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The first excavation I directed was an Ontario Archaeological Society sponsored rescue excavation (in 1973) of the Silverthorne homestead (settled 1807) in Mississauga on Dundas St. just west of Cawthra. The intersection of Cawthra and Dundas was being modified and apartments were being constructed. The significance of the property was well known (Silverthorne Collegiate is named after the family for example). The house was moved from its original location to a spot not far away where it stands today as a restaurant. Some say the house is haunted. I was present during one of the hauntings and met the horse-riding ghost. |
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Smoke House |
One reason to salvage information about the site was to see if we could find evidence of the earliest presence of the family who received the land as grant from the government because they were United Empire Loyalists. We found far more than we anticipated because we found a buried refuse pit and buried architecture. The artifact collection from the site is exceptional and huge. The collection is at the Bradley Museum today, still being analyzed. We never did get much money for the analysis (no one suspected the site would be so complex) so much of it was done on a voluntary basis. Students wrote reports and some experts helped with aspects of the study.
For stories about the site, the Mississauga library has a collection. |
