Building XI (44GL182)
Site History
The Building XI site (44GL182) is a colonial period site located overlooking the York River on the campus of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) in Gloucester County, Virginia. The site is believed to have been part of Old Gloucestertown and is part of the Gloucester Point Archaeological District. This site may be the same as a site with the recorded number 44GL38.
Archaeological Investigations
This site was first discovered in 1978 during a bulkheading project for VIMS. Work at that time revealed a segment of brick foundation bonded with shell tempered mortar, as well as fragments of tin-glazed earthenware fireplace tiles.
Archaeological investigations of 44GL182 were conducted by archaeologists David Hazzard and Nick Luccketti of the Virginia Division of Historic Resources in 1981. This work was done prior to the construction of a new administration building on the campus of VIMS. Time constraints allowed for only a partial excavation of the structure, most of which was conducted by volunteers from the History Department of the College of William and Mary. Two trenches were excavated through the building, the first perpendicular to the long axis of the building and the second down the length of the building near the center line.
Excavations at the site revealed evidence of a 25 × 41 ft. frame house that would have been located on the east side of Tindall’s Street in Old Gloucestertown. Two test holes were also excavated, and one revealed traces of a robbed structural wall, while the second unit was placed inside the 5 x 12 ft. cellar of the structure, which extended five feet below modern grade. A fragment of English brown stoneware found at the lowest levels of the cellar suggested an 18th-century construction date for the building. The cellar, which had been lined with wood, was located in the northeastern corner of the structure.
The site appeared to have been destroyed during the fourth quarter of the 18th century; perhaps razed for the construction of a Revolutionary War gun battery. The fortification ditch for the battery ran through the west side of the structure.
References
2004 Uncovering Old Gloucestertown: Archaeological Survey and Data Recovery at the College of William and Mary's Virginia Institute of Marine Science, Gloucester Point, Virginia. GL-085.
