excavation of recently demolished crane brothers factory begins, pavers and paperwork unearthed

while the mountainous piles of rubble were being carted off, the last remains of the recently demolished crane brothers mfg. factory building addition (the main building constructed in 1865 still stands), i discovered a small cavity against the foundation wall that yielded a wealth of artifacts. the 19th and early 20th century ephemera uncovered there pertain to a time long ago, when the company was fabricating and distributing hundreds of brass and iron pipe fittings to accommodate steam systems, in buildings all across the country.

in addition to the invoices, shipping receipts, and several hand-written records, i discovered newspapers, catalogs, product samples and a largely intact, "industrial soap box" with graphic depicting a sitting machine operator. i find this to be especially interesting, as it provides insight into what sanitary products were used by crane employees in the factory's lavatories during the late 19th or early 20th century.

i collected several "pavers," comprised of both brick and granite (the former added after some of the earliest buildings on the factory "campus" were demolished and their basements filled in) because the haymarket riots broke out behind the crane factory in 1886 and i like the fact that pavers were required on the property to support the heavily weighted-down horse or oxen-drawn wagons filled with cast iron and brass pipe fittings that were being distributed across the city and beyond. unlike other pavers i've collected in city streets and alleyways, these bricks are incredibly worn, which makes them all the more visually appealing, and meaningful in light of their role preventing wagon wheels from sinking into the ground.

when the pavers and concrete slabs are removed in preparation for "potholing," i will be eagerly waiting onsite, with camera in hand, to document and recover any artifacts that were left behind during demolition of crane factory buildings or structures built there before crane set up shop.

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