Great Neck Road Site (18QU240)

The Great Neck Road site (18QU240) was a tenant house or farmstead occupied between the early 19th century and the early 20th century. It is located south of Broad Creek on Kent Island in Queen Anne’s County.

The site sits on a 200-acre tract that was originally surveyed for Thomas Waddy in the late 1600s or early 1700s. In 1707, the tract was conveyed to Dr. Lewis DeRochbrune. The property, including a still-standing 18th-century brick plantation house, stayed in the DeRochbrune family until 1784, when it was conveyed to Thomas Winchester. Roderick Earickson acquired it in 1829, and his family maintained possession throughout much of the 19th century. A building is visible in the area on maps from 1846, 1877, 1895, 1904, and 1907. It is believed that the structure at 18QU240 was built be either the son of Thomas Winchester or by Roderick Earickson, and was occupied by several different families over its life.

A Phase I archaeological survey of 18QU240 was conducted in 1990 in advance of a Maryland Route 8 realignment project. A nonsystematic surface collection revealed a dense scatter of brick, oyster shell, ceramics, and glass. A total of 29 shovel test pits were then excavated, recovering 84 artifacts from plowzone. A terminus post quem of 1840 was calculated from the ceramic assemblage.

Phase II fieldwork was conducted in May 1993. A total of 68 shovel test pits were excavated, followed by eight test units in areas with high artifact concentrations. Additionally, four 30-meter trenches were mechanically excavated to search for any features. Cultural features were encountered only in Trench 3. Only one of these features, a brick foundation with a possible associated brick floor, was excavated. The artifact assemblage suggested that the feature was part of a domestic structure. Eight postmolds were identified in Trench 3. They may not be contemporaneous with each other, and could be associated with the dwelling, an outbuilding, or a fence. A builder’s trench was also noted.

A total of 6,264 artifacts were retrieved during the Phase II investigations. Creamware and pearlware sherds were most heavily associated with the brick foundation, as was a large cluster of kitchen artifacts. The presence of charcoal and burned artifacts may indicate that a fire occurred prior to the demolition of that structure. In addition to the Trench 3 remains, another small cluster of kitchen-related artifacts and nails was located at the north end of Trench 1.

(Edited from the Maryland Historical Trust Synthesis Project)