Birely Tannery (18FR575)

The Birely Tannery (18FR575) is situated on the left descending bank of Carroll Creek in Frederick, MD. Excavations at the site document late 18th, 19th, and post-tannery 20th century filling episodes associated with the construction and operation of a tannery.

Phase II work was performed in 1983 and began with archival research. The lot on which the initial tannery was established was purchased by Elizabeth Birely from Peter Fout in 1819, and tannery operations were underway by 1822, if not earlier. Peter Fout appears in a 1798 assessment as the owner of one lot on which was located a “Tan Yard”. It is not clear how many or which lots Fout owned at this point and so the attribution of this lot to the Birely Tannery is speculative. When Elizabeth Birely died in 1828, she left her brick dwelling on Patrick Street in Frederick, residential rental property adjacent to it, stock in a shop on Cheapside in Baltimore, and “all my stock in trade at the tannery in Frederick embracing leather, hides, bark, tools” etc. to her son Valentine together with two “negro men”. Other documents indicate that slaves may have performed many of the daily operations at the tannery. The archival documents attest to construction dates between the period 1819-1822, and the function of this property as an industrial site well into the 20th century.

The investigations in 1983 involved five backhoe trenches, three auger tests, and four shovel tests excavated in an attempt to locate architectural features and trash deposits. Three features associated with the functioning of the tannery were identified; a stone foundation with associated paving stones, an early 20th century lye vat with rubber shoe heels within, and a leather discard pile. Lime deposits were located in an area where maps indicated a lime house stood. A total of 318 artifacts were recovered during the 1983 Phase II testing.

In 1988 Phase III data recovery was conducted after it was determined that a large portion of the site would be destroyed as a result of the construction of new flood control infrastructure. Over 40 features and associated midden areas were revealed, including the remains of four tannery structures (a bark mill, a hide house, a lime house, and a beam house), 24 tanning vats, a cobble road, a section of paling fence, a large leather/hair dump, and both modern and early midden deposits. All excavated soil matrices were dry or wet screened.

Historic artifacts recovered include 187 activity items, 1212 animal bones, 380 architectural items, 5 clothing objects, 1267 kitchen-related objects, 16 personal objects and 1 arms-related item. Three prehistoric objects were also excavated, 2 sherds and a flake.

Archaeological investigations conducted at the Birely Tannery have given us a comprehensive look at an industry which throughout the 18th century and much of the 19th century was second only to agriculture in its importance. The investigations conducted at this tannery have helped to shed some light on a number of topics which include: (1) the types of archaeological features and remains which can be expected at tanneries, (2) the layout of tanneries in terms of the process of leather production and economic efficiency in terms of the process of leather production and economic efficiency in terms of time and motion, (3) the introduction of new technologies due to innovations and research in the fields of mechanical engineering and in organic chemistry, and (4) something of the historic traditions associated with the craft.

(Edited from the Maryland Historical Trust Synthesis Project)