeasur es fourbynine feet and fourfeetdeep,was builtdirectly intothe seawall This structurebadtwo drains locatedbelow the hightide level which allowedtheprivytobeflushed out every twelvebours (Tuck 1996: 33). Since the soil foundintheprivywaswater-saturated, a variety of organic materials such as a wooden wheelbarrow,various textiles. leather shoes andscabbard.plusa vast number offish.mammal, andbirdbones and seeds were discovered(Tuck1996:34).Parasitologist Patrick Horne analysedsome of the privyrefuseandidentified theeggs from a numberofdifferent humanintestinal parasites (Tuck 1996:34). One interesting artifactthatwasdiscovered in the privywas a smalJwaxsealthatbearstheImmaculateHeart ofMarysituated below a weeping eye.Thisimage.almost certainlyRoman Catholic. most likely arrived at Ferrylandduring the16205 whenmanyof the settlerswere practising Roman Catholics (Tuck 1996:34).
A second structure thatwasuncovered at Area Cwasa portion of a stone cowbouse orbyre.Thisbyre, whichseemsto have been constructe dsometime after1673.wasbuiltusing the east-westwallof the storehouse. Itwastloor edin cobblestonesthat were laidinsuch away as to form.adrainthat proceede d through the westwall ofthe building.Thisdraincontinues westwarduntilit eve ntually ends upinto thenow convertedprivyorcesspit (Tuck 1996:35).This
25 drainwouldhave permitted animal waste to flow from the floorof the cowbouse tothecesspitandfrom there out into theocean,
For amoredetailed discussionof Area C and itsassociatedstructures refer to Barry Gaulton'sMAthesis'Sevenree nth-Cearury Stone Constructio n at FerrylandNewfoundland (AreaC)-.
AmoO
In1994 excavations werealsobegunatAreaDduringwhich time both a domestic buildinganda stone-lined well werediscovered. This buildinghad overallmeasurementsof approximately11'6"by39' includingalarge stone fireplacelocatedatone of itsgabledends.Thishousewasconstructe d almost entirelyfromwood.since excavatio ns uncover ed alaye r ofwoodchar coal consistingprimarilyof preservedbeamsand planks. Analysisof the associated artifacts revealsthat even thoughthisbuilding was substantialinsize. the owners ofthisbouse were not,inall likelihood. of the gentry class.Thisideaissuggested bythe ceramics since a high proportionof those foundinthe house were ofthe low-end variety (i.e.relatively expensivewares sucbas tin-glazedandsgraffito potte ry werenotdiscoveredinanysignifican t quantity). Thispointisreinforced inthatnoglasswareorothersimilarartifactswer efound (Tuck1996:36).
Artifactanalysis(Le.plpe ste ms, plpebowlsandcoins) suggests thatthisbous ewas
26 constructed no earlierthan the mid-seventeenthcentury and likelydestroyedby theFrench attack on Fenylandin1696 (Tuck1996:36).
Excavations verycloseto the house also uncoveredtheremains of a stone- linedwell.This well,which extends approximately25'below the ground surface.
was constructedusing a combinationof timber,brick and stone.Eventhoughno dateable artifacts were foundwithinthe well,excavationsinclose proximity to it did findsome that relate to the seventeenthcentury.Asa resultit isprobab le that the well was associatedwith the bouse.
_ .E
Duringthe1993 field season excavationswere undertaken on thehillat the southern edgeof the site.Sincethislocation providedan excellentview of the harbour itwas not surprisingto have discoveredthe remnantsof early fortificationsinthisarea. Owing thelate seventeenth century,Captain William Holman was reported to have repaired the colony's fortifications. Consequently, itispossiblethatsome of the structures discovered atthis location, such as the retainingwall,mound,and gate,are somehowrelatedtoHolman 'sFo rt.
Excavation of a onemetre trench revealed asodstructure that Tuckstates may have been a partof the colony's original fortifications.This structure, which likelyfunctioned as a gunplatform,was built directlyupon a sterilehumuslayer,
27 and for that reason mayberelatedtothe fortifications erected at Ferryland duringtheearly years of the colony (Tuck 1996:3940).Excavationsinthe upper levels of Area E revealed a building baving two gable-ended fireplaces.This building, which measured 12by30 feet. contained a high proportion of drinking vessels,glass.and pipe fragments suggesting thatthisstructure once served as a tavern ortipplinghouse.Analysisof the recovered artifacts Indicate that this buildingwasused during the first balf of the eighteenth ceotury (Tuck 1996: 39).
AreaF
Inthe summer of 1996.excavations began at a location directly across from AreaCinthe former property of Mr. Arch Williams. Even though excavations at thisarea are presently ongoing. itispossible to make a number of general statements concerning some of the material that bas been uncovered to date.
Very earlyinthedigseason excavationsinthe northern section of Area F discovered a layer of cobblestones about90cmbelow the surface.Although the excavation ofthiscobblestone level has not been completed, enough bas been uncovered to determine that its maximum width was approximately 13 feet and thatitdoes not continue oninan eastward direction. This measurementisalmost exactly the same as the width of the cobblestone street foundinArea Bin1995. This.coupledwiththe fact thatbothlayers of cobblestones were laidina very similar fashion, suggests that the two are almost certainty associated with each
28 other.Ina 1622 letter to George Calvert, Captain Edward Wynne writes·...for the comfort of neighbourhood, another row of buildings may be so pitched, that the whole maybemade a prettystreet" (Pope 1996: 11). This comment suggests that one row of buildingsbadalready been constructed and that when the colonists finished construction on buildings located across from these they would havemade a street. Consequently.ifthe cobblestone road that we have located inboth AreasBand F is the same as the cobble street mentioned by Wynne it is possible that we have discoveredboththe eastern and western margins of the colony of Avalon. Thiswillprove to be very helpfulinlocating more buildings associatedwiththe original colony.
Excavations to the east of the cobblestone road have uncovered a thick layer consisting of burned charcoal and brick. Associatedwiththis destruction layerisan immensenumber of late seventeenth-centuryartifacts including such items as pipe fragments. glass, various metals, and ceramics. Located immediately belowthisdestruction levelisa dark layer containing artifacts dating primarily to the first balf of the seventeenth century.Future excavationsin thislocation may reveal somestructurerelatedto the original Colony of Avalon. Excavations carried out at the westernmargin of Area F have also turnedup a high quantity of artifacts dating to the first half of the seventeenth century.
29 AreaG
Midwaythrough the 1996 field season excavations were started to the west of AreaCina vacant lotowned by Mr.Ray Costello. Excavationsatthisarea include daonebyninemetre north-southtrench alongwithaeast-westtrench running paralleltothe high tide mark. Inthisfirsttrencha cobblestonefeature and artifacts datingprimarilyto thelateseventee nth centuryto the early eighteenthcentury wer ediscovered.Analysisof these artifacts and the depth of thedeposit seemto suggestthatthisfeatureis related to a cobblestonepaving previouslydiscovered at the westernmargin of Area Cin1995~ 1996. Duetothe la te r construction date ofthiscobblestonefeatu reitisvery likely unrelated tothe sections of cobblestoneroad foundinAreas B and F (Tuck1996:personal communication).
Duringthe 1996 field seasonexcavationswerecarried outinthree different locations parallelto the high tide mark andinlinewiththeseawall foundatArea C to determin etheextentof the colony's early quayside. Consequently,threeof theexcavatedtest pits uncovered prese rvedsegments ofthe seawall. Adjo inedto the seawallintwo of the pits werehorizontal logs attached to vertical wooden posts.Thesepossiblyserved as strouders, which allowed shipsor boats to moor against theseawall without sustaining damage.
30 A rich depositof eighteenth-century material was unearthed above and to the south of theseawalL These artifacts. which included saltglazed stoneware, creamware,window glass. and pipe fragments seemto suggestthata domestic structure dating to around the third quarter of the eighteenth centuryislocated nearby. Excavations at both AreasFand Gwillcontinue during the 1997 field season. Further archaeological examinationwillundoubtedlyprovide uswith more information concerning the features that have been found at these areas while alsogivingus a greater understandingof the Colony ofAvalon.
31 CbapterFour
Constructionof the Blac ksmi thSho p
4.1 Introd uction.
When Captain Edward Wynne and his eleven labourers first arrived at Ferrylandin1621 one of their immediate tasks wereto reclaim previously "void or waste ground-(pope 1993: 13).Byusing the soil that was dugduring the initial construction of a well,brewbouse, kitchen and tenements, and depositing it next to the shoreline, Wynne andhis men were able to generate newlan d which could be used to developthe colony(Pope 1993: 13). It seems thatthismethod of creating new land became common practice as the labourers expanded the boundaries of the colony.Consequently, when excavations began at the siteof the smithy,it was observed thatthismethod was employed duringits initial construction phase. Excavations have determined that the blacksmithshop was constructed directlyintOthe side of an "easy-ascending"hillthat flanks much of the area around The Pool. Itwasdoneinsuch a way that the walls of the shop (excluding the front portion) wouldhave been positioned directly up against subsoil walls. By digging out a section of thehillmeasuring approximately 35m byS.25m(11'S"x 172") and transferring the excavatedsoil next to the shoreline the colonists would have createdtwobuilding areas that were previously unavailable.Even thoughthismethod of reclaiminglan d would have undoubtedly
32 been very stre nuouswork. itwas,however.a.very resourcefulway of exploiting landthat waspreviously unusableinordertoproducenew propertyon which further buildings couldbeconstructed.
4.Z Exteriol'Featuresor theBlacksmit hShop
Unfortunately,excavation of the smithyrevealed very little evidence pertainingto its structuralcharacteristics. Besides nails.roof slates. a few small fragments of poorly-prese rved wood(whichmay or maynotbe related to the building) and severalpostmolds.other structuralinformationwaspracticall ynon- existent(Tuck 1989: 297).Neverthe less.enoughartifactual evidencewas uncoveredto make anumber of general suggestions as to whatthe shop may have loo ked like.
During thecourse of the archaeologicalprojectitbecame apparent that the smithy was built without the use of either a brick orrock sill Consequently, it seems thatthewallsof the blacksmith shopwereconstructedbyplacing upright boardsdirectly intoor on the groundin sucha mannerthat they would have been situated adjacentto the subsoilretaining walls .Evide nce thatpointedtothistype of constructio n was intheform ofa three to fourinch wide space thatexisted alongthe outerpe rimet er of the floor(with the exception ofthefrontsection).
This"space"was easily discemable, considering that most of the floor was
33 coveredwitha verybaedpackedlayer of clay,slag.scale, coal, and charcoal which waspracticallyimpenetrable.Thisisthe only structure excavatedinThe Pool area that displays evidence ofthistype of construction.Thisparticular building design,which was quicker and easier than the construction techniques foundin the other excavated buildings would have most certainly decreased the amount of time it would have taken to get thesmithy operational. Since the blacksmithshop would haveultimatelyproduced many of the items needed for building other structures,itwas probably the intentionof Wynne and his labourers to construct the smithy as quickly as possible. lbis would have resultedinthe structure having been builtina simple basic form.
Aspreviouslymentioned, the frontsection of thesmithy did not havethis three to four inch wide trench.Since the front wall was not constructedinthe same manneras the other three, what type of from wason this building? Itis possible that thisstru ctur e was open on the front end.simil ar toothersmithies of the same period (Tuck 1989:297).Another possibilityisthat the front section was comprised of two large doors that would havebeen supportedby comer posts. These types of doors were commonlyfoundinshops operated by smiths who practised farriering.Thiswould have made the job of shoeing horses and/or oxen much easier, since the smith could bring the animals directly into the shop.
34 Other information related to the structural characteristics of the forge are related to both the roof and floor. We can be relatively certain that the original
floor of the smithy was made ofdirt. However. over itsmanyyears of use. most of the floor became encrustedwithcoal. charcoal, slag, scale,andmany fragments of pipes, ceramics.and chert. Excavation of the floor also uncovered a number of small post molds that could be related to interior bracing (Tuck 1989: 297).A substantial number of roof slates. most incomplete.indicate that the blacksmith shop was roofed inthismaterial. BarryGaulton, who is studying various stone building techniques employed at Ferryland, suggests that the shape of these slates isvery similar to the those used to cover the storehouse located at Area C (Plate 42).
Fromallof the above evidence it can be determined that unlike most of the other buildings excavated at Ferryland, the blacksmith shop seems to have been a structure that was constructedina relatively rough unfinished manner.
4.3 Interior Layout ofthe BlacksmithShop
Blacksmith shops. whether large or small, should contain four dearly identifiable sections;the work area, domestic area, storage area. and the refuse area (Light 1984:55). Even though these areas may overlap and varyInsize, complexity and spatial relationships,allshould be discemable through careful
3S archaeological excavation and artifact analysis (Lightand Unglik1984:11).
Fortunately,theFerrylandsmithywasfoundto beina remarkablestateof preservation,which made the process of determiningthe various components of the blacksmithshop verystrai ghtforward.
Determining the work area(s) of any smithy involvesestablishing the loca tio n ofsuch items as the forge,anvil. bellows,workbench.slack tub.and blacksmithtools.The stoneforge (Feature 26),wbich measures approximately four by six feet(1.2by1.8metres).was locatedalong the west wall of the smithy insuch a waythat one end was setintoit(Plate4.3). Even though the forge was notfullyintact. somesections measuredup to 50cminheight. Itis likely that it was originally higher thanthis.since a few quarried stonesbelongingto the forge were found scatteredaround the structure.Also.nobole for the tuyere pipe was detectedamong thedrymasonry structure suggesting thatitwas probably lost when theupperstone courses of the forgewere dismantled.Itis difficult to ascertain the exact heightofthe forge sincethis wouldbave ultimatelydepended upon the personalpreference of the blacksmith.Inmost cases, however,the blacksmith'sforgewouldhave beenbuiltwaist high sincethiswouldminimize workeffort (Light 1984:56). Excavationsalso found manyfragments of brick alongtheuppe r surface of the forge suggesting thatthe uppercourses could have been made from that material (Tuck 1989:297).
36 Anotherinterestingfeature ofthisstone forgeisitsshape. Located atthe easternmost sectionwas an almost squar ealcove thatmeasuredap proxima tely nanby68an. Thisalcove. whichhasaslateuoor,was built directlyinto the stoneforge.Atfirstthis featurewasverypuzzlingsince no documentarysources men tionedany similartype:of ano maly. However.whe n one considers bow smithy workareasare organizedit becomes apparentthatthisspacewaslikelyrese rved forthe slack tub.Thelayoutof the work areadependedalmostsolelyuponthe locationof theforge. since otherfeatureslike the anvil.slack tub, andbellows would havebeen locatedinclose proximitytoit Thiswas done to minimize unnec essary moveme ntand allowthe blac ksmithto conserve asmuch ene rgyas possible. There for e,inrelationto the forgethiswould havemad e an excellent area to placethe quenchingtub. Slack orquenching rubs werevery simple items, usually consisting of ahalfbarr el (light 1984: 57). Consideringthe sizeof the alcove ahalf barreltub wouldhave fit almost perfectly.
Locatedapproximately sOcm and lOOcmnortheast or theforgeare two larg epostmolds (Features28 and29) surr oundedbyathickconce ntra tio n or scaleand small ironfragme nts (Features 27 and 31).Thesepost molds almost surelyindicatethe loca tionorthe anvil (Plate 4,4). Aspreviouslymention ed,the anvil wouldhave bee n locat ednexttotheforge to maximizeefficie ncy andallow thesmith towork the ironwhile itwas stillbot(Ugbt1984:57). Thesetwopost
37 moldssuggests that thelocation ofthe anvilwasreloca ted sometime duringwhich thefo rgewasinuse (Tuck 1993:300).
Excavations southof the stone forgeunearth ed twopostmolds (Features 78and 79) thatlikelyrepr esent the poststhatoncesupportedthebellows (Plate 45 ).Thebellows,whichbadto bemounted off the floor to prevent theleath er fromrottingand allow forair intake,wouldhave beensupportedbyeithe rone or twoposts(light1984:56).Sinceneither the bole for the tuyerepipeor any physicalremainsof the bellowswerediscovered,thesepost mo lds provide the only evidence forthe probabl elocation of the bellows.
Excavatio ns of thesmithyfloorapproximately 2Scm. nonhof thestone forgerevealed another large postmold whichpossibly rep rese nts thelocationof the blockthat would havesupported the blacksmith'sswage (Feature37).A swageisalarge itemthatisDOtusedas often as otherblacksmith tools therefore itisusuallyloca tedina lessbusysection of thesmithy (Lightand Unglik1984:
to).The blacksmith (s)mayhave also possessed amandrilwhichwouldhave likelybee n loca tedneartheswage.
Theonlyfeatureinthe work area that could oatbeidentified archaeo logicallywasthe positionofthe blacksmith' sworkbench. Sinceno soil
38 samples were taken from the forge floor during excavations, soil analysis to help determine workbench placement could not be carried out. Thistypeof studywas done byParksCanada archaeologists when excavating theFanSt. Joseph blacksmithshopinOntario (Stewart,Light, Lafleche 1984:40). However, by examining the location of the other featuresinthe work area the possible positions of the workbench become more apparent. Space limitations atboththe southern and eastern sections of the blacksmith shop, due to the location of the bellows, fuel pile. and anvil. make the placement of the workbenchinthese areas very unlikely.Consequently, the most probable place for the bench wouldbe either against the northernhalfof the westwallor directly against the north wall.
Further evidence that supportsthisisthatmany of the blacksmith7s tools. such as two files, a hand vise and one set of bench shears, were unearthedinthe front section of the smithy adjacent toboththe north and west walls.These items were commonly usedinconjunction with a bench vise which would have been attached to a workbench. Therefore, since these tools werealldiscovered together,itis probable that the workbench would have been stationed nearby.
Inmany cases the workbench would have been situated very close to a window, allowing for good lighting whilethe smith worked at the vise (light 1984:
59). When one studies the layout of the Ferrylandsmithyitbecomes clear that the northwalland/or the northern half of the west and east walls are the only
39 areas that could have contained windows. since the otherwallareas were put up directly against the subsoil embankment. Unfortunately, however,no window glasswasrecovered during the excavations sothisidea of window placementis highly speculative.
A blacksmith would commonly organise his smithy in such a way as to have places for unused iron stock, reusable scrap. and for fuel (Wylie 1990: 73). The location of these storageareasdependedupon the availability of space within the sbop and upon the preferences of the blacksmith. Inthe southeast section of the smithy a large concentration of both coal and charcoal was discovered suggesting the probable location of thefuel pile (Feature 36). Lightstates that it was common practice for many smiths to place their fuel piles outside of the smithy to prevent spontaneous or accidental combustion (Light and Unglik 1984:6).Inthis case, however, the fuel pilewaslocatedinrelativelyclose proximity to the forge.
The fact thatbothcoal and charcoal were found suggests that both were being used as fuel (Plate 4.6). Faulkner suggests that coal-fired forges were uncommon inthe seventeenthcentury even though the smithy thatwasexcavated at Fort Pentagoet also used coal as its fuel(Faulkner 1987:137).Charcoal.on the other band.wasthe most commontypeof fuelmainlybecause itwasmucb cleaner than coal and did not have to be imported (Faulkner 1987: 137). Why were both coal and charcoal being used at the Ferryland smithy? Itispossible that coal was the
40 desired fuel but when its stores became depleted the smith(s) switchedto the readily available source of wood to make charcoal.Even though coal may contain sulfurwhich may cause the iron to become brittle and bard to workit does allow for very high temperatures.This would bevery beneficial to the smith when carryingout such operations as forge welding(Faulkner 1987:137-138).
Itwascommonpractice forblacksmiths to store iron bars and rods along walls.under the bellows or workbench, or outsideinan adjacent shed (Wylie 1990: 73).However,whether orDotthese locations were used by the blacksmith(s) who operated at the Ferryland smithyisdifficultto determine.
Sincethissmithy was likely abandonedrather then destroyed, many of the storage areas would be virtually barren of iron stock and otherreusable scrap. sinceit would have been salvaged forlater use (Light 1984: 60). Excavations did uncover a number of stock fragments and pieces of reusable scrap.The highest concentrations wer efound toexistaround the anvil post holes. However, since other fragments of iron scrap werescattered throughoutthesmithy no storage areas could be positively identified.
Another area that could exist bothinand around the blacksmith shop is the refuse area. Forgeclinker,whichisa combination of slag, fuelresidue and materialfrom the forge and fire base,was foundina number of locations (light
41 1984: 61). Determining the various refuse areas involved plotting each piece of forgeclinkerinthe square from which itwas excavated. Percentages then revealed which areas bad the higherconcentrations of slag (Figure 4.5). In performingthistaskallslag thatwasexcavatednorth of the NS linewasomitted sinceit allcame from a disturbed context. The highest concentration of forge clinkerwasfound at the northeastsection of the forge.Itislikely thatthisclinker waspiledup against the northwallof thesmithy butended upinitspresent location whenthiswalldecayed.When the four grid squares of E2 51. El51.E2 NO. El NOarecompiled as oneunit.the total percentageof clinkerinthisarea in relation to the rest of the site comesto 73.0%.Withsuch a high percentage it is reasonableto assume that this was therefuse area of the smithy.Along with forge clinker many other artifacts wereuncoveredinthisrefuse pile such as scrap iron and copper,plus other items such as glass, pipe, and ceramic fragments (Figure 4.6, 4.7, 4.8,and 4.9).Itis inter estingto note that both anvil post molds turned uprelatively high percentages of forge clinker.It is possiblethatthis clinker was relatedto thatfoundintherefuse pilesituated just to thenorth.
Excavations at the back of the shop near the locationof the bellows post molds uncovereda vastamount of material such as casebottleglass. broke npipes and ceramic fragments (Figure 4.7,4.8and4.9). Aswas donewiththe forge clinker each class of artifacts (Le. pipes,ceramics, and glass) was plottedand
42 percentagesper square tabulated. Inallcases the highest concentrationsof artifacts were locatedinthesouthwestsection of the forge. Itistherefore reasonableto assumethatthiswasanotherrefuse dump.Anothe rexplanation thatcould explainwhysuchahighproportionof artifacts was situatedinthis area isthat these items wouldhave been situatedunderthe bellows. Consequently,it ispossiblethat the smith(s) neversweptthisarea thereby allowing these materials tobuiltup over a periodof time.
Alongwithbeing a place of work,the blacksmithshopinmany instances wasalsothesocial centre of the community (light1984: 60).While the smith(s) carriedouthis work the patrons badtime fortalk,argument, political debate, gossip.and ridicule (Watson1968: 95). Since theblacksmith shop offeredwarmth and a place wherebothfriendsand patrons couldwaitforthe smithtofixor manufacture a numberof commodities meantthat items associatedwithsocial activities should rum upin highquantities. Thereforeallblacksmithshops should contain asocial area wherethe smith,friends, and clients couldrelax,eat and drink (Lightand Unglik 1984:12).To assistindetermining the positionofthe domestic area(s) of thesmithy,[ againreferredto the distnbution maps of artifacts suchas bottleglass,pipesandceramics(Figure4.7,4.8and 4.9).The squaresthat turnedup the highestartifactpercentageswerelocatedin the southwestsection ofthe smithy (W2 54,WI 54,W2 55,and WI 55).
43 Concentrationsof artifacts were sohighinthese squares thatitseemedalikely socializing area for the shop. However.thiswasthelikelyposition of the bellows and thehighconce ntra tion of artifactscould haveresul ted from the smith{s) oat maintainingthisloca tion as muchas busiersections of the shop therebyallowing refuse tobuildup over lo ng periods of time. Anothersection of the shop that bad relativelyhighpercentages of artifactswas the area north of the forge.
However, overall percentages were not variedenough to be able to state confidently that any particular area(s) of the shop couldbe designatedas having a domestic and/orsocial function. Therefore.it can beassumed that thesocial area(s) would haveoverlappedwiththe otherfunctional areas of the blacksmith shop.
44
Cha pterFive Chro nologyandArtiractModels
5.1 Datin g tbeForge
Determining the duration of the smithy,from the time of its initial construction toitseventual abandonment, involved the analysis of both historical documentation and various classes of artifacts such as clay pipes. ceramics, and glass.Through careful investigationit willbeshown thatthisblacksmith shop was builtin1622 and continuedto beinuse until approximately1650. Evidence that establishesthedate of forge constructionis a letter written July 28, 1622. to GeorgeCalvert. In thisletter Captain Edward Wynne states"the forge hath been finished this five weeks",suggesting that the smithy was builtinthe latter partof June.1622 (Pope1993:12). Although this information gives us a definite date for thetimeof construction. itisuselessuntil we prove that the forge mentionedby Wynneis actually the same asthe oneexcavated. An examinationof the artifacts willdetermine that the forgeexcavatedinthe Ferryland Poolarea was the same forgementionedbyCaptain Wynne.
4S 5.2 ClayPipeAnalysi s
One of the most valuableartifactsusedindating historicsitesisthe EngIishkaolintobacco pipe. Beginninginthelatterpanof the sixteenth century and continuingupuntil the nineteenth century. the size andshapeof claypipe bowlsunderwe nt an easilyrecognizable evolution(NoelHume 1969:296).
J .e.
Haningtonhas also shownthatclaypipestemfragments,whichsurviveinlarge r quantitiesthanthebowls.have unde rgonearegular and nearlylineardecreasein bore diamete rs over the periodof1600to1750(Harrington 1978:63-65). Since claypipeswere very fragile (Le.usually baving a lifespanof lessthan a year or two)and relati ve ly inexpensivetopurc has e. pipe fragments almost alwaysturnup inhighquan tities. Asaresult. archaeologistsworkingon historicsites find these particularite ms very useful for dating.
Similar toexcavations at the smithyfbarracks atPentagoet, pipefragments attheFerrylan d smithywerefoundinhighconcentra tions directlyaround the forge (Faulkner1987:62).Onmanyareas of the smithy floor there existed a deepferrous depositinwhichhundredsofclaytobacco pipefragments were excavated(Pope1988: 8).In thisforgefloor level (event154)more than 748 pipe ste m fragmen ts and98complete pipebowlswere recovered. Sucha largesample ofpipefragmen tsprovedto be veryusefulindeterminingthedevelopmentand occupationperiodoftheblacksmith shop.
