The Spring field season is off to a great start at the Caulkers’ Houses in Fells Point! This weekend, we discovered a dazzling array of 19th-century material culture, and have begun to explore the ways in which the families who lived in these homes made the most of limited indoor and outdoor space. We’ve found several children’s toys, including marbles and porcelain dolls, imported and locally-made ceramics, everyday items such as kitchen knives and teaspoons, and even two human teeth – one baby tooth and a wisdom tooth (home dentistry was an unfortunate fact of 19th-century life).
Although a portion of the rear yard appears to be disturbed, likely due to privy digging in the 20th century, there are many areas that have enormous potential to provide meaningful insights into the lives of the African-American ship caulkers and the various immigrant families who lived in these modest homes. We’ll be back again next week with new questions and new discoveries!
The Herring Run Archaeology Project 
Quick question: have limestone marbles ever been found in a Caulker House dig?
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Hello! Yes, we did recover limestone marbles from the Caulkers’ Houses.
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Merry Christmas! We just published a new story and would love for you to take a look at it. Now we are also working on a story about the Caulker’s houses for which you gave us permission to use the marble stories. Thank you again, and we will let you know when that story is published. Now an odd question. To whom am I speaking? We would love to give you a special “thank you” in the Caulker Houses story. Happy Holidays! Larry
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Hi Larry, and Merry Christmas to you too! This is Lisa Kraus, one of the co-directors of the project. 🙂
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New story “Marbles From the Caulker’s Homes: Historical Status Markers from Baltimore’s Iconic Past” just published @ https://thesecretlifeofmarbles.com/marbles-from-the-caulkers-homes-historical-status-markers-from-baltimores-iconic-past/ If you take a look please let us know what you think! Happy New Years!
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