Fun in the sun

> In response to yesterday's question, we dig down until we hit soil
> that has not been disturbed by human activity, what we call
> subsoil. The top layer of soil where we have been digging is
> generally the plow zone, where farming has disturbed the soil and
> the artifacts it contains. This is about a foot deep more or less,
> and we usually find artifacts like fragmented container glass,
> ceramic pieces, nails and other metal, small brick pieces, oyster
> shell, and coal. We also get some surprises like today's hard
> rubber comb, and a small metal type set with what Dr. Beisaw
> believes was the letter "w". Below the plow zone we generally find
> the subsoil. Subsoil is generally where we find features, which are
> disturbances caused by humans in the soil which cause a color
> change. These can occur before the subsoil, but not in the plow zone
> because the plow would have destroyed them. This could be a post
> hole, a hole for something else, or even what is left of a building.
> We will generally excavate this, however, if there is no feature in
> the subsoil the unit is done.
>
> Brent joined us today for a dig in the sun! We opened a third unit
> in the same area we have been working for the past few work days to
> try to better understand the complex strata in the other two units.
> Tomorrow, with the help of the many volunteers we are expecting, we
> plan to open two more units to explore a possible feature and to
> extend our search for the blacksmith shop. Join us tomorrow for
> more fun in the sun! Thanks Brent for all your help and for
> bringing us pasta salad! Also thanks to Mark for the new
> microwave! Our next attempt at making popcorn should go much better!
>
> Katharine, Allison, and Magen