Ancient Irish Farmyard Causes Confusion At Our Homestead Ireland

Welcome to our channel where todays episode "Ancient Irish Farmyard Causes Confusion At Our Homestead Ireland" show our confusion and a little bit of disappointment as we reveal more of the 200 year old slurry gully.
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[@ellenchapman5293]

Perhaps a slurry pit and the remains of a piggery, workshop or dairy building? Don't be worrying about the pace of work, we are enjoying each little bit of unveiling as it comes. Great job, keep up the good work, you're winning :)

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Good evening Ellen, thank you for always joining us :-) I think it had pigs in it in "recent" years, like a long time ago, but no idea what was in it when it was first used. Hopefully though, once uncovered we will know or someone will tell us and then we will know hahaha. Thank you again. See you Friday :-)

[@bignessmakofane6168]

​@thecornerhouseproje❤ct

[@micheledenise2305]

That's what I thought to..

[@patsampson6990]

Just so amazing to watch you uncover this lot!

[@thecornerhouseproject]

It took a little while Pat and although not at a finished stage, we are happy with how it currently is. Work will continue though :-) Thank you as always Pat :-)

[@domgallagher4524]

Grandparents had a small farm in Ireland. Remember the cow she'd had similar drain at the back. It used to drain from the cowshed into a field where they grew cabbage, turnips for feeding livestock during winter.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

This was out thinking Dom but with it flowing to the ditch. At this moment in time it doesn't look like it makes it to the ditch. Hopefully tomorrow we will know a little bit more. I bet it really made the veg grow :-) Thank you for watching and commenting.

[@patkilmurray4702]

You both need a medal for your sheer strength and determination shifting all that soil, I hope your backs are bearing up, mine hurts just watching you! You'll get there in the end even if you have to re-lay the stones after the soil has gone. One thing's for sure, the soil will be pretty productive.😊

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Good evening Pat, thanks for joining us again :-) Not sure about a medal, we just don't seem to know when to stop haha. It has been a lot of soil but it has been enjoyable too and with have enough raised beds to plant for the local area. The soil we were moving today just crumbles so that has been put safely aside for the future :-) Thank you as always Pat. Have a nice evening :-)

[@JaneyH]

Crikey you don’t need to tell us you’re not quitters Dawn and never worry we are bored… I’m guessing everyone watching feels the same.. that just bringing us along on your journey is enough without big surprises every week! Keep the faith my loves.. summer is right around the corner and only good times ahead and you both have earned them xx

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Thank you Jane, we are pleased you are not bored, it just seems to be taking ages and filming the same thing makes it hard to edit for a good video. We are looking forward to summer, but Spring is great. New blossom and new birds should arrive soon too like the cuckoo and the swallows. We do love it here. Thank you for watching and commenting :-)

[@lauralake7430]

When i started watching i thought thete was no way you could dig this by hand. I am now convinced you can do anything you set your mind to!❤

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Haha I think we now realise that we could probably give anything a go now! It’s been a long hard slog but we are finally seeing the finish line and we can’t wait!

[@johnoneill5812]

I don't know what sort of work you have done in your career, but I think you both have a secret desire to be archeologists. You may be uncovering the remains of outdoor work areas such as a forge for iron work, outdoor kitchen for summer cooking, soap rendering, or smoke house for curing meets. There's a lot of possibilies. Amazing how so many of us are fascinated with all the land clearing and muck digging. I find myself looking forward to your discoveries...... maybe a pot of gold coins will turn up soon??

[@thecornerhouseproject]

If a pot of gold turns up John we will get you a flight and nice hotel so you can come and see it first hand. If only eh! The gully seems to point to a manure area but the large rocks at "the end" of the gully threw a spanner in the work for the gully going to the end. Today exposed some more large stones, maybe even bedrock so we really don't know. We have gone back to removing soil from the path end again to try and help us follow the stone level and we can see how far it goes too. We have pretty much exhausted digging from the side as per the last couple of videos. Hopefully, once it is all exposed we will be able to at least have a guess as what it should look like or what it could be. We are excited to get it finished now. One because it is taking so long and two because is it beginning to hurt haha. Thank you as always John for joining us, have a nice afternoon :-)

[@patriot6251]

Hi my parents had a place over in Galway they had the same lay out that is a drainage channel from the building which would of taken the waste when washed out and there was an area at the end of the channel which was originally a soakaway which led to a ditch and the back of the building was used as a holding pen hence the stone flooring they would use this for various tasks such as sheep shearing and exercise while clearing out the sheds it was also used for keeping the stock close to the house in winter. This is what we are told from an old boy across the way from my parents.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

That’s amazing thank you! That sounds exactly how I could imagine this will end up looking. Absolutely can’t wait to get it all cleared off and cleaned up to see what we have. I don’t even care if it looks a bit messy where bits are missing, just to be able to have somewhere that we can go out and not end up ankle deep in soggy mud will be fantastic! Thanks again for taking the time to let us know this 😊

[@kimrafferty7170]

You guys are amazing, I have no idea how you find the strength and energy to go out day after day no matter what the weather and move the amount of soil you continue to move, you are real stars. I have to say Dawn I loved the narration, normally it's Ben who does the voice over so it was lovely to hear you today ❤ I can't speak for others but I look forward to every single video and I thank you both for bringing us along on your very own time team special. Love to you both as always xx

[@thecornerhouseproject]

❤️ 🤗 Thank you! Actually, I’m not sure how we find the energy if I’m honest! We must hold our hands up and say we are getting to the point where we’re not moving quite as quickly now 😂 but still enjoying doing it so that is keeping us going at the moment. It feels so close to finishing it too! That helps! We are so glad you look forward to watching, it warms our hearts to read that. It really does. Very pleased you like the narration, I was quite pleased with recording that, but Ben is the whizz with matching the voice to scene 🎬 Ooh I like that “Time Team Special” I do love a good time team episode! It’s fascinating to watch! Love to you Kim and thank so much for lovely lovely words xx

[@sandrad2506]

You keep digging, and we’ll keep watching 😂

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Make yourself comfortable Sandra as we feel more digging coming on :-)

[@debcross2335]

I, myself am enjoying every single moment and I've got more bingeing to do 😊

[@thecornerhouseproject]

You are getting there though Deb. Sadly there is no prize at the end, but there is lots and lots of love, thanks and appreciation from us for you. Thank you again :-)

[@ritas8088]

Time Team Phil Harding and Mick Aston, showing our age now,😂.How your backs haven't seized up by now I dont now .Nice to see the sun out 😎

[@thecornerhouseproject]

It’s been a while since we watched it but we really did enjoy that programme. As for the backs….no, we’re not sure either…I have a little twinge in it today but fingers crossed there’s not too much left to do. Which is good because I think we could do with a little break from it! It was blooming lovely to have the sun out, today was a different gloomy story though!

[@sharonheron7559]

So often today (and at other times), you were working side by side. Not all marriages have that joy. God bless you and always keep you close. ❤ When you have cleared all the soil and power-hosed everything down, I think you will have a large crazy paving job ahead of you using stones that are in situ and others from the piles you have collected. It will look great in the end and you will have preserved a little bit of history by using the gully. 🎉

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Thank you Sharon that’s a lovely thing to notice and say. We’ve been together 22 years and we’ve always done most things together lol not sure why, we just do 😊 maybe that’s why it makes it easier to do this sort of thing lol. Haha yes I think you’re right with the crazy paving job ahead. The more we’ve uncovered the more crazy it is looking! We were really hoping that we’d finish it today but the weather had other ideas! Soo close now though and we will be very glad when it’s uncovered lol.😂

[@nancymiller7294]

Dawn, you are a very hard worker and I was the same as you. I worked 12 hour shifts in a Cotton Mill and came home to 5 acres that my Husband and I bought , that was grown up with weeds and vines like your land. Please slow down soon before your knees , back and especially carpal tunnel creep up on you.. I want to say that Ben is a hard worker also. I love knowing that you both are Animal lovers.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

I think the carpal tunnel has already struck 😔 and the arthritis in my hands isn’t great but there isn’t anything I can do to stop that unfortunately. Fingers crossed for not too much more hard hard work though and it gives my hands a rest lol. Oh yes we’re huge animal lovers, they bring such a lot of joy to your lives don’t they?

[@dyannejohnson6184]

I was thinking about the ancient builders…they are to be respected for their building efforts

[@thecornerhouseproject]

We stand and look at the buildings, the size of the stone and how everything just seemed to work. People say we work hard, I think we have it easy compared to what they were capable of doing. Thanks for watching and commenting :-)

[@dwansbo]

Is it possible flax was grown in your area? The yard was where the crop was processed/ washed before being transported and turned into linen. As the demand declined the buildings were repurposed for animal husbandry. A local historian may be able to help, as would either the Famine museum in Strokestown Co. Roscommon or the Ulster Folk Museum over the border near Omagh. Perhaps you could persuade one of the Universities to get involved in the archaeological investigation. Help with the digging!

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Good evening Derek, thak you so much for watching and commenting :-) As far as we know it has always been a small animal farm but 200 years is a long time ago so we don't know. Once it is all uncovered we are hoping it will all make more sense and people who watch us, like your good self, will be able to help. The idea of the Famine museum is a good one though so if we are stuck we know we can always give a couple of places a try. Thank you again as every bit of input is helpful.

[@karlroyston8453]

Your definitely not afraid of hard work. Who knows what you will find, most importantly looks like your having fun.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Hi Karla :-) No, just get on with it as no one else is going to do it for us and it is taking sooooo long. Dawn's drive is a lot stronger than mine but I chip in and show willing haha. We are having fun. Once we get it uncovered, no matter what we really find, it will be a great accomplishment just to have less mud if nothing else. Thank you for watching and commenting today :-)

[@karlroyston8453]

I'm doing the same as yourselves, I'm in Tipperary myself

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Ooh how’s it going? We looked at a beautiful place in Tipperary when we were looking but it was out of our price range in the end. Very similar to what we have now housewise though.

[@vickiellibby7051]

Backyard archeology or earth movers depending on the day or weather 😂❤🎉

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Haha, exactly. It did seem to be earth movers of late but the last couple of days have been lovely.... until this afternoon. Thank you Vickie for watching and commenting :-)

[@charmainewoods1310]

I look forward to your videos,no matter how slow you go. Keep up the great work,its looking great.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Thank you Charmaine. Sadly it is slow, but we are closer than ever now. Thank you for watching and commenting :-)

[@andie1769]

Love the patience & care you’re taking! My vote is a slurry pit. Are there rocks underneath the one that you can see? Great voice over Dawn, and your video skills are great. Thanks for taking the time to get the shots close to the ground. Cheers, & take care of yourselves! 😊

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Hi Andie, thank you for always watching and commenting :-) From comments the slurry pit seems to be favourite, we just don't have a clue lol. I am sure when we get to finally uncover it all and clean it up properly we still won't have a clue hahaha. That is where you and the others come to our rescue. Thanks for the comments about the video itself. Always nice to know it isn't too hard to watch lol. Thank you again Andie :-)

[@birthekristensen813]

My guess is the old middling. If the old stonehouse is a stable.? There is speace for liquids to run. I am a farmers daugther, from Denmark. It was an old farm. I recognizes the way to use stone. In the future I can see the speace as a beautiful pleace with ructic wood garden furniture. Grill. Flowerpots. After your hard work. Wine 🥂🍾🍖🫛🥦🥕🍹

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Thank you so much Birthe for watching and commenting :-) Hopefully soon we will be able to tell what it was in the past. Have a nice evening and than you again :-)

[@user-cv2iz8ie5l]

No pain for us, we love watching you uncover each little bit!

[@thecornerhouseproject]

And we love you watching Grace. Thank you for watching :-)

[@linesteppr]

A labor saving suggestion: route the overflow from the rainwater collection into the gully and let erosion discover the path down towards the ditch. Also, really appreciated the more sophisticated editing with the narration over the work. Helps make sense of the scene while maintaining visual interest.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

What a great idea, it’s raining at present so hopefully that’s helped remove some of the topsoil and we are due lots of rain overnight and for the coming few days so that might help get rid of what we aren’t able to scrape away. Thank you very much, we’re very happy to hear that it worked well. I will pass that on to Ben, as he is the whizz with the editing 😊

[@jeanhawken4482]

A huge job done well.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

It took some digging, but we got there. Not quite finished but there is always tomorrow :-)

[@Lacaper05]

Maybe a water trough for small livestock?

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Hi Lauretta After lots of comments, it looks to be more of an area for treating sheeps wool, maybe dispatching animals, or various other things. It still baffles us though, every time we see it lol. Thank you for watching and commenting :-)

[@dianerayburn1728]

As it's by the gully which would probably have carried liquid out of the building when floors were washed down, you might have a slurry pit around there somewhere - filled in by now of course.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Good evening Diane We had thought it would have run straight to the ditch but more and more people are suggesting that it could well be a slurry pit itself but at the moment, your guess is as good as ours. We are digging from the path out again now for speed so hopefully we can get a lot cleared tomorrow. Thank you as always Diane :-)

[@maura423]

My guess, based on absolutely no knowledge or experience, is that there were some stone walls or animal pens that were falling down, and someone didn't need them and didn't want to fix them, so they sort of spread the stones out roughly and started the muck pile on top 😅 I'm enjoying the mystery! I'll happily watch several weeks of this.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Well, we like you have no knowledge and experience and we love speculating on what things could be and sometimes we hit on the right solution and now along with things that other people have said, I think you could be on to something there! In some ways I wish we could go back in time and start all over again with the knowledge that we now have, it would make it a lot easier and less time consuming to dig it out, many times whilst we have been digging I’ve wished we could have an X-ray machine to go over it and show us where and how deep to dig in each area. Fingers crossed we are nearing the end of the big soil removal, but it’s going to take a while longer to clean it all up, so you could be in luck with being able to continue watching! 😊

[@morrigans_cottage]

I am constantly confused by my own little cottage and land, there’s always so much confusion and surprises! You guys are going great!

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Well you can join our club if you don't want to feel left out. We are always confused and surprised at how we are always confused haha. You keep doing what you are doing as you are doing great too, and there is only one of you (+ the dog of course) :-)

[@doreenzahra1719]

I am as interested as you and i cannot wait for your videos it is amazing to watch you love from down under

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Good afternoon / evening Doreen, how has your Thursday been? We are so intrigued with it all. Hopefully today, while you are sleeping, we can get some more done so we can share it with you. Thank you for watching and commenting :-)

[@juliam9214]

the trout looks like a clean out from the building. They may have had live stock housed their at one time. Part of what you are clearing would be a drain field. Don't give up now. i am watching to see what finally is brought back. Wish you good health to continue your search. 😊😊

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Yeah they definitely had livestock. We’re in contact with a couple of the ladies who used to live here and they have told us that pigs and hens lived in the outbuilding we’re outside at the moment and cows in the other one. We promise not to give up, we will keep going until the bitter end 🤣 nearly there now. 😊🤞

[@Cuernavacachica02]

Hi Dawn and Ben. It is a bit of an enigma, isn't it? But that's what's making it fun - we have no idea what it is! It is obvious (at least to me) that it was constructed that way. The lines are too straight to be natural. The good thing is that you'll have great drainage when you're done and possibly a really great space to sit out in the evenings and listen to the birds. That will be a joy! The other positive is that you'll have the stones you need to continue to reconstruct the outhouses! Ah, it's just amazing how productive I feel I've been after watching one of your videos! :)

[@thecornerhouseproject]

It really is! Hahaha it’s definitely a weird little patch and not what we were expecting to see at all. After reading a lot of the comments though it has given us more of an idea of what we might be seeing there. So that’s taken the puzzlement away a bit, which is very good for us! Oh yes it should help so much with the drainage and hopefully help to stop the other portion to stop getting so waterlogged. So very much looking forward to being able to sit out there! What an absolute joy that will be! 🤣 😂🤣 I bloody love that with how productive you feel! That’s brilliant! We loved reading your whole comment but especially that last little bit! ❤️

[@catherineritter3408]

You guys are making great progress. It is such wonderful soil you have. That manure has been rotting a long long time ! It may seem like a jumble now but have so many flat stones for repair and then you will have a beautiful area. Herb Area in some raised beds no more than 18 to 24 inches square. Lots of hard work, but joyful discovery. I wish I was right there with you shovel in hand!!

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Thank you Catherine, it is really slow but we are getting there day by day. Hopefully soon we will know more, oh we really hope we know more lol. Once that whole area is clear of mud or whatever we do with it, that is a great suggestion. We really wish everyone who wanted to join in could, we would have had it done in minutes. That would be nice. Thank you so much for joining us yet again and commenting :-)

[@lameesahmad9166]

Phil Harding my favourite archaeologist. Genuine, intelligent and down to earth. Great guy. But if you really want to get his attention find some flint stone or churt that has been worked by the ancients.

[@lameesahmad9166]

Is it possible that the outbuilding is a lot older than the farm house and was the original farm house?

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Yeah it is probably twice the age. The outbuildings are 200+ years old where the farmhouse is "only" 110 years old from working back through the dates of the family who used to live here. Maybe we will find a bit of flint with a point on so we can give him a shout haha Thank you Lamees for watching and commenting :-)

[@lameesahmad9166]

@@thecornerhouseproject Maybe you never know. If you do find something like that give Phil a ring I am sure he will be very interested. 🙂I believe he is in Salisbury or there abouts. I enjoy watching your work. That hard work is probably more than intimidating at times but you do have an interested audience. Once you have cleared that top soil if you wish to make the area into a courtyard you may have to remove all loose stones and level the ground and relay them. Visitors would like a cuppa tea and a slice of cake or a pie which could be made in the outbuilding if you eventually get it fully restored. This would bring in an extra income. ❤

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Maybe if we mention Phil Harding enough he may appear like Beetle Juice :-) The dig is interesting for us, just really slow at timea. We like your thinking with the tea and cake.

[@lameesahmad9166]

@@thecornerhouseproject 😀

[@mariarichmond4179]

Can you not bring in a mini digger to gently scrap away,it would help your back and easier to sort rock/stones as they come up. I am in awe of your determination 😊😊😊😊😊is there no planning plans in the archives anywhere?

[@thecornerhouseproject]

No, we contemplated a digger but never got one and have done everything by hand. Long hard work but nearly done now. There are loads of reasons why we haven't used a mini digger though. Planning permission on started here in 1963 so there aren't any records before that. The old maps show buildings but other than the outbuildings there isn't anything else in this area. Thanks for watching and commenting :-)

[@user-ii2ru7td3d]

Я думала, что такую кучу земли убрать нереально, но вы сделали это. Я в восторге от вас.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Aww thank you! There’s certainly been times where we questioned it too! Hahaha but we’re almost there now and we are relieved to be! 🤣

[@helendoyle2058]

you are both doing a great job..look orward to your videos..well done....helen

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Thank you Helen, that’s lovely to hear 😘

[@user-pp5qo7by9t]

Will be good too see it all clear, you have done a great job so far keep up the good work.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Thank you William. It seems to be taking so long for not much to show for it. We will get there though, we will keep on going. Thank you as always for watching and commenting William :-)

[@sylvanaire]

Could your farmer neighbor come take a look and tell you what you’ve got there? There’s a good chance he would know. Anyway, incredible work, just watching you makes me tired!😊

[@thecornerhouseproject]

He popped by the other day. He thinks the gully would have also been in the building too (which is still there in the larger out building) but sadly it it was there, that has gone and replaced with concrete. Here is the clearing of the outbuilding we are working behind. kzbin.info/www/bejne/fnrLkph5etZ_ec0 Thank you for watching and commenting tonight :-)

[@joeread3596]

Keep up the great work your both doing. My thoughts on the rock your uncovering if it's rounded it is bed rock where a watercourse or glacier ran

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Thank you Joe Thanks for the info on the bedrock. I tend to hit it with the pokey rod and if I feel a vibration in my foot at the same time it is normally a loose stone. If there is no vibration in my foot it is normally bedrock. But my vibrating foot has been known to be wrong lol. Thank you for watching and commenting this evening :-)

[@tedcummings6260]

Looks like a cold room/ butcher room. the gully could be for run off from roof and drainage for cleaning the the floor. there might be a small stream near by, that they diverted water from to keep it cool in the summer months.. The possibilities are endless.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

They are aren’t they? And it’s lovely to speculate and imagine too. The water we do know was collected from a well that is down the land from the house. It could well have been a place to butcher as we have found bits of animal bones the lower we have dug down.

[@Olderthantime-ic]

I think you are both doing a great job in your venture to find you history, and I wonder if a good stiff yard broom might be able to get the soil from around your stones more easily. But well done anyway!

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Thank you! I think if we could get enough thick soil of the top and then a good few dry days we should be able to brush it off. Just need ireland to turn off the rain for a few days! Haha

[@chrisdavies6272]

It seems to me that origionally the gully takes the slurry away from the cow-shed towards a lower level (ie maybe a hole for drainage) and then backfilled with random rocks and the moisture still able to flow towards the ditch. Over time the slurry pit has not been maintained and has been lost to the soil? all speculation but pheseable (didn't know how to spell that word) lol

[@thecornerhouseproject]

It sounds perfectly feasible to me (and pheasable also works for me too lol). We have either found bedrock rising up into where we thought the gully would continue or some massive stones in the wrong place. We changed digging sides today and are working up from the path part now as it will help us keep the level of whatever it is that is there. Keep your fingers crossed we find a nice flat stone area :-) Thanks Chris :-)

[@holymoly6829]

Any history info about the building where the gully runs from Animal waste trap sounding a possible story To big for a household “midden” The meaning is a refuse tip A pile would rot down before being spread on the fields As you said the loam you are finding is great stuff It’s intriguing hope you nail it soon Keep up the good work 👍👍👍

[@paulandlaurahausman379]

Even if this rock pile is nothing you have created a flatter yard for your planting and barbecuing. There are enough rocks to make a patio for yourselves too. Maybe it is time to contact a local College for some help. Are you near a lake or stream? What was in the stone building next to the stone ditch? What was it used for besides cows? There are a lot of questions to answer for sure.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Hi Paul and Laura, you are absolutely right. It was always going to be a flat area, just originally it would have been raised, this is just a longer way of getting it flat lol. We have so many questions about it and sadly no one alive to tell us from 200 years ago. Once we have it all uncovered, if we don't know we will get in contact with a couple of places to see if they can help. There are lots of small farm in this area though and passed down through the families, so hopefully it shouldn't be too hard to find out what it was or how it worked... whatever "It" may be. There is a small lake 350m away across the field. As you look down the land from the house, it will show in the top right of the screen. Sometimes it shows up, other times you can't tell it is even there depending on the sky colour. Thank you for watching and commenting again. Have a nice evening.

[@TheHavasu_77]

I’m thoroughly loving this archeology project! 😂 I think the pile of stones was either the leftovers of the current structures or the supplies for a future structure maybe? Or a combination of both? Also, I keep expecting you guys to expose someone’s buried dead pet or something. 😅 It is looking amazing, and I’m just picturing it covered with grass seed and grass growing there, it’s going to be beautiful when you’re all done! 😊💚 Also, I’m almost all caught up on West Cork Wander’s channel! 😂 Love you guys! 😘💚

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Aww we’re really glad you are, it’s weird because we were convinced that we were probably boring people with the same thing all week long for weeks but people you all seem to like it as much as we are enjoying doing it! 😂 which is really nice 😊 Yeah most likely right and it’s hard to find a good place to stack a load of stones, because once you’ve moved them and out them somewhere, it’s not something you want to repeat so they end up staying there! Haha, so far no buried pets or anything. Else for that matter lol. We are sooo looking forward to finishing it though and getting to be able to clear off the thin layer of soil that we’ve tracked all over as we’ve been working. Looking forward to seeing it all exposed. Yay! With catching up West Cork, they’re a good pair to watch aren’t they?! Such hard workers! 🍀😘

[@rebekahvenn201]

Could you investigate the history of the farm and see if you can aquire some original photographs of the buildings, land etc. You will probably bring up some proper interesting information.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

We know bits and pieces from the ladies that lived here as children. We have an aerial photo of the house and the buildings that but that was in the 80’s so not so long ago really. It would be amazing to see really old photos of the place.

[@Klad444]

Hard work. A well built gully like yours would lead to a well built manure pit, probably walled on 3 sides by 3ft high wall and just mud floor. Those stones may have come from the walls. Any plastic you find will give you a idea of the age of the level you find it at. Manure and feed bags wold be regular items in farmyards. Good luck with the dig

[@robpowell8648]

Hi guys big thank you for the secret wave 😊 I gave one back . Well stone me that is something mysteriously wonderful your uncovering in the garden . Keep at it and you may have a historic special garden space . You both are fantastic and doing very well indeed

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Awww we didn't see you waving back Rob as yours was really secret haha. Hopefully today we will get more done and can share some more tomorrow night. Thank you again for becoming a channel member, watching and commenting :-)

[@robpowell8648]

@@thecornerhouseproject I'm beautiful north Wales so seeing a wave would be Very difficult from Ireland even though we're fairly close Now get to work 😅

[@thecornerhouseproject]

hahaha

[@carolineslater1731]

Any chance of finding any old maps of your house? They may show your house and any outbuildings. You've a beautiful plot there and your fruit trees in bloom will be glorious.. From Newcastle, Tyne. X

[@thecornerhouseproject]

We have looked at old maps and they do show the outbuildings. The house isn’t old enough to appear on the old maps I’ve looked at. The house is only around 100 years old we think. It is a beautiful plot and so lovely to just stand and listen to the peace and quiet and the birds. We feel very lucky to be here to be doing what we are doing. Ooh yes can’t wait for the trees to blossom! All the leaves are bursting out at the moment and it’s just going to be awash with greenery soon! Useless fact….Ben’s mum is from Newcastle, County Durham. 😊

[@MrBenchipy]

you have discovered a dung pit years ago they used to keep the dung from cows in a pit and the run off from the byre would run into they used to be emptied by hand ino carts but it looks like pit has been back filed as when tractors came along it was easier to load with a front loader or link box I have a farm yard in Donegal and there used to be a dung pit in the middle of the yard that was later filled

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Amazing! Thank you! 🤩 that makes digging around not so scary because we now know what to look for and not be confused by. We have an old transporter box sat out the front of the outbuilding. It’s too heavy to move and quite rusted up but I think it will make a good planter at some point when we get round to it! I did say to Ben that I wondered if it was something like that but it seemed with the big boulders in, it would make it difficult to dig it out but if they’ve been put in after the fact, then that makes sense to how it looks now! 🥳Thank you!

[@boukanastasia]

I think you should wear safari hats and clean the area with small brushes 😂😂like archeologists Good luck my friends✌✌✌ I'm sure you will solve the puzzle soon🤞

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Hahaha Anastasia, I am sure it would suit Dawn but I don't seem to have a good look with hats lol. If the soil was dryer we would have been able to dig down and then brush away the remaining dirt, maybe with a stiff broom though haha. Thank you for the good luck, we will certainly get it all uncovered, but not sure we will solve the puzzle :-)

[@rontanser9369]

Well done guys, you’re definitely making a huge impression even if there is still a long way to go, nice to see you had sunshine for a change

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Good evening Ron, we had sunshine most of today too, it makes such a difference. For me to have just a t-shirt or long sleeved top this time of year is unknown. I am sure this means digging and getting hot can't be good for me. Dawn on the other hand is in a t-shirt in about 5 minutes. She clearly works too hard. haha We are certainly getting there. Hopefully tomorrow we will know more. Thank you for watching and commenting tonight.

[@rontanser9369]

@@thecornerhouseproject looking forward to seeing your courtyard revealed in all its glory hopefully

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Oh so are we Ron haha

[@Mitch-Hendren]

If its a soakaway just there, it could have stones to get across you wouldn't have a full uncovered pit so close to the yard. Or something 😄 haven't a clue just commenting to get numbers up! Im still convinced the "outbuilding" is the original house repurposed for animals once the family grew and the "new"house was built. Great work . Love A mystery .

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Numbers are always good Mitch haha. We haven't a clue either at the moment. Hopefully we will find out soon as we are starting to ache a little bit. We can't see evidence of chimneys on the outbuildings so we don't think it was the house, but we have been known to be wrong hahaha. Thanks for joining us :-) See you soon.

[@jmck6320]

It may be irish or ulste_scott's but all the effluent and poops would go to a 'dohal' to rot down over a Yr or so. Maybe the drain goes to a gathering area to coalesce to fertiliser

[@thecornerhouseproject]

It’s funny because there’s a strangely wide patch that comes off the ditch that we had wondered about it as it looks like some kind of dried up pond area that has flagstones as stepping stones leading to it. So after all the suggestions that everyone has put forward, it’s looking more and more like it may have been where it all went after running off the yard area.

[@beahaut1337]

Curious to see if the gully would turn right and head for the ditch?

[@thecornerhouseproject]

We hope it does too but even today we haven't found any evidence of it happening. But we haven't uncovered it all yet. Won't be long now though. Thanks Bea for watching and commenting today :-)

[@Michael-gm6ly]

It's really fascinating, like an archaeological dig and you have the amazing patience to stick with it, to preserve a bit of history. Local people must be well impressed.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

We’re glad you think so too, we’ve found it really fascinating to uncover as well, it’s lovely to be able to preserve history and important too. Oh I am sure they are and will be. At the moment it just looks like a muddy mess but when we clean it properly they’ll be able to see it properly 😊

[@dcimedic]

I would think as with most things when the farm was going out of use the maintenance and daily chores fell behind and things piled up. Just think what Mick and Phil would do and say😂

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Yeah I would say that is what happened, times move on don’t they different ways of farming come along and then you don’t fancy digging it! cue…..us!🤣

[@philsunter3798]

You seem so much more at ease with yourself than when you were on shooting stars Angelos

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Absolutely brilliant. I did have to Google it but I remembered him as soon as I saw him. Then I sat and watched 10 minutes worth instead of replying to comments. Not sure if I should be flattered by your comment or what but it made me laugh. Thanks Phil :-)

[@lindahill9215]

Please don't get down because you don't know answers. It's all about the mystery. I'm positive you two will find out. 😊

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Ooh I’m sure we will, it was a weird day that one with not finding what we thought we would and then not knowing what we’d actually found lol. It’s been better today and hopefully tomorrow will go well as well too. Also all the comments we’ve had explaining what it could be and how it would have possibly been laid out has helped hugely!

[@neutonrenda2303]

It looks like the gully has been uprooted, hard to tell at this point, but the gully must've been there to clear out the slurry from the animals.👍❤

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Hi Neuton It is looking sort of like that but then some look and feel like bedrock when using the prodder. I am not sure even fully uncovered and jet washed we will truly know so hoping viewers will be able to help. We will keep going though :-) Thank you as always :-)

[@kaye-q1k]

I think there would have been a small wall on side of ditch to keep the slurry from spreading out instead of flowing to the drain ditch.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Fingers crossed it won’t be long until we reach the ditch side and see what we have there to give us an idea.😊

[@SweetOne.]

A lot of the stone could be from the top of the outbuilding walls when the rooves caved in before you bought the place. Over the years the stones have been covered in dirt and debris. Many of the stones have been hewn and others are field stone (stone wall filler field stone). Some troughs had a clean out where the water was drained from the solids - rocks were used to strain the solids from going into the ditches and dry stone walls were used to edge the waste channels. Some of the structure was most likely disturbed when they put in the well and septic. It's so interesting as you get closer and closer to the the edge of the ditch. Time for Tea and a rest - You have both worked very hard.

[@walkingstickwoman]

Perhaps put a roll of plastic next to what you have not torn out so the dirt falls on it, making it easier to clean up.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Hi Walking Stick Woman, how are you? It is just the general mud on our feet that is going on the previously uncovered bits. We have a new method though which seems to be better and faster too. We will see how that goes haha. Thank you as always for watching and commenting :-)

[@newfoundland3238]

You two are workhorses.Looks like Pompeii with the digging,its going to be charming.Lovely family,.............. good luck!

[@thecornerhouseproject]

I think Pompeii might be a bit higher on the list of importance than our little back of the outbuilding thing, but to us it is important. Even if we uncover it all, realise it isn't flat at all and we have to level it, hopefully not though. Thank you so much, that is very kind of you to say so. Thank you so much for watching and commenting :-)

[@micheledenise2305]

I think if they had animals in the building they built a wash out channel..U could always fill it in with the stones u have and level it all out and finish it for a stone patio..take out the huge ones for the level ones.. 😊😊

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Ooooh, don't know about filling it in, the "nice" part of the gully looks lovely. Who knows what we will find today. Hopefully the end hahaha. Thanks Denise, have a lovely day :-)

[@pitsnipe5559]

Don’t worry about the slow pace, I enjoy watching other people work. 😊

[@thecornerhouseproject]

😂🤣 it’s always nice to see other people working! Maybe when we’ve finished this, we should take a couple of days to watch other people do it on KZbin too!

[@gailreece9670]

Looks like an archaeology dig😊 slow is always better

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Slow and steady wins the race, or is it slow takes ages hahaha. Thank you Gail :-)

[@lyndakling901]

Was the outbuilding the original house?

[@thecornerhouseproject]

We don't think so Lynda. The house before this was in the field across the road at the front of our farmhouse. Until then it was just the animal buildings. None of them have chimneys or evidence of a chimney so we don't think any of the remaining buildings were the house before the farmhouse. The two ladies who used to live here who pop round (who we mention in comments now and then) It was their Grandad who had this house built. From records he was born 1872 (we think) So guessing he was 30 when he had the house built is where we get the 110-120 year house age from. Up until then we think they lived across the road but all of the those dwellings have long gone. Thank you for a good question.

[@gerriannedavis8670]

I would suggest reaching out to the folks on the American TV show, the Curse of Oak Island. They may have experience with this type of excavation

[@thecornerhouseproject]

We have found a spike and a coin or two, I think Gary would be proud us haha. Quite often we joke wondering if the Knights Templar have been to this area. I think they may be a bit to advanced for us but we do love watching the programme. We haven't seen it for a while but we hope our uncovering doesn't turn in to The Money Pit :-)

[@DenisPeel]

The long haired guy from Time Team is Phil Harding (ooh aar) Bid TT fan here, they are still digging here on KZbin. With your confusion of stones at the end of the gully I was wondering how much disturbance was caused when they put in the poop pipe to the septic tank? If it was dug with a mechanical digger it may have been sitting on top of your " confusion" and messing it about with the tracks, the arm could be more surgical reaching into the doorway and not messing with the good bit of gully, anyhoo just a random theory. The mud looks a little less "battle of the Somme" today 😀 Denis

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Ooh are they?! I will have a look. Yeah we did wonder with some of the stones and the septic tank pipe work, there seems to be a strange pile up going on at the bottom end of the area near to the trees so it’s possible they are what was scraped out back then and yes you’re right going through the outbuilding is a lot neater. Haha yes I said to Ben the other day actually it looked a bit like the Somme or Passchendaele! But yeah it’s starting to look less like that, which is lovely! ☺️

[@paranihiaanaru4414]

Or a cowshed, where they milked the cow, or cows. Or combined piggery and cowshed, side by side. With a drain off one side.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

That one had pigs and hens in it most recently and cows in the other one. I’m wondering if the stone yard area is spread all across the whole area but we haven’t got much dig left in us to find out 🫣

[@paranihiaanaru4414]

@@thecornerhouseproject No you wouldn't. So exhausting. Good manure for the future garden though - when you've caught your breath. All the best

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Thank you Paranihia

[@dyannejohnson6184]

That cow bothers me….owned a cow calf operation….i’d be checking on the cow….potentially could be in trouble calving…I know it’s not yours but having been in the business I would have had to check….i find your work very well done bravo

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Hi Dyanne If you knew our farmer neighbour you wouldn't be bothered. I know we personally know nothing about cows or farming but since calving has started, he has been next door at all hours day and night, watching on the cameras and being here like a shot when needed. Other farmers are always on call and help each other out and the Vets are always available too. I can't remember the last time he hasn't been in the barns all day and that can be following a 12:30am birth with twins followed by a 4:30am calf the same morning. If I wanted someone to look after me, I think it would be him :-) Our work is slow but we are getting there :-)

[@l.m.2404]

I'm of the mind that the rubble of rocks at the end of the slough could be from filling in a slurry pit. Perhaps you'll end up with a nice feature for all your hard toil. Cheers from Canada.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

We do wonder if you could be right. Hopefully when we get it all cleared off it will become more clearer and if not, like you say it can end up a nice feature when we’re done 😊

[@rhondag9700]

The narration over action video is such an improvement. Well done.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Thank you for the feedback 😊 Ben said he’s done it a couple of times before so thought he’d give it a go again and it seems to have been received well as a few people have commented to say they like it too. So thanks for letting us know 🤩

[@bobbiebrandel3152]

This is so interesting. I milked 100 head of Holstein cows and believe me there was a lot of slurry. We had a concrete pit in the ground, and all of that ran into it. It was then pumped out of there and on the fields. I can see there was a plan at your place, but danged if I can figure out what it was. That had to be running somewhere, but where? That manure is fertilizer and you don't waste it, you use it on crops. I wish my father-in-law was still alive and I could pick his brain; betcha he would have had a good idea or two on the situation. You are doing a remarkable job. I so hope eventually someone can figure all this out, or that your digging turns up something. Enjoy your channel so much.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Wow that is a lot of milking and oh yes a lot of slurry! Haha. The farmer next door has a concrete slurry pit with the slatted bits over the top. I’ve just been reading about how dangerous a slurry pit can be with the gases it lets off 😮 When we first saw the way the stones were placed we were a little flummoxed but the more you look at it the more it looks like it has a purpose. After tonight and everyone’s comments, it does make sense a little more than it did before and it also helps us to look at it with fresh eyes and hopefully make it make more sense. We’re hoping to be able to get it finished tomorrow…keep your fingers crossed for us! All the best laid plans and all that! 🤣 Thank you for saying you enjoy the channel, we are so pleased to hear that ❤️

[@GothGoddess1]

I have been very pleased that you guys are being Very careful so that you are saving what you can of history. Very Cool guys!!!!👍 I really think your doing a Excelent Job!!! I think that stone yard was placed after they built the 2 outbuildings or at the same time. That means that most of what UR removing is animal waist & all the Many years of Nature taking over in growth. I think you guys really found something special in your home, out buildings & land. Have you been able to find any photos or notes about the property yet?? This is all So very interesting to me!!! You both are doing such a Wonderful job!!! Thank you for sharing it with Us!!!! Wishing you both & your families many, many Blessings!!! Till next time, take care & don't Burn yourselves out!!!😀💖👍

[@thecornerhouseproject]

It’s important to be careful isn’t it? Someone took a lot of time years and years ago to build something to make their lives easier and to be able to work the land in an efficient way and to be able to see that come back to life is quite special to us. Thank you very much for watching and enjoying it all so much, it means a lot to us 😊 definitely animal waste…we are catching slight smells of it! We have an aerial photo of the area here from around the 80s which I have on instagram if you have instagram? We are also in touch with two of the ladies that lived here as children and they come and visit every so often, so we are learning bits and pieces about the house and the way the land was farmed when they were little. It’s all fascinating and we just want to know all that we possibly can! Fingers crossed we are nearly done on the bulk of the digging so we can at least be able to rest a little more once we have gotten that done! ❤️😊

[@TheAngela2468]

Very interesting 😊😊😊😊

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Thanks. We are loving it. Not so much the digging but the uncovering is brilliant. Thanks for watching :-)

[@user-ww1yv8ue8p]

you both are wrking so hard to find the courtyard ,welldone being patient xxx love ur videos

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Thank you very much Diana. We will get there in the end. How are you tonight? Thank you as always :-)

[@user-ww1yv8ue8p]

@@thecornerhouseproject ahh thankyou for replying , yeah im ok,ta flipping rain here drives u mad , wheres our summer gnna happen, i binged watched west cork wander ,, a couple in ireland ,bought a abandaned cottage omg abt 35 videos ltr ,there doin well ,take a look if u ever get time , they livin in theie caravan nearby the house poor man must be well knackered loll u take care see u tomoorrrow yyessssxxxx cant wait

[@thecornerhouseproject]

We have watched Rob and Clare from the beginning as we were waiting for our house purchase to go through. It was them that gave us the courage to sit in front of the camera and speak to it in video 6 I think it was. They have done so so much, jobs in the day and worked after that up until the early hours sometimes. The latest we managed was 10pm one night and we stopped and went to bed haha. It will be a great summer.... maybe, hopefully, please lol.

[@user-ww1yv8ue8p]

@@thecornerhouseproject yeah i love watchin ur videos ,you 2 are so relaxin and normal people lto listen too ,yeahh wanders are brave doin all that ,i love the irish homestead ,,,too ,a couple renovatin their farmhouse ,rebecca and sam ,i just love watchin everythin u guys do ,ohh have u met thei donkey toby ,hes cute ,sams and rebeccas , hope u are both well ,ive hy=urt my ribs ,,i cnat lay in bed ,as it kills,so im up early catchin up on utube ty for ur videos xx where abouts are you from in uk ,im hertfordshire xx

[@colettelavery7452]

Ben and Dawn you both keep saying it's slow work. To me you both have a lot of soil shifted since Monday's video. Great progress and well done. Take care and God Bless you both xx

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Thank you Colette! I think it feels slow to us, we always have expectations when we come out to it in the morning of how much we’d like to get done and never quite make that goal lol but we’re sooo very close to getting done, it’s very exciting because then we can get to to clean it all up and see it properly. Take care and see you Friday hopefully. Xx

[@mistydawncreates]

I look forward to each video of yours even before this fun dig but I'm especially interested each and every time what little gets uncovered. I don't find it boring at all. I say take your time. You must be knackered. Building muscles and stamina! What a find today though. That soil will be great for all the fruit trees you are trying to save. Mix some of it in the assisted beds too. These have been very satisfying and you have come so far. I cannot believe the hard work you've put into first cleaning the land then this. It's very satisfying to see the flat stone coming from the out building door. See you next time. ❤

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Good evening, how are you today? That is lovely to know that you look forward to our videos, thank you very much. We must admit that we are starting to feel it now and a break soon is something to look forward to. Of course, that won't be before we get to the bottom of this soil and see what we have all been waiting for. More stones were found today too and we are hoping tomorrow will get a large chunk of soil moved. The soil is soooooooo rich, it is safe in piles where we can get to it easily in the future. Oh this was never the plan, I think we said in one video that it was going to be a raised area. We dug enough out two videos ago to stop and leave it as a path and raised area, but we wouldn't have been able to sleep knowing something was still under the soil, so our plan changed and now is now hahaha. Thank you so much for watching and commenting :-) See you Friday.

[@janinebell4336]

Archaeologist in the making!

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Haha thank you Janine. Next time we will stick to our original plan and level it and keep it as a raised grass area lol. Thank you for watching and commenting :-)

[@cynthiabruns7178]

Puzzled and tired, you’ve done so much and it looks really good. Have you asked any of your neighbours, they might know how it was years ago.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Yes very tired, as much as we have loved every minute of clearing the land and uncovering this part, we really are ready for a little rest! Haha! We did ask the farmer neighbour the other day but we didn’t have that weird puzzling bit uncovered then, so we will ask him again when we see him next. He’s quite busy at the moment as all his cows have been having babies for the last couple of weeks. ❤️

[@Shae_9876]

A couple of garden trowels and stiff bristled brushes would be effective at uncovering those rocks 🥰

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Yeah they really would and we do have some trowels……somewhere! Buried in a packing box still, in the back of the bigger outbuilding! 🫣 we will have to go climbing to drag them out. You’re 100% right though, they would be the best tools for that job! 😘

[@diratlion1664]

I just realized after ranting in your last video and mentioned TT and how we agree with you're assessment of each and every poke with the pokng stick and assessment of nearly every shovel or is that a spade half full. Aand thenthere's no tea breaks tut so we're here getting over worked but your throw over there is so garden organised I know bc I'd be doing it toooooo. And when is it Oh Friday woohooo

[@thecornerhouseproject]

I don't think you were ranting on the last one were you? I remember replying to your comment but I don't remember you ranting lol. The poking stick is great, it tells lies sometimes but we would be completely blind without it. A shovel, a spade, a rake, we will throw anything at it if it helps, hopefully not too many half full spades though haha. We are getting there. Hopefully we will get to the end of it all soon :-) Thanks for watching and commenting :-)

[@mocarra100]

I watched your show on Monday but for some reason KZbin won't let me comment on anybody's page. You guys are coming along a lot you have really dug a lot out, even more today. I thought maybe it was something I said on somebody's page because I couldn't comment on anyone's page and I told my husband and he took my phone that night and restarted it and later on it was fine 😂 that's really hard and long and time-consuming work you both are doing but you will be rewarded, very nicely ❤ I still can't believe how much you've done! But I bet your bodies can feel it lol I love watching it especially the time lapses! But I also love hearing you guys say what you're going to do with it. Much love from Oklahoma USA Jackie 🇺🇸💖

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Hi Jackie, so pleased you can comment again as the comments section just isn't the same without you :-) We have done a little bit. We watched a previous video last night and to see how much we have done is bonkers. All very worth it. Thank you for ALWAYS watching and commenting when you haven't done something to your phone haha. Have a nice day Jackie :-)

[@micheledenise2305]

As u kept digging I thought u could try take them out and just sow grass seed 😅😅

[@thecornerhouseproject]

We look at it sometimes and say to each other "we could have left it raised" lol.

[@the.artist.donaldb]

From what you have dug out so far it looks as though you have possibly a channel drain that runs along a sizeable foundation wall base of where a wall once stood, possibly a pig pen or small barn. I’ll bet once you get closer to the ditch you find another wall foundation course. The ruins of older building that once stood perpendicular to the existing above ground relic stone buildings. Crack on, your getting close to uncovering what once stood. The Time Team would be proud of you.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Wow now that sounds interesting with the wall bases. Fingers crossed when we get to the ditch side we shall find out. Shouldn’t be too long now before we can figure it all out. Ooh I do hope so with the time team! As I sit here typing this it is persisting it down outside and that pleases me as fingers crossed that washes some of the stones off ready for us to dig some more tomorrow!

[@judiehennock5624]

Your doing great. I could watch this for months but hope for you it doesn't take that long. One day hope you find out.😊

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Thank you very much! Ooh yes we hope it doesn’t take months too! We hopefully will be finished with the bulk of it in the next couple of days but then will come the clean up operation of clearing the thin layer of soil and revealing the stones fully, can’t wait to see it all properly and what we have going on. 🤩😘

[@soulboy6073]

it must be the soakaway for all the piss out of the building!!!

[@thecornerhouseproject]

We like it, no messing, just a simple comment stating exactly what it is haha. Thanks for making us smile and for you watching and commenting tonight :-) See you Friday.

[@Bently2849]

Hi Dawn and Ben! What a lovely day to be out and about on your back patio!!??!! I really think that the ditch or drain or whatever you want to call it was a drain from the outbuilding to the courtyard. It would have made getting the slop from the floor of the outbuilding out to the back area and then either drained away or made a manure pile to use as fertilizer for the garden. The shape of it may have changed over the years and that is why you are finding all of the smaller stones. Actually, all of your hard work merits a masters in archeology from either UCD or Trinity!!! I am so enjoying coming along on your journey of discovery and am never bored but rather excited by the adventure in to the unknown. You both make it such an exciting and fun trip! And without having to expend the energy required to do the actual digging. Thanks so much for that! Looking forward to Friday and the ongoing saga of the "great homestead" dig! 11

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Hi Cristy! How are you? Ooh yes, we’ve had some lovely days just lately, today was so warm it felt like summer was just around the corner! Although I have to say, I would not want to be doing this digging in the summer! Yeah we have wondered if some of the stones have moved over the years and that’s why it all looks a little off. We’ve been really careful to try and not move any stones but now and again we do shift one a little. We’re really happy that you don’t find it boring and quite pleased that you find it as fascinating as we do, Haha yes that’s very true…all the fun and intrigue without the digging! Bliss! See you Friday ❤️😘

[@ElizabethAdams-Marks]

Cracked me up when you first mentioned Tony, because I had been thinking you two would make fine archeologists on Time Team. I keep hoping you find a really old coin. LOL Love watching you dig. Cheers from SW Florida.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Haha we love a bit of time team! Been a long since we watched it though admittedly! We found an old penny on the other side of this muddy area, 1930’s so not particularly old. We’ve found little bits and pieces, mainly bits of pottery, glass and metal. We’re glad you like watching us dig because there’s a lot of it! Haha.

[@1MrMoor]

Evening Ben and Dawn.. can I ask what that 2ft x 18in (approx ) slab is …more towards the field, roughly where you have tipped out the spoil. Have you checked under it, tried moving it?. I’m wondering if that slab is covering a slurry chamber of sorts…. The solid manure cleaned from the shed by hand ( mucked out ) as we call it and stacked outside, left until such time the fields and garden was being prepared for planting. All the water, liquid manure would run up through the gully you are uncovering and empty into a chamber under that slab, if I’m right, this liquid manure would then be bucketed out by hand and used to feed the garden plants. The gully would only take liquid’s, no actual manure. Hence me saying the manure would be stacked just outside the buildings. Kindest regards 👍

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Opposite where we have the 5 raised bed mounds is a big lump of bedrock. Have a look at our Exploring Ancient Stones video from about 3 weeks ago. It shows me cleaning them. See if they are what you mean. We think there is too much bedrock for there to be a pit anywhere as the whole grassed area is on solid stone. Great info with how everything will have worked. Maybe we will find a pit as nothing would surprise us here. Hopefully we will know a bit more tomorrow as digging went well today. Thanks very much for watching us and commenting again :-)

[@tracybutcher8522]

Tedious job you got there but I’m sure it will be all worth it afterwards 😅 May have to call the Time Team for some help 😂 Phil was the other guy, was still in the middle of watching when I heard the comment 😂😂 New to your channel, I’m from Australia ❤

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Hi Tracy from Australia, thank you for joining us and taking the time to comment :-) We hope it was all worth it afterwards, it seems to have taken so long. But, we are nearly there. Today was the day to remove all of the thick mud on the top, but sadly it rained (again). Phil, that's him. Well none of the Time Team have shown up yet, hopefully they don't arrive just as we finish haha. Thank you again. Have a nice night.

[@FrancescaBaasBecking]

First time KZbin commenter; just had to commend you for your care and thoughtfulness in general ! And this video just demonstrates that so well! If I lived down the road, I'd come and give you a hand, bringing trowels for you both 😉! As an Australian trained archaeologist, by choice I focussed on pre-white settlement, so I'm no specialist in historical stuff, or northern hemisphere .. That said, the comments about slurry channels, working courtyards, and slurry pits make sense. To help work things out, might be worth taking even more time to record some basic measurements of the area and whats where, in relation to the building. That would give you an overview to work with, and allow you to record/note any specific features & finds. Wondering if there are local council archaeology/heritage officers who could help with information & expertise? By the way .. the long-haired bloke on Time Team was Phil .. there's a recent version of TimeTeam (I think) featuring some of original team Will keep watching with interest, thankyou !

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Wow thank you so much for commenting on our channel because that means so much to be the first time you’ve commented ☺️ and thank you again for such high praise. We were so surprised and excited when we saw the first part of the stones start to appear it was amazing and we just knew that when people suggested there might be a whole yard under there….that we would have to keep searching for it! Oh that would be great if you could bring trowels lol as we have ours still in a packing box somewhere buried at the back of the outbuilding 🫣 That’s a great idea with taking measurements, we will do that. I have a feeling the the other side that we raked over initially which is in front of the other outbuilding could possibly be the same covering although not sure about that and also not sure if we can dig anymore just yet lol. I will do some googling to see if there is anything like that here. I’ve googled to see if I can see some photographs of similar yards and the comments we had on this video have given us plenty of images in our mind of what we are uncovering. We’re very happy that you will keep watching with interest, hopefully we don’t disappoint 😉❤️

[@StephanieRucker-rr9ok]

Looks great, you will eventually know when stones uncovered. Could there have been a water trough of stones, water well, or hole made for manure which was later filled with stones?

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Hi Stephanie Anything is possible as we just don't know. If anything, we would probably guess just a hard standing for the animals but the large raised stones hae really thrown us. Today was a good dig day though and hopefully tomorrow we may know a little bit more. Time will tell. Thank you for watching and commenting :-)

[@annrae1597]

It looks like the pictures you see of old Roman roads with a gutter for rain water..maybe an archeologist could help you.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Yes it does, doesn’t it? Hadn’t thought of it like that. Well strangely I have just replied to someone that is an archaeologist but isn’t an expert in this kind of thing. I will do some googling as well and the comments we’ve had from viewers have been very helpful with how it might be laid out. 😊

[@sandracraig3070]

Just a thought, have you been to the local pub? You may well find someone there who has a wealth of local knowledge about your area. You're doing a brilliant job by the way - hats off to you doing it all by hand.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

No we haven’t actually but that’s a very good idea. We’re not huge pub goers to be fair but once the warmer weather comes it might be nice to be out and about a little bit more, we should have stopped digging by then as well! 🤣 Thank you very much, it’s been a long hard slog but now we’re nearing the end it has been worth it to do it by hand because we’ve been able to take a little care and time with it.

[@meredythrochman8941]

I am impressed with your tenacity! My feelings are that they would wash out the stalls, by pouring water which would escape with the poop etc through the hole in the side of the barn, go down the gully, then probably veer to the right to that natural trough that turns into a stream when it rains. That would break it down some, and the lumps would stay behind and caught in the selected size stones, to be shovelled in to a manure pile later. There seems to be a drain, or collection place with a concrete lid there too, which must have a connection. I admire your hard work and dedication. I have worked on two restorations of my own, in Nova Scotia. It is fun to learn the story of the house every time you pull off wallpaper or dig a hole. I am retired from the design area, so if I can help in any way, just ask! Keep up the amazing spirit! Meredyth Mitchell-Rochman

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Hi Meredyth, thank you so much for such a great comment :-) Everything you say makes perfect sense and we are hoping today we may get to see more and hope it does turn right. The concrete lid is from the house down to the septic tank and is modern really, it would have been nice if it was a large tank under there, but sadly not. We love this whole place. We know some facts from the two ladies that lived here as children before leaving home but before this period of time, things are a bit of a mystery, like this area we are uncovering. Thank you so much for watching and commenting and hopefully we will know more soon :-)

[@nigelmillion8192]

One with long hair on time team, was he called Phil? I used to watch it all the time but I'm not sure.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

He was indeed called Phil, thanks Nigel. We used to watch it too. They have the advantage of knowing what they are digging for and what it should look like, we had no idea and didn't even know the stones were under all of that soil. Although hard work digging all of that soil, it was very rewarding finding a piece of history under it. Thank you for watching and commenting Nigel. Make sure you watch the others video for updates on how it is going.

[@nigelmillion8192]

I've been binge watching after finding your channel. Just over three weeks abd I am upto date. Love the channel and what you're doing. Keep up the great work.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

Thank you! That’s pretty good going in 3 weeks! There’s a fair few now.

[@shirleyporter9025]

Maybe a gulley from a piggery to a pit which was subsequently filled in with random boulders?

[@thecornerhouseproject]

This seems to be the general consensus, so that’s great for us to now know what it is we are seeing! I love learning new things!

[@James-rn6lo]

If you pile the soil up it should eventually turn into topsoil.

[@thecornerhouseproject]

The soil we were moving yesterday was gorgeous. We have put it safely to one side at the bottom of the land for use later if it is needed. Thanks James