| * Cultural Period 1 | Colonial 1630 - 1768 |
|---|---|
| * Cultural Period 2 | Revolutionary 1768 - 1784 |
| * Cultural Period 3 | Federal mid-1780 - 1820 |
| Agroecosystem | An agroecosystem is a community of plants and animals that have been modified by humans to produce food, fiber, and fuel. Agroecosystems are also known as agricultural ecosystems. |
| Anvil - Stake Type |  A "stake-type anvil," also called a "stake anvil" or "bickern," is a small, usually T-shaped anvil with a pointed base that can be driven into a workbench or stump, allowing for versatile metal shaping and forming, particularly for detailed work on smaller pieces, often used by jewelers and silversmithd; it typically has a single horn for basic shaping and is considered a more portable option compared to a large, traditional blacksmith anvil. For a larger view, please click: Wrought Iron Stake-Type Anvil . |
| Anvil Hole - Hardy | A "Hardy hole" is a square hole located on a blacksmith's anvil that is designed to securely hold specialized tools called "Hardies", which are used for cutting, forming, and bending metal while working on the anvvil; essentially, it's a socket on the anvil that allows the blacksmith to firmly place tools with a square shank for specific tasks. |
| Anvil Hole - Pritchel | The Pritchel hole is a smaller (compared to a Hardy hole), round hole that is ideal for hole punching. |
| Brig |  A Brig was a two masted vessel square rigged on both masts. The brig is a very old and efficient sailing rig, and the class was still in use up to the very end of commercial sailing ships. Only a few brigs were built in Nova Scotia yards, but they were very common in European waters. These types of warships were also historically used as floating prisons. The word brig is a shortened form of brigantine, "a small, two-masted ship" with large, square sails. |
| Brigade (Revolutionary Period) | During the Revolutionary War, a brigade typically consisted of between 1,000 and 1,500 men, though the exact number could vary depending on the circumstances and the specific army involved. This is based on the standard understanding of a brigade size at the time. |
| Caliber (Musket Ball) | Caliber range of .58 - .64 = cast for use in imported French muskets of .69 (69/100") . Caliber range.65 - .66 = cast for use in .75 caliber weapon (British and Colonial standard) ("Brown Bess") musket , |
| Carpenters Marks | Carpenters Marks were created with a Race Knife and used as tags to distinguish various elements of a timber frame and how the entire ensemble should be pieced together. These marks are formed by using a straight line often gouged with with the U-shaped, or scooped, end of the Race Knife. Roman numerals were commonly used to mark up the timber elements of a timber framed building. At their simplest these look fairly familiar, though four is usually represented by IIII, rather than IV. The convention for representing four as IV and nine as IX only emerged as the 16th century progressed and took a considerable time to be universally adopted. For a larger view, please click:  . |
| Cobble | In geology, cobble or cobblestone is the word for a rock in the size range of 64-256 mm (2.5-10 inches). (If it is smaller, then it is a pebble; if it is larger, it is a boulder.) The word is commonly applied ro any type of rounded rock (basalt, granite, gneiss, sandstone, etc.) |
| Colonial Windows | (Note: Reference Quarrel below.The earliest windows were CASEMENT types that opened outward, which were gradually replaced in the 18th century by SASH windows with square glass planes set in wooden frames that slide up and down. For a larger view of this picture of a Colonial window please click it.  |
| Cribbing | Cribbing, also known as falsework, is a temporary structure used to support heavy loads during construction. It is typically made from wooden beams or concrete blocks and is not meant to be a permanent fixturre. Cribbing is commonly used in the construction of bridges, roads, and buildings. |
| Dovetail Joint |  |
| Eaves | Eaves are the edges of the roof which overhang the face of a wall and, normally, project beyond the side of a building. The eaves form an overhang to throw water clear of the walls. |
| Fireback | A fireback is a heavy plate made of cast iron or stainless steel or heat-resistant stone that's placed against the back wall of a fireplace. They can improve the efficiency of a fireplace, protect the wall from heat damage, and add decoration. |
| Froe |  A Froe (or frow), Shake Axe or Paling Knife is a tool for cleaving wood by cleaving it along the grain. It is an L-shaped tool, used by hammering one edge of its blade into the end of a piece of wood in the direction of the grain, then twisting the blade in the wood by rotating the haft (handle). It uses the haft to multiply the force upon the blade, allowing wood to be torn apart with remarkably little force applied to the haft. By twisting one way or the other, the direction of the split may be guided. |
| Gable Roof | A gable is a triangular section of a wall at the end of a pitched roof. Gables are formed by the sloping sides of a roof that meet at a ridge.  |
| Galley | A galley is a type of ship optimised for propulsion by oars. Galleys were historically used for warfare, trade, and piracy, mostly in the seas surrounding Europe. It developed in the Mediterranean world during antiquity and continued to exist in various forms until the early 19th century. |
| Garret | The loft of a house where dried grains, beans, peas and herbs stored high and dry. |
| Gudgeon | The tubular part of a hinge, into which fits a generally uipright pin (which is called a Pintle), allowing the part to which the gudgeon is attached to pivot. |
| Gunflint | Gunflints were used on flintlock muskets, rifles, and pistols primarily in the mid-17th to mid-19th centuries. They were mounted in gun locks to strike a spark when the trigger was pulled, igniting the black powder in the pan. Generally speaking, French gunflints were lighter in color than those used by the English. > For detailed information on gunflints, please click Gunflints. > For detailed information on flintlock muskets, please click Flintlock Guns. |
| Humus | Humus (topsoil) is dark, organic material that forms in soil when plant and animal matter decays. When plants drop leaves, twigs, and other material to the ground, it piles up. This material is called leaf litter. When animals die, their remains add to the litter. |
| Hut Capacity | Approximately 12 men per hut.ensions: 12' x 16' . 6' high (excluding roof), doors, windows shingled) and stone chimneys. Foors face east, fireplace fronting west. |
| Lead Slag | Lead slag iis a waste product created during the production of lead. It's a black, granular material that's made up of metallic elements and oxides of calcium, magnesium, and silicon. |
| Loncoln Logs | Lincoln Logs are an American children's construction toy consisting of square-notched miniature lightweight logs used to build small forts and building. Lincoln Logs are notched so that logs may be laid at right angles to each other to form rectangles resembling buildings.  Note that log cabina and stone houses were uncommon in Connecticut; and most houses were timber-framed. |
| Midden | Household dumping areas, outside of doors and windows (i.e., in the yard), for daily refuse. |
| Mortice | A hole or recess cut into a part, designed to receive a corresponding projection (s Tenon) on another part so as to join or lock the parts together. (See Dovetail) |
| Pewter | Pewter is a metal alloy, which means it's a blend of several types of metal, usually tin,copper, and antimony. Pewteris easy to work and extremely versatile, which lends itself to a variety of uses, from sturdy picture frames to lightweight, detailed jewelry. |
| Pintle | A usually upright pivot pin on which another part turns. For example, it is the pin which fits into the tubular part of a hinge (which is called a Gudgeon) to unite a joint. |
| Purlin | A purlin is a horizontal beam that provides structural support to a roof or other building Purlins are load-bearing members that connect rafters and tie the roof frame together, |
| Quarrel | A quarrel was a small diamond or triangular-shaped hand-blown glass panes that were fitted into an iron or wood fram with H-shaped lead fasteners called window "cames" or "leads." |
| Race Knife | Please click here. |
| Recorder | A simple woodwind instrument with finger holes and no keys, held vertically and played by blowing air through a shaped mouthpiece against a sharp edge.  . |
| Redware | Redware pottery is a type of earthenware made from red clay that is fired at a low temperature. It was the primary pottery used in the American colonies and was often used for food preparation and consumption |
| Sauce | A name given to root vegetables, such as turnips, parsnips, carrots and potatoes. |
| Schooner |  A schooner is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of 2 or more masts and, in the case of a 2-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. |
| Shadows, Archaeological (1) | An archaeological shadow is a mark on the ground that indicates the presence of archaeological remains. Shadows are caused by differences in height between the remains. Such sites are identified from the air, especially in aerial photography. They are most noticeable when viewed from above, in low sunlight. |
| Shadows, Archaeological (2) | As used in this class, "shadows" refers to looking at specific artifacts, their location, characteristics, etc., and determining what their original characteristics, location, etc. were when they were first laid down. Determining their provenence and how they might have been used, or how what their site might have been originally. For an example of this check Class 2, Slide 23. (click here). |
| Sill | A shelf or slab of stone, wood, or metal at the foot of a window or doorway. |
| Sloop (of war) |  During the 18th and 19th centuries, a sloop-of-war was a warship of the British Royal Navy with a single gun deck that carried up to 18 guns. The rating system of the Royal Navy covered all vessels with 20 or more guns; thus, this term encompassed all unrated warships, including gun-brigs and cutters. In technical terms, even the more specialised bomb vessels and fire ships were classed by the Royal Navy as sloops-of-war, and in practice these were employed in the role of a sloop-of-war when not carrying out their specialised functions. |
| Sprue | In casting, a sprue is an opening that allows molten metal to be poured into a mold. The sprue's shape is typically designed conically to facilitate pulling solidified material from the sprue. The waste metal left in the sprue after casting is also called a sprue. The material in the sprue solidifies during casting or molding and needs to be removed from the finished part. The leftover sprue can be melted down and recycled. |
| Suauce Pit | Cellar holes typically 2-3 feet deep and 2-3 feet in diameter, shaped like an inverted bell, used for the preservation of these foods. They were lined with straw or boards and then mounded over with hay, earth and manure for insulation. |
| Subaltern | A person holding a subordinate position, specifically: a junior officer (as in the British army) below the rank of Captain, e.g.. a Second Lieutenant. |
| Tenon | A projecting piece of wood made for insertion into a mortice in another piece. |
| Treenail | A hard wooden pin used for fastening timbers together. |
| Trencher | A small wooden plate. |
| Trunnel | Another name for Treenail. |
| Volume Measurements | Gallon), Firkin (8 gallons), Kilderkin (2 firkins), Barrel (2 kilderkins), Hogshead (2 barrels), Tierce (1 1/3 hogsheads) |
| Wrought Iron | Wrought iron is a dark gray, malleable, and ductile iron alloy with a low carbon content. It's made by repeatedly heating and working iron until it's shaped. Wrought iron is often used for construction, fencing, and other safety and security applications. |