Historic Mining District: Sterling Forest
The Sterling Forest section of southeast New York contains many traces of historic mining efforts. ACS conducted a Phase II intensive archaeological survey along sections of a historic road occupied by a mining community from the early 19th through early 20th Centuries. The project property exhibits multiple types of cultural resources related to the iron-mining industry of the region, including landscape features, industrial facilities, and traces of community dwellings.
A concrete and iron hoist tower placed directly above one of the mine shaft entrances
The most dramatic evidence of mining activity on the project property consists of cavernous subterranean shafts and tunnels which dot the landscape. These features typically occur where prominent bedrock outcrops reveal magnetite rich veins and deposits in formations targeted by the iron industry. The property also boasts equally prominent industrial features from the late 19th and early 20th Centuries, such as a ~60-foot concrete and iron hoist tower placed directly above one of the mine shaft entrances, and several other traces of concrete hoist platforms used to support machinery that extracted ore. Because of building hazards posed by the instability of the larger subterranean features and structural remains, the shaft and tower areas were avoided by the pending development, thus not a concern for Phase II testing.
A "pepperbox" revolver
Long Meadow Road (formerly Long Swamp Road) courses through the property and has been repeatedly expanded and re-routed through time. While this has severely disrupted or covered some of the mining community structures as plotted on historic maps, traces of others survive. A Phase II intensive survey of most of the areas slated for development, however, revealed highly disturbed contexts which disqualify them from further conservation efforts. Artifact remains in one section of a residential site area revealed an extraordinary density and breadth of materials reflecting a 19th Century household setting, including ceramic wares, bottle and vessel glass, structural items, silverware, and personal items such as a pocket- watch casing and kaolin clay pipe stems. A "pepperbox" revolver was found down the road from the site, and represents a relatively rare armament which was first patented in 1837.
The Sterling Iron Mine Company was the last entity to mine iron ore on the property in 1917 towards the end of World War I. With the quality of the ore being less than ideal, there is a historic pattern of resurging mining activity in the area during times of war when more metal was required for the production of vehicles, weapons, and ammunition. Whole corporate communities were formed and integrated with the business and the landscape to the degree that the mining community represents an important and distinctive cultural entity. The severe degree of disturbance to the majority of historic sites along the road, however, prevents this area from being registered as a national archaeological district.
