Walking around the archaeological site that he has been excavating for the past 13 summers, archaeologist Tim Dinsmore is amazed at the fortune his team has had this past season. Lying out in the open near the River Road in Newcastle is a stunning array of discoveries: the remains of a tavern, an 18th century well, and thousands of biological and material artifacts.
Surprisingly, the researchers weren’t even supposed to be there at all. According to Dinsmore, excavations were planned at another site this summer. When those fell through, Dinsmore and his team of volunteers decided to return to the River Road excavation, an 18th century homestead and tavern owned by a wealthy shipbuilder.
Since 1980, Dinsmore has been excavating two sites along the Damariscotta River, both homes to two of the region’s wealthiest individuals. From 1980 to 2000 Dinsmore worked on the homestead of shipwright George Barstow, a dig that yielded over 100,000 artifacts. In 1998, he began working on his current project, the Bryant-Barker homestead and tavern site.
This summer, while attempting to discover one of the walls belonging to the Bryant-Barker home, Dinsmore came upon a chance find: a stone-lined 18th century well.
“We were looking for a wall and we found a well,” said Dinsmore, looking down into the nine foot diameter hole.
Excavating the well proved extremely challenging. Digging five inches at a time, Dinsmore and volunteers took painstaking efforts to avoid an accident.
“We had to figure out how to excavate [the well] without a cave in,” said Dinsmore.
Though the well was initially used for drawing water, it was later turned into a garbage pit, after the well dried up.
According to Dinsmore, the tavern and well belonged to Nathaniel Bryant, a shipbuilder whose ships were instrumental in the trade of goods throughout the Atlantic. The tavern was built in his home to supplement his income. Bryant was one of the wealthiest people in the area, so much so that he was one of only a few people in the region to own a slave.
A list of his possessions at the time of his death in 1772 reveal that he owned a “negro wench” valued at £40, two ships worth a combined ₤600, and over 100 acres of land.
“Only people with the highest economic standing had slaves,” said Dinsmore.
After his death at the early age of 33, Bryant’s wealth was divided amongst his wife and three children, room by room. According to Dinsmore, Bryant left his wife only the southeast portion of the home that included the bar room. Bryant’s wife would continue to live in the two-story homestead until 1803.
Excavations into what is believed to be the tavern’s cellar have also been undertaken alongside the work being done on the well. Thousands of artifacts have been uncovered, from lead-lined milk pans to cow mandibles.
The animal remains and glass alcohol bottles found in the well shed light on 18th century dietary practices.
According to Dinsmore, tavern patrons ate clam chowder and steamers, much like today.
“These people really loved clams,” said Muriel Wilhelm, 88, of Bristol, as she scoured through a pile of unearthed clam shells.
Dinsmore heads digs through the Damariscotta River Association’s Archaeology Field School, the University of Maine, and an archaeology outreach project in conjunction with Great Salt Bay. His volunteers are an amalgamation of students, retirees, and those just fascinated with history.
Wilhelm falls into all three categories: Spurred by her lifelong desire to be an archaeologist, she has been volunteering with Dinsmore since 1994.
“When you’re retired you say ‘I’m going to do what I’ve always wanted to do,'” said Wilhelm.
Though excavations began at the homestead in 1998, Dinsmore’s team didn’t find the foundations of the building until 2001. Since 2001, Dinsmore’s team has discovered the 40 foot long foundation of the homestead, the tavern’s cellar, the chimney base, and, this year, the well.
Dinsmore does not plan on continuing excavations next year. His team will now turn to cataloguing and analyzing a massive backlog of artifacts discovered over the past seasons.
“I think we’re done,” he said.
His research is funded primarily through the Newcastle Historical Society and the DRA. Dinsmore will be giving a presentation on the subject at Colonial Pemaquid Aug. 30 at 7: 30 p.m.
“There’s a lot of history in Midcoast Maine worth telling a story about,” said Dinsmore.
