Virginia Heritage: Menokin

Some of you may have noticed that I occasionally disappear Monday-Thursday.  This is why!  I've been working on an archaeological project at Menokin, a site near Warsaw, Virginia.  It's not your typical ground-truthing project: we're actually excavating rubble from a house, part of which is still standing.

Menokin's northeast corner

Menokin, the home of Francis Lightfoot Lee (signer of the Declaration of Independence and brother of Richard Henry Lee) and his wife Rebecca Tayloe, was built around 1769.  It was inhabited until the 1930s, after which it fell into disrepair.  The Menokin Foundation would like to rebuild the mansion with structural glass.  This would protect but still show architectural elements of the house, and be a great way to teach about historic architecture.  DATA Investigations has been excavating rubble from Menokin, room by room, since 2006 (I believe).  During this field season, we cleared out a large portion of the southeast cellar room, and rubble around the exterior.  My job?  I screened a lot of dirt, and found a lot of nails and window glass.  Doesn't sound particularly exciting, but it's fun to see the progress we're making on the project - especially when the weather's as beautiful as it was this past week!

We reached the floor!

My time at Menokin, interestingly enough, lined up with the liturgical season of Lent.  The first week of the season, I rushed home from a dusty day of excavation to shower and go to Ash Wednesday Mass - where I was reminded that I am dust.  It's a sobering thought, and not one that is easy to forget while working at Menokin.

The backdirt pile (or "mountain") - it's even bigger now!

This coming week I will be working down in Gloucester at the Fairfield Foundation.  I'll be gone from Northern Virginia, but should have slightly better access to the internet!