More Artifacts Cleaned
April 20, 2002
During February and April 2002, artifacts recovered from the 2001 excavations were systematically cleaned and processed.
Archives for April 2002:
Chain of Title Researched
The Chain of Title research was completed in the Spring of 2002 and can be viewed by clicking here.
Research
Circa 1750 Anglican Church Hidden Under Earth for 170 Years
April 9, 2002
Pottery Fragments found at Elk Run
Archaeologist John Eddins Records findings in a controlled excavation unit.
Petrone & Associates use remote sensing technology to identify possible burial sites in the Elk run cemetery.
Finding all of the corners of the foundation was the key to confirming rumors that the Elk run Church was indeed a cruciform design.
Soil is carefully sifted so that tiny artifacts are not overlooked.
From The Virginia Episcopalian, April 2002 (with permission)
By Ed Dandar and Nancy Jenkins
It all began in 1998 when a neighbor started clearing brush from the Elk Run property. Less than a year later, members of St. Stephen’s Church in Catlett began to uncover the remains of what is believed to be the first brick church in Fauquier County’s mid-1700s frontier.
Elk Run Anglican Church was built sometime in the 1750’s. It served as the mother church for Hamilton Parish and its first rector, the Rev. James Keith, was the grandfather of Chief Justice John Marshall. Until now, the only recorded description of the church was made by Bishop Meade who, in 1857, wrote that it was “a substantial brick church, cruciform, I believe. I am not certain that the roof was on it when I first saw it in 1811. Its walls continued for many years after this and I saw them gradually disappear during my annual visits to the conventions.” The Elk Run Church Site Preservation Committee, led by St. Stephen’s, Catlett in collaboration with St. James, Warrenton, is leading the archaeological effort to preserve this colonial church site. In June of 1999, Ned Browning, the owner of the property and descendant of the first rector Keith, approved of the preservation plan and donated the land to St. Stephen’s.
By exposing 95% of the intact foundation, the all-volunteer archaeological team has confirmed that Elk Run Church was a rare Greek cross structure with roughly equal sized extensions on all sides. At least two other pre-Revolutionary Anglican churches in Virginia - Aquia and Abingdon - were built in the cruciform plan.
Both Aquia and Elk Run Churches were built in the 1750s but while Aquia is still an active church today, Elk Run was abandoned sometime after 1806. After abandonment, the church fell into decay and some of its brick and wood was carried off for use in other structures. What remained fell into the earth and was eventually buried beneath pasture and cedar trees. Until now, the church foundation and artifacts had been hidden from view for about 170 years.
Community volunteers under the direction of volunteer archaeologist Dr. John Eddins, dug a total of 27 controlled excavation units between April 2000 and November 2001. Findings are plotted on a grid to help track their spatial relationships within the site. To date, found artifacts include handmade nails, ceramic dish fragments, 19th century coins and Indian arrowheads dating back 4000 years or more.
The team’s speculation about an adjacent cemetery was confirmed in December of 2000 with the discovery of the first grave. Months later, Pete Petrone, whose earlier team discovered an underground ship at the Great Pyramid in 1987, came to Elk Run and conducted remote sensing to determine the church cemetery boundaries, possible positions of burials within the cemetery, and areas that might have further archaeological significance.
At the dedication of the historical marker in 2000, colonial church historian Carl Lounsbury of the Williamsburg Foundation said “I am deeply awed by all of you for creating history here. History is ambivalent. There are facts, but facts are useless until you make something of them. We know, and we knew for a long time, that there was an Elk Run Church and we had an idea that it might have been cruciform, but it is thanks to you and all your volunteers that have actually turned this into a reality. It will then integrate into a public memory of this place. It can only grow as time progresses.”
Using their knowledge of period architecture and the provided by the archaeology team, the Williamsburg Foundation will provide a computer drawing of how the church probably looked. The Preservation Committee is already raising funds to convert the property into County Historic Park Site where visitors can learn about the colonial church. To this end, they will soon outline the surface of the foundation with colonial brick.
The Committee also has an extensive Web site which includes historic maps, photos of the site and artifacts, and genealogical information. Contributions for this effort can be mailed to the Elk Run Church Site Preservation Committee, 8538 Greenwich Road, Catlett, Virginia 20119.
Ed Dandar is the Chairman of the Elk Run Preservation Committee and a member, of St. Stephen’s, Catlett.