Jane Millar (C’14) concluded her post-baccalaureate year working with students in Dr. Sherwood's North American Archaeology class to systematically survey the forested slopes behind Rebel's Rest. George Fairbanks' original lease encompassed six acres, stretching past the yard and down to the creek in Abbo's Alley. Historic photos and accounts show at least nine outbuildings on the site: garden sheds, a privy, domestic servants' quarters, and a barn for the resident cow, to name a few. Due to the dense vegetation this area could not be surveyed using geophysical techniques such as the GPR (previous post).
The purpose of the survey was to identify promising areas that might contain archaeological deposits behind the house, where the bedrock is often close to the surface. Jane and the students dug small excavations called shovel test pits every 10 meters down the slope, spaced along a 10-m grid. They uncovered a variety of historic ceramics, glass, bricks, and metal artifacts, including cut nails dating to pre-1890, along with possible collapsed chimneys or stone piers marking where outbuildings once stood. These findings remind us that there is more to the story of Rebel’s Rest—or “Fairbanks Farm,” as it was historically known—than the main house. By including the areas behind the house where people worked, played, cooked, discarded everyday items, and otherwise went about their business, we hope to enrich our understanding of the lives of the site’s early residents.
