Robert's Inn (18HO301)

The site is an early to mid-19th century standing hotel or tavern. The most noticeable difference between the Robert's Inn site and the other sites in this study is that the primary building on the property is not oriented toward Frederick Road (National Road/MD 144). When Robert's Inn was constructed around 1808, it was oriented to MD 97, which was acted as a major north-south thoroughfare, rather than the National Road which was under construction in 1808. This building likely respected another roadway or driveway that came off of MD 97. When it came time to construct an addition to the east, Cook simply built onto the building at the existing orientation. Although the National Road still came in front of Robert's Inn, the building retained its original orientation. Despite the orientation toward the other road, the Cooks still built Robert's Inn right along Frederick Road, allowing the owners of the building to eventually take advantage of the increased traffic.

Archaeological testing at the Wilson site was conducted in 2018 by Dovetail CRG. Fifty-one shovel test pits at various intervals were dug, mostly at 10’ intervals. These shovel tests were supplements with eight 5 x 5 foot test units and one 5 x 2.5 foot unit. In general, test units extended between 1.8 and 3.3 ft. deep before either sterile subsoil or cultural features were encountered. While there was some variation in stratigraphy, an undisturbed soil profile generally consisted of three strata: the uppermost was a 1 ft. thick dark brown silt A horizon. This A horizon gave way to a transitional layer consisting of a strong brown mottled silty clay, extending to a depth of approximately 2 ft. Below the transitional stratum was a sterile subsoil consisting of a yellowish red silty clay.

Based on remote sensing, shovel test pits and test units, archaeologists concluded the yard area surrounding the Robert's Inn site has been primarily disturbed and eroded away. The most intact areas of the site were in the front yard and the front yard just southeast of Robert’s Inn. This portion of the site revealed during the first half of the 19th century there was a low-lying area that facilitated the dumping of refuse produced from lodging large numbers of people. The artifacts included many alcohol bottles, some dishware fragments, and buttons that date prior to the mid-19th century. It is probable that much of the lower and eastern yard space once held many middens. Over time, however, this yard space has been cut, filled, and impacted by an extensive septic system.

The Robert's Inn site was the only one in this study to produce a large enough sample of faunal remains to conduct meaningful analysis, likely due to the greater amount of excavation at this site. A total of 213 faunal specimens were identified and analyzed. The analysis revealed that pig and cattle made up the vast majority of the species represented in the assemblage, suggesting a heavy reliance on medium to large domestic animals at the site. Two medium-sized bird bones were identified in the assemblage that might be chicken. Examining the elements present and butchery marks on the bone suggests that portions of the animals were being at least partially butchered on the site and that low utility butchering waste was being discarded in the yard along the road to the east and south of the inn. While these animals may very well have been raised on the site to provide for the guests of the inn, the lack of other body portions suggests that whole leg portions could have also been purchased by the inn proprietor, possibly from a nearby butcher or farm, and disarticulated during the preparation process. If this is the case, then the people dining at Robert's Inn would have likely been eating roasts and other cuts from the upper legs of cattle and pigs rather than steaks or ribs. While upper leg portions were certainly desirable cuts, they were definitely not the most expensive and they also have the advantage of being easily stretched to feed large groups by being used in stews and soups. Therefore, the type of meat offered at Robert's Inn also hints at the fact that it catered to larger numbers of diners as well as those who may not have been able to afford the highest quality meals while on the road.

The dishes used at Robert's Inn provide useful information for determining both dates of use and expectations for dining practices at inns along the National Road. The mean ceramic date for the Robert's Inn assemblage is the earliest of all of the sites in this study at 1832. However, the ceramic-based TPQ of 1850 compares favorably to the other sites and ceramics and other artifacts confirm the use of the site into the present day. The early mean ceramic date suggests that the site was most intensively used during the height of use along the National Road in the 1830s.

The ceramic assemblage from Robert's Inn shows a heavy reliance on refined earthenwares, which comprise 64 percent of the entire ceramic assemblage or 696 of 1,091 fragments. Coarse earthen wares also make up a sizable proportion of the ceramics at 33 percent. Decoration is present on 63 percent of the refined earthen wares at Robert’s Inn. Transfer printing, which accounts for 11 percent of the decorated refined earthen wares, is relatively homogenous in terms of both color and motif. While there are five colors of transfer printed wares represented, including blue, black, brown, green, and red, blue accounts for 82 percent of the printed wares. The vast majority of patterns, none of which could be specifically identified, represent floral motifs, which were most popular during the 1830s and 1840s. In general, it appears that general colors and motifs would have been parallel for the dining sets at Robert's Inn, but truly matching sets of dishes do not appear to have been present at the site. The relatively homogenous table settings at the site may reflect its primary function as a place to eat for travelers on the road. As serving the primary public function of a dining space, the proprietor may have chosen to invest more time and effort into similar dinnerware to both impress the guests and give them a sense of a well-ordered and maintained operation, perhaps enticing both travelers and locals to return to the inn on multiple occasions.

Relating to food consumption and the use of the space at Robert’s Inn, 629 green wine and ale bottle fragments were recovered during the excavation, representing no fewer than 24 individual vessels. These green wine and ale bottle fragments represent 79 percent of the total glass artifact assemblage from the site, significantly higher than any of the other sites examined in this study. The high quantity of these vessels underscores the use of the inn as a social place that was frequented by both travelers and local residents. Like other taverns and inns, it would have been a gathering place for the community to interact with one another as well as people stopping during their travels. This would have provided opportunities for the exchange of ideas, political discourse, and news relating to both the immediate area and the nation. Most of the dark green wine and ale bottles were concentrated in the midden located southeast of the home in the front yard. The smaller numbers of ceramic dishware fragments and occasional male waistcoat and coat buttons along with the paucity of traditionally female related artifacts do speak to primarily male clientele. This distribution is expected since men were the ones driving and transporting goods and animals along the National Road during the first half of the 19th century.

Eleven features were identified during the course of archaeological investigations at Robert's Inn. Six features were small post or planting holes, four were pockets of fill or unidentified features, and one was a concentration of stone representing a possible cobble path. All of the post hole/planting hole features were identified in TUs 1, 2, and 5, within the immediate front and side yard of Robert’s Inn, suggesting that these features were likely related to historic landscaping of the property.

(Modified from state site form by Patricia Samford)