Millers Point, the Urban Village, Hale & Jremonger, 1991, P.32F
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I • I I EXCAVATION REPORT I DARLING HOUSE I MILLERS POINT I VOLUME! I FOR DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING I I ' I • I I I I I I I May 1994 I Mary Casey I Casey & Lowe Associates Archaeological & Heritage Consultants Tel. & Fax (02) 558 2014 I 68 Warren Road, Marrickville NSW 2204 Mobile: (018) 437 564 I ..... -~-~ ... ---- ... ····•··-- ---·--------~ -------- -·· I I I VOLUME! 1.0 INTRODUCTION I 1.1 Background 1 1.2 Methodology 3 1.3 Study Area 3 I 1.4 Scope of Report 3 1.5 Limitations 3 1.6 Acknowledgments 3 I 1. 7 Author Identification 4 1. 8 Abbreviations 4 1.9 Statement of Significance 5 I 1.10 Summary 5 2.0 IDSTORICAL BACKGROUND I 2.1 Outline 6 2.2 Allotment 12 7 2.3 Allotment 11 9 I 2.4 Historical Overview 9 2.5 Caraher Stairs 11 I 2.6 Historical Chronology 11 3.0 ARCHAEOWGICAL EVIDENCE: THE BACKYARD 3.1 Description of the Site 12 I 3.2 Kitchen 14 3.3 Cesspits 26 3.4 Bathroom and Associated Deposits 34 3.5 Laundry 36 I 3.6 Other structures 38 3.7 Services 39 3. 8 Yard surfaces and Associated Deposits 41 I 3.9 Monitoring 43 3.10 General analysis of Structures and Phasing 44 I 4.0 ARCHAEOWGICAL EVIDENCE: THE ALWTMENT 4.1 Description of the Site 47 4.2 Areas Excavated 47 I 4.3 Monitoring 48 5.0 DISCUSSION I 5.1 Urbanisation 48 5.2 Archaeology of the Neighbourhood 50 5.3 Socio-economic Indicators 50 II 5.4 Identification of Gender and Associated Activities 51 5.5 Relationship between Archaeological and Historical Evidence 53 I 5.6 Further Research 53 6.0 BIBLIOGRAPHY I I I . .. - ~-- .. -- . I I I VOLUME2 7.0 ILLUSTRATIONS I 7.1 List of Figures 7.2 List of Plans 7.3 List of Tables I 7.4 Plates I 8.0 APPENDICES 8.1 Excavation Permit 8.2 Oral History I 8.3 Lists of Contexts 8.4 Minark Database Report, Wayne Mullen I 8.5 Photographic Recording Sheet I 9.0 ARTEFACT REPORTS 9.1 Generru Aims 9.2 Bone and Shell- Dominic Steele I 9.3 Ceramics- Mary Casey 9.4 Clay Pipes- Jennie Lindbergh 9.5 Glass and Stoneware - Martin Carney 9.6 Metals- Jennie Lindbergh I 9.7 Miscellaneous Artefacts- Jennie Lindbergh I I I VOLUME3 I 10.0 CATALOGUE SHEETS I I I I I I---- -- ~ --·· I I 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background I 10-12 Trinity Avenue, Millers Point consists of 'Darling House', and a vacant allotment (Fig. 1, Plan 1). Darling House is a two storey Georgian residence built between 1842-1844 (Fig. 2). The shell of the original house is intact but the interiors have been removed. The NSW Department of Housing, I with assistance from the Federal government, is building an aged care residential hostel for members of the local Millers Point community. I This work required construction to the rear and northern side of Darling House, and on the vacant allotment. Darling House was identified in the Archaeological Management Plan of The Rocks and Millers Point by Higginbotham, Kass & Walker as having considerable archaeological potential with I a high degree of significance. The Heritage Branch, Department of Planning required the Department of Housing to undertake an archaeological assessment of the site to determine the extent of archaeological involvement. Casey & Lowe Associates undertook this assessment in March 1992.I I Based on this assessment recommendations were made for the archaeological excavation of the backyard of Darling House and the excavation of test pits and monitoring of the vacant allotment. I Prior to the engagement of the archaeologists the Department of Housing had already performed exploratory work to the rear of Darling House to see if there would be construction difficulties in the area where the lift well was to be d~g. This exposed and removed a section of the sandstone I foundations of the kitchen which was erected at the same time as the house. Four test pits were dug in the area of the vacant allotment to test for bedrock depth. A number of core holes were taken to establish bedrock levels. The archaeologists took no role in or offered any advice regarding these I actiVIties.• • • The name 'Darling House' was adopted for this building by the local community because of the I original grant of this land by Governor Darling. The historical evidence indicates that at various times this substantial building had been called Darling House. Thus Darling House was used for this I report, as a suitable name for the site. All material relating to the excavation, such as, artefacts and context sheets, have been headed DH'92 which means Darling House 1992. This is a common method of abbreviation used in archaeology to I identify a particular site from all other sites and their excavated material. I 1.2 Study Area The area covered by this report is the rear yard of Darling House, the northern side of the house, and the vacant allotment to the south (Plan 1). The area to the front, or west of the house, was not I excavated because of the earlier presence of an underground petrol tank. This fuel tank was removed by the Department of Housing in early 1992. The area to the rear of the house was excavated manually. The vacant allotment was unable to be excavated because of high lead levels in the soiL I This phase of the work was monitored during the bulk excavation phase. Three of the four test sondages initially excavated by backhoe in this area were cleaned and their sections photographically I recorded. Further monitoring was undertaken on the northern side of the house. I I I Darling House, 8-12 Trinity A ~·enue, Millers Point, Baseline Archaeological Assessment, by Casey & Lowe Associates, March 1992, for the Department of Housing. I Casey & Lowe Associates Darling House '92 Department of Housing L--I I I I , ~~~ ~~ - ~\ . int Blues PL. <.~~~ ' ,-1 To r;,..._a,..._.,- · · · ~~ ' \\ I · ---- -..!- :.:.-:..w.:..-ood ~ . ~'~-- ' -o\ --- -..:;.":t.."•;/~~ • ~~ ,.,. .. , ... _,;~~ - .. , ......... ......."'"1:. h ',', ' ' : .... ~;.,. .. ·. PCJRT ·. ', I "~ -"':.. --····- ---- -- •ll.•-. .. .· .,,,,... _.... ---- . ' ~r'O:.. !!"".;; ..... ., .. .;,;' . .. ~~ ..,. '. I . ..: , ' . ,· .~ .,.· ";f1YW aLsh . .. ,·: . e-'.1"' Bay,:, .. I ~..... i . I I Farm... I cove I • I I I I I 10 I ,. • --,, t~:iori~. I Figure 1: Location Plan for Darling House, Trinity Avenue, Millers Point. UBD I I I Casey & Lowe Associates Darling House '92 Department of Housing I I Introduction .•. 2 I I I Edge of quarried rockface ......--- y - --y "V 1 /----- I ~..,...!:------ _ __} ___ , ---~ -- ----- / \' ~ ' . ~ . I . -- .:::;, _ _;,-r-----:t. ~ / 1 r· -\ mmmm I 1 -·- I I ;' I Sondage 1 /-1 t . I / Backyard 1 I I _,/ ,,., I >-Edge of quarried roclcface \ \ . I I \,.) \ -v-- . I !· I Sondage 2 ' - --- I I I -·-·. • I Sondage 3 I I Caraher I Vacant I Stairs I Allotment I I I I I I I I Trinity A venue I I .Sm I Plan 1: Darling House and the vacant allotment showing the edge of the rockface, and the sorulilges. I Scale 1:100, A. Lowe. I Casey & Lowe Associates Darling House '92 Department of Housing I • ~---~-.:;--:--: ·-· ._' I Introduction ... 3 I 1.3 Methodology The excavation was carried out in a controlled stratigraphic manner. It was excavated by hand with I three trained archaeologists and assistance from volunteers. All stages of the excavation were recorded on context sheets, planned and photographed in black and white film. I 1.4 Scope of Report I This report covers the excavation of the backyard of Darling House, the sondages in the vacant allotment next door and the archaeological monitoring of the allotment. It includes artefact reports (Vol. 2) and artefact catalogues (Vol. 3). A certain amount of analysis has been carried out on the I artefacts within their individual contexts. This is included within the main body of the text. I 1.5 Limitations The archaeological excavation took place in areas where there was to be considerable disturbance of I the archaeological deposit. Initially this was to include some test pits in the vacant allotment but once some concern was raised about the levels of lead contamination at the site as a whole the project had to be reassessed. The initial soil reports indicated that there were higher levels of lead contamination in I the vacant allotment, especially near the eastern part of the site. It appears that the contamination was coming from the Bradfield Expressway which was above the site to the east. This led to discussions with the Work Cover Authority upon how we could approach the site with the intention of excavation. From these discussions it was decided that the conditions on the vacant allotment, especially the depth of soil deposits, made it unwise to continue any major manual excavation. It was possible to excavate the backyard area because it was damp and there were minimal soil deposits. Thus the initial plans to I excavate parts of the vacant allotment had to be curtailed because of lead contamination. It was examined only by archaeological monitoring. This monitoring programme was undertaken during September 1993. This phase of the work required another excavation permit application to be lodged I since the previous permit had expired . • The archaeological assessment of this site includes much of the historical material for this project. It will not be repeated here. Where we have decided to extend the historical research into specific individuals who occupied the site during the identified historical periods that information has been included in this report. A precis of the original Baseline Assessment will be included to provide a general historical background to the excavation report.