Archaeological Investigation of the Northeast Lawn of the Golden Ball Tavern, Weston, Massachusetts

In 2003 archaeologists from the University of Massachusetts Boston conducted limited
test excavations in the northeast lawn of the Golden Ball Tavern, Weston, MA. The fieldwork
consisted of five 1 x 2 m units adjacent to the structure and three transects of cores to
the north and east across a segment of the lawn. The primary goal of the testing was to
determine if the archaeological deposits in this area showed evidence for the late 18th-century
entranceway to the Tavern. Several features uncovered in the excavations relate to
episodes of rebuilding the house chimney, landscaping the northeast lawn, including the
planting of bushes along the side of the structure, and running an electric line to an exterior
light pole. No features related to an early pathway or entranceway were evident. The more
than 9,000 artifacts recovered are a mix of 18th, 19th, and 20th-century materials. In most
of the units, 20th-century artifacts are mixed in throughout the deposits, including the bottommost
cultural strata. However, at the north and south edges of the excavation area a thin
buried strata appears to show late 18th-century deposition, and in the north edge this contains
a small concentration of pipe stem fragments potentially related to the tavern period.
The stratigraphy in the cores suggests landscaping fill was used to level the lawn, and in
one area this might have buried an earlier path into the property, but not a path leading to
the tavern. Overall, these results suggest the area has limited additional archaeological potential.