I found what appeared to be a hollowed out portion of a chimney base while
excavating a Shaker kitchen building at Union Village, Ohio. Although the
building had been demolished, the hoolowed-out space did not seem to be
related to the demolition. Since it was empty and the building was occupied
for about 50 years after the Shakers left, I can't say for sure it was a
Shaker hiding place or something associated with later occupations (One of
which being an orphan boys' home - more likely suspects for constructing
hidey-holes).

Andrew R. Sewell, MS, RPA
Principal Investigator
Hardlines Design Company
4608 Indianola Ave
Columbus Ohio 43214
ph. (614)-784-8733
fax (614)-7849336
http://www.hardlinesdesign.com


-----Original Message-----
From: HISTORICAL ARCHAEOLOGY [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Ian
Evans
Sent: Thursday, August 24, 2006 3:23 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Concealed objects in buildings


Dear HistArchers,

I'm curious to know if you're aware of finds of concealed objects (ie
charms) in houses and other buildings in North America.
The custom is widespread in England and also occurred in Australia.
The most common items are shoes which are general found in sealed voids,
either in the subfloor area or associated with the hearth and the chimney.
These were thought to act as lures, decoying evil spirits and witches away
from the people who lived in or used the building.
I have a couple of reports of finds in the US and am wondering if anyone
out there has comes across other examples. An outline of this practice is
on my website: www.oldhouses.com.au.

Ian Evans
Byron Bay, NSW
Australia