Ye linear deposit of hardware and nails and buttons and coins and actu actually the deposits of artifacts out there were so dense and we found glass ware and ceramics and based on the date range of them, i was fairly certain at that time that we had identified the site of the slave quarters associated with it. We did not have any funding for archeo logical research. What we are looking at is what we call structure b or the six of the structure laid out in a row. The way it manifests itself is a foundation of the stone chimney. It is i am lamsimilar of what yn the secondary house there. It is a cshaped that formed the foundation for the chimney. You can see two smaller stone pee pe pierce which would have form the corner of the building. So actually some intermediate pier as well. So they probably were one story or a story and a half buildings, they measured about 20 by 34 feet in dimensions of external chimney in the south elevation. Very simple and expediant structure that was constru
But what we know today as the best farm forms the 274 acres of what was originally a 748 acre plantation. That plantation was known as laramie todge. It was established by a family of french planters who came to maryland in 1793 from the colony known today as haiti. The family was called the Vincent Deere family. They came to maryland to escape civil Unrest Associated with the slave uprising that begin in 1791 and also with the french revolution. The best farm was acquired by the National Park service in 1993. Its a fairly recent acquisition. Beginning in 19981999 is when we started doing a substantial amount of historical architectural and Archaeological Research here at the farm. We were aware there had been at one time a substantial enslaved population. We knew a little bit about the Vincent Deere family and their origins and their relocation here to maryland, but what we didnt know was very much more than that about the family. We had very Little Information about the enslaved popu
Really just sort of scratched the surface out here, and theres a lot more information potential with this site. Its very unique, particularly for this area, the midatlantic region. You dont typically see slavery being practiced on the scale that it was being practiced here at leramie taj. I think i mentioned that 90 slaves is roughly 10 times the number of enslaved individuals you would have expected to be living here. So thats an extremely unusual circumstance for this area. You know, like i said, they are about 20 x 34 feet. Thats just under 700 square feet of living space. If in fact there were only six structures total, one can assume there were somewhere between maybe as many as 12 or 15 People Living in each these dwelling houses which probably sounds like a lot, so i i would i would guess or assume that these may have been extended family units, for example, living together. Multiple generations of families. Like i say, these are pretty utilitarian, simple, expediently construct