[MassHistPres] 17th C and 18th Center chimneys

[Sudbury Historical Society Email]

Hi !
Could you send me the pictures you mention.
The most logical thing I can think of is that it was a Hogshead (barrel)
holder. The size of the foundation would tell you what size barrel it held. 
As we drank large quantities of Cider, back then, it would not be unusual 
for a house designer to incorporate that. The evidence would also be in the 
material left there, after the barrel rotted. Are there pieces of wood, a 
bung hole plug, or a spigot?

I remember a foundation like the above in the 'Ocean Born Mary House' in 
Henniker, N.H. They also had a smoke oven in the basement, which the 
foundation could also be.

As you are near the coast, could the plant material be 'Irish Moss', or 
some other seaweed, very common to use it as an insulation around the base 
of a house outside. I have found Irish Moss in walls near the coast. It 
lasts almost forever, as long as it does not dry out, or get too wet.
Good luck, Lee Swanson - Curator/Archivist - Sudbury Historical Society, 
Inc. Massachusetts.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Diane Gilbert" <d.m.gilbert at comcast.net>
To: "Untitled" <masshistpres at cs.umb.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, November 11, 2008 3:05 PM
Subject: [MassHistPres] 17th C and 18th Center chimneys


Has anyone ever encountered a crib-like foundation built adjacent to a
center chimney of a 17th C or 18th C cape style house?  We assume this was
commonplace but so far no one knows.

The 1762 Elihu Akin House in Dartmouth has extensive and impressive stone
foundations which include a formidable center chimney. Adjacent to the
center chimney is another foundation about 2 1/2 feet high next to [or
attached to] the center chimney.  This structure revealed itself after we
cleaned out the cellar more thoroughly to get ready for foundation repairs.
This additional foundation spans the several feet to make it flush to the
wall foundation on the cellar¹s south side end of the house.  What¹s more,
it is filled with rubble stone, field stone and dressed granite of various
sizes.  In between the stone layers we¹ve exposed is some sort of vegetation
or plant material that appears to serve as insulation, for what, we don¹t
know yet.  The same plant material has been filled randomly into the center
chimney spaces where there is no mortar on that side.  It¹s well built
because no stones appear to have fallen out, unlike some areas of the
mortared wall foundation. Unfortunately there appears to be a dearth of
documentation about the cellars of early houses available.

We would love to hear from people who have encountered something similar or
might know leads to reference material on the subject.  So far, no buried
treasure has been discovered.  Perhaps one of its purposes was to serve as a
³root cellar² or other storage space, even a hiding place for rum runners¹
cache.  So far, no bottles found.

We appreciate anyone writing in to help us solve this mystery.  I have
photos which I am happy to share with people who contact me outside of the
listserv since attachments are against the rules.

Thanks in advance!

Diane Gilbert
Dartmouth Heritage Preservation Trust, Inc.



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