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June 1, 2007

What Lies Beneath: Excavating the Concrete Yard

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Here's a note and some pictures from a reader who recently dug up the concrete that had been covering her rear and front yards and found an archaeological trove underneath, including tons of bluestone, pieces of marble and an old cast iron sign. From the horse's mouth...

We started breaking up all the concrete at the beginning of the month, initially using a sledgehammer and crowbar - Bad Idea! After a day of back-breaking work, we decided to get a jack hammer to complete the job. This was much easier but we still had to move all the concrete and cinder block wall pieces out of the way to allow us access to the bluestone. Anyway, we finished breaking it all in about 4 days. We were surprised to find the original bluestone patio and path in the backyard. A couple of pieces have a fleur de lis design and some have crosses and 1836 stamped on them.

We also found quite a bit of marble (broken pieces), glass, random iron and a lion head sign. In the end, we were able to use all of the found bluestone to enlarge the original patio. We also used the remaining stone to pave the front yard path as you will see in the pix. Everything turned out beautifully - the hardest part was trying to find someone to take away the mountains of debris. We also lucked out by finding Denny Wiggers Gardens, who had a couple of larger bluestone pieces we needed for the front yard. Next we will put down sod in the back and create our flower and vegetable garden. We also have to do the front sidewalk which has cracked and raised pieces.

We also found a lot of bluestone buried on our yard but have yet to jackhammer the small portion (first ten feet or so) that has concrete poured over it. What have other readers found in their yards?
Treasure Found Under Concrete [Forum]




Posted by Brownstoner at 10:17 AM | Comments (25)
Categories: Gardening

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I love the pics of your stoop. I recently did the same to my front yard. I am considering using stamped concrete made to look like bluestone, or putting slate tiles on top of regular concrete. What did you do? Who did you use? Please send recs and refferals. Thanks

Posted by: chrisondecatur at June 1, 2007 10:33 AM

I was waiting to read that you found Jimmy Hoffa. I guess he'll show up one day.

Posted by: GutFromDoBro at June 1, 2007 10:43 AM

In the backyard,we found all of the debris from a 1970's "renovation", which including tile from the original bathrooms (grrr), a rotting rug, a boatload of cable and telephone wires dropped by 20 years of lazy repairmen, and a rotary lawnmower, all covered by layers of dirt upon which grew a forest of bamboo-like plants with a root system from hell.

No bluestone yet. Jimmy Hoffa was probably eaten by the plants.

Posted by: Preservationista at June 1, 2007 10:49 AM

"... a forest of bamboo-like plants with a root system from hell."

Sounds like Japanese Knotweed, also known as Mexican Bamboo. It's extremely invasive, and even more difficult to eradicate. Any pix?

Posted by: Xris (Flatbush Gardener) at June 1, 2007 11:04 AM

Our front garden and back yard were covered in many parts by cracked concrete. Garden beds had retaining walls made fo bluestone slabs turned on their sides and painted white (ugh!).

Upon breaking the old concrete in the front and back, we found that the entire area was pretty much completely covered with a bluestone patio. Unfortunately, breaking the concrete that was poured on top of the bluestone caused a lot of the bluestone to crack and break too. We have not been able to use it to repave with large pieces as you have luckily been able to do, but we have used parts to make retaining walls in the garden by stacking small pieces on each other.

We also found what looks like an old buckle or broach. Neighbors have found glass jars from the 1850s and later in the 19th century.

Posted by: lp at June 1, 2007 11:10 AM

Our backyard was also so full of debris that we had no idea all of the beautiful bluestone underneath. It was a true delight to uncover. We also found spindles in the yard amongst the garbage and weeds. At one point, we had all of the trash piled in a corner at the back of the yard where our cat loved to sit and watch over his domain. One thing that continually surfaces even after 20 years is pieces of glass. Your bluestone in the front looks lovely. Congratulations and good luck.

Posted by: anon on Greene at June 1, 2007 11:28 AM

we found an old dog collar and some bones. yuck.

Posted by: kitten at June 1, 2007 11:31 AM

I found some wonderful old things in my walls, but my favorite find was from the 1980's....crack viles. I'm looking forward to smashing up the concrete now!

Posted by: Anonymous at June 1, 2007 12:13 PM

Preservationista -- are you my split personality? Add to your list endless coke bottles, both plastic and glass, doors, acres of linoleum, an inexplicable number of discarded wacky-patterned shower curtains, whole pieces of furniture (yes, fully submerged under the dirt!), diapers, gas and oil tanks to god knows what long-rotten machine, and my favorite, and entire car's drive shaft. To top of it all off, all this is tied together by the root system of those evil, monstrous weeds.

I'm glad Xris put a name to them -- I'm gonna look them up.

Posted by: Jeremy at June 1, 2007 12:17 PM

Chrisondecatur, we used day laborers to get the mountains of debris out of the yard. After the rubbish removal guys took most of the concrete we still had lots of dirt & small rocks left. We just bagged it all and paid a man w/ a van to cart it away. Day laborers helped us level out the bluestone. Denny Wiggers Gardens (Paramus, NJ) for additional bluestone pieces needed. We also found a ton of trash under the concrete - a complete bathroom, lots of metal and glass. Can't wait to have some grass!

Posted by: Anonymous at June 1, 2007 12:26 PM

Wow, Jeremy, you win the Dubious Dump Prize. And thanks Xris, for the name. I'm going to look them up, too.

Posted by: Preservationista at June 1, 2007 12:46 PM

I found a lovely tombstone-shaped stone with flowers and vines carved into it. Luckily, no body (unless it's buried deeper than I dug). Unfortunately, my contractor threw it away during a renovation. Also found a large slab of bluestone. And many small plastic toys.

Posted by: Anonymous at June 1, 2007 12:48 PM

We found some weird little pieces of white porcelain - one a small, fat cylinder like a counterweight, the other a little decorative thingy, like a pull from a window shade or an old toilet maybe? Also a cast-iron stove burner, quite beautiful with its layers of rust. And some buried caches of white shells (maybe the previous inhabitants liked oysters).

Posted by: anonymous at June 1, 2007 1:01 PM

I looked it up! Japanese Knotwood, that's what it is! And it's kind of edible, according to one source. I think I'll pass on that one. The scourge has a name. Thanks, Xris!

Apparently all those years of pulling them up by the roots whenever they appear is actually a good defense. Hardy suckers, though.

We also found some interesting bottles, and sections of plain cast iron fencing about 4 feet high, which may have been the original fence around the property line.

Posted by: Preservationista at June 1, 2007 1:11 PM

Preservationista, I'll see you one and raise you one: a monstrous-big cast iron radiator buried half a foot down. What did we do with it? Re-buried it, of course? But we did take away the demolished shed and rotting roof tiles, the dead cut-up tree, and the 200 (recent, boring) glass bottles. This was 20 years ago, so the crack vials came later. We have found 1 leg from an old claw-foot tub (where did the other 3, and the tub, go??), and a few cool old marbles. Since our house sits atop what was once a golf course south of the Parade Grounds, I keep hoping for an Edwardian-era golf ball!

Posted by: Brenda from Flatbush at June 1, 2007 1:23 PM

Oh, I forgot, I also found a spent .38 shell casing, but it looked to be a blank for a starter pistol as opposed to a former live round.

Also found, in a wall, a snuff tine from Chicago dated 1904. Must have been left there during a renovation.

Posted by: lp at June 1, 2007 1:28 PM

oops, snuff "tin", not "tine".

A favorite fine in the back yard was the original carriage stone that would have been in front of the house on the sidewalk, for stepping down from horse drawn carriages - pretty cool.

Posted by: lp at June 1, 2007 1:31 PM

I found a .32 revolver wrapped in a plastic bag with the classic electric tape handle.

Posted by: anon at June 1, 2007 2:17 PM

Horseshoes...the carriage house next door used to be a stables

Posted by: pastoralia at June 1, 2007 2:41 PM

we found a bottle from sir j murrays patent carbinated cold magnesia and the foundation to a hen house and pig run!

Posted by: jodes at June 1, 2007 3:55 PM

Granted this story comes from Penn. but when my mom was digging up her backyard to make a moat (long story)for a new garden, the contractors kept bring up old elixir bottles and such. Then one day a contractor came in to the kicthen with a femur.
After the cops and forensics came through, it was determined that an old farmer's graveyard across the street (on the ridge line- not good crop land) had been pushed down the hill, and into what became our yard decades later, to build the foundations for first big house in town.
Question 2:17- did you keep the gun or turn it in?

Posted by: Max at June 1, 2007 5:15 PM

I've far found two ancient wells that reminded me a little too much of the movie "The Ring" and a partially dirt-filled brick bunker that looks like it might have been a bomb shelter in the 50's.

Posted by: Shahn Andersen at June 1, 2007 5:47 PM

We found an old stone wall buried across the back of our property. Huge stones and oh so many. It took two van loads to get them to a dump.

Posted by: Gary at June 1, 2007 5:58 PM

In the back yard I found a rollerskate probably from the 40's, the end of a meerschaum pipe, carved to look like a colonial guy's head, and a lot of oyster shells.

In the ceiling in the cellar though, we found the best thing - a Lucky Strike tin filled with porno pamphlets from what looks to be the teens or twenties. (The punchline of the best one - from a little comic book - was about shennanigans in a car and the punchline was of course "Get a Horse".

Posted by: You Gotta Be Kidding at June 2, 2007 8:33 PM

A cast iron pully wheel from a factory, probably around turn of the centiry. 2 1/2 feet in diameter, weighs about 100 pounds and looks beautiful. Couldn't bare to part with it so partially buried it in the yard and now it's art . . . . bad art.

Posted by: John at June 4, 2007 8:12 AM

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