Thank Goodness for Cowboys
Well, the only reason I happened upon this privy is that the owner had some difficulty (understatement) getting a tile installer to come back and fix the terrible job he had done! It turned out that being an 1880’s house it was pretty well contorted and required some prep work in the basement before tile was installed. Some of the sub floor wasn’t even touching the joists… so the grout and tile were cracking! Anyway I ended up in tearing out the entire job and starting from scratch.
I got to dig both her and the neighbor’s yard. Her privy didn’t probe out too well but I decided to give it a go. After 5 feet it was like lime soup (as in the chemical, not the fruit). It was like digging in white paint AND everything seemed busted up. I took a look at the task ahead and decided to call it a day. I did however find a local hutch and drugstore. Figuring that as the next door privy probed out better, I’d place my hopes in that hole instead.
When probing the neighbors’ privy I nearly fell on my face it was so loamy, and when I found a broken blob soda six inches from the surface it didn’t take long to empty the entire pit. I must have dug about 60 bottles; most were slick meds, a few Bromo’s and a Winslow’s soothing syrup. These were given away to the homeowner and a friend who came to help fill in the hole. The pit didn’t turn out amazing stuff but I got a few keepers. All said and done, “if you’re in the seeds you’ve met your needs”.
The keepers were:
Mrs. Winslow’s soothing syrup.
(This product became known as the “baby killer” as it contained opium which was quite common to be found in medicines back then …as was alcohol and cocaine!)
Aschenbach & Miller, Phila (possibly flavoring or extract)
Florida water (used to scent handkerchiefs)
Wakefield’s Blackberry balsam (for Diarrhea)
Citron ( poss drugstore but rare color)
4 Leslie E Keeley drugstore size bottles with chips (He produced the quintisential cure bottles… A cure for Drunkeness, cure for the Tobacco Habit, Opium cure and a Neurotine.. He became an extremely wealthy man and also the for runner to AA)
The crying glass consisted of a Dr. Varena’s Japan Bitters and a semi cabin bitters, possibly Doyle’s.