How to Metal Detect Old Homesteads: Finding Privies, Wells & Trash Pits

If you’ve spent any time hunting old homesites, you already know the truth: the best finds are rarely in the front yard.  They’re behind the house, out where people actually lived their daily lives. There is likely more treasure back there than your metal detector is capable of finding……One of the richest, most overlooked locations on any historic property is the old privy—the outhouse pit.

Want to be Privy to a Mostly Missed Place for Buried Treasures? The Hidden Treasure Vault Behind the House

Privies weren’t just bathrooms. They were disposal sites, hiding places, and accidental artifact vaults filled with bottles, coins, buttons, relics, and the forgotten debris of the 18^th, 19th- and early-20th-century life, both in the towns and the homesites of yesteryear.

Southeast Missouri Farms Project. Privy erection. Placing wood cribbing in privy well – 1938 May – Photographer Lee, Russell
Source – Farm Security Administration – Office of War Information Photograph Collection (Library of Congress)

Our challenge is how to find these honeyholes of treasure because privies don’t announce their location with flags or signs saying “here I am”, but the ground itself will tell you where they are with the proper knowledge and techniques, and learning how to read the telltale signs is one of the most valuable skills a serious site hunter can develop.  As an incentive to you is the knowledge that privies can hold treasures worth hundreds and even thousands of dollars!

Let’s Dig Deeper

A privy pit was typically a hand-dug hole, and can be a circular shape, a rectangular or square, and it would have had a wooden structure built over the top.  They were not heavily anchored most of the time and they had to be able to be moved.  In most rural settings provided the soil could be dug easily, the pit was dug deep enough to allow several years of use, and the depth was commonly in the range of three to six feet, but sometimes deeper depending on soil conditions and water table.

Remains of Old Privy at the Ghost Town. Georgetown, New Mexico – 1940 May – Photographer Lee Russell
Sourcev- Farm Security Administration – Office of War Information Photograph Collection (Library of Congress)

Privy locations follow patterns of human behavior, not randomness. People didn’t dig these holes just anywhere.   People placed them where privacy, wind direction, odor control, drainage, and convenience intersected.  Great thought was given to the placement of the privy for all of those reasons.

At a typical farmhouse or residence, the privy was usually positioned behind the house, often fifty to one hundred feet away. That distance wasn’t accidental. It was placed in a location downwind and downhill from the home so that odors would carry away from living areas, and also to reduce contamination risk near wells, and still allow access in bad weather or nighttime conditions.  In my detecting lifetime, some of my best coin finds have been along the direct line from the back door of an old homesite to the Privy location.  It seems people in a hurry back in the day to drop their britches or put their dresses back on tended to lose more pocket change or other valuables than just about anywhere else on the property.  When you find an old church location, you can multiply those visits by however many people went to church there, and along that pathway, well, let’s just say nature takes its course and that creates dropped targets for metal detectorists to come along 100 years later and discover. 

Let’s Get Down to the Nitty Gritty….What to Look For

The landscape itself often provides the first clue. Privy sites may show slight depressions where the pit settled over decades. This settled area of soil is the result of organic materials that are absorbed into the soil matrix over time as well as fill dirt compressing down.  When one Privy was done, it was time to dig another, and it would be near that first one….guess where the dug dirt from the new privy hole went?  Yep, into the old hole, sometimes it was even mounded on top of the old hole, so that can be another sign it was there.

Soil in the immediate footprint of a privy is likely to appear darker, richer, and more organic because the organic content has long since decomposed into humus.  The reasons why are simple:

Nutrients in a 150-200 year old outhouse pit survive and typically remain significantly more concentrated than in the surrounding “native” soil. Archaeologists and soil scientists refer to this as a “habitation effect”, long-lasting chemical signatures left by human waste and organic refuse.  Nutrients from the “habitation effect” are remarkably persistent, with some chemical signatures lasting for centuries or even millennia. While the most volatile components break down quickly, the structural and mineral changes to the soil can remain detectable long into the foreseeable future.

Here is a Persistence Timeline Classified by Nutrient That Explains The Lusher Growth Around the Privy Site

• Phosphorus (P): 1,000+ Years
  Phosphorus is the most durable indicator of human activity. It bonds strongly to soil minerals and remains elevated in archaeological sites for thousands of years, long after the organic matter has completely decayed. For plants, it encourages strong root growth and is reflected in the overall health of plant life (i.e. lusher growth)
• Calcium and Magnesium: 500–1,000+ Years
  These minerals, often introduced through bone, shells, or wood ash (used for odor control in outhouses), stay locked in the soil matrix for many centuries.  Both of these help in the robust cellular growth in plants, making them stronger in the growth patterns we can see onsite.
• Organic Matter: 100–500 Years
  The “black dirt” or humic layer created by decomposed waste typically takes about 100 years to fully stabilize into a rich, dark loam. Once formed, this organic legacy can persist for several centuries if the soil is not heavily tilled or eroded.
• Nitrogen (N): 50–100 Years
  Nitrogen is the most mobile nutrient and is prone to leaching into groundwater or being taken up by plants. While initial levels are massive, they often return to “near-normal” baseline levels within a century of the site being abandoned. 

These factors also influence the length of time nutrients change the soil matrix at a privy site:

Soil Texture: Clay-heavy soils “trap” nutrients like phosphorus more effectively than sandy soils, which allow nutrients to wash away faster.

Climate: Arid environments preserve these chemical signatures much longer than rainforests, where heavy rain constantly flushes the soil.

Depth: Because outhouse pits were deep, the nutrients are shielded from surface erosion and UV breakdown, extending their lifespan significantly compared to surface-spread fertilizer. 

If you’re looking for an old outhouse site, look for clumps of unusually lush, dark-green vegetation during dry spells—these plants are still tapping into the deep nutrient reservoir 150 years later. The Foliage itself can also be a telltale indicator. Certain plants thrive in nutrient-rich ground, and privy zones sometimes produce unusual patches of nettles, poison ivy, tall grasses, or dense weeds.  If  you see patches of different colored grasses along with a depression area of soil, then it is a solid clue that it might well be the location of the privy.

One of the most useful historical tools for locating privies in town environments is the Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps.  Did you know that those Sanborn Fire Maps are actually quite accurate in their measurements?  They are certainly close enough to provide a go to area on an old homesite in a town in the country.  And as shown below, many times the maps itself will give you a great indicator where a privy’s location is.

Here is a great example of an outhouse located on a town lot from an 1876 Sanborn Map. When you see a structure on a Sanborn Map like this, separated from the dwelling, you can rest assured it is an outhouse.  In this case, it would be at the Northwest corner of the lot. 

Using a Metal soil probe remains one of the most effective field methods for confirming a privy location. A proper privy probe is typically four to five feet long, steel-shafted with a T-handle, and many feature an aluminum or brass tip for durability and soil feedback.  Places like Home Depot and Lowes carry soil probes.  It is best to get one with an aluminum replaceable tip and you really want one that is 48 inches or so and ½ inch steel shaft. The aluminum tip is replaceable and since it is softer than steel, it is not as likely to scratch the surface of bottles when you encounter them. 

When you use a soil probe, you learn to distinguish the difference between the “feel” of rocks, vs glass vs metal.  Like metal detecting, it is a learned art, but unlike metal detecting, learning this is not as difficult and can be mastered in just a few experiences. 

During the active lifetime of a privy, people often used scented liquids or bottled deodorizing perfumes to reduce odor inside the outhouse.  Likely you have heard of the term “toilet water” which was a cheap perfume kept in an outhouse to lessen the odor.  These actually had some bottles that were pretty fancy and fetch fancy prices today when you find them.  When the bottles were emptied, they were often thrown into the hole, along with other items that made their way to the privy hole for disposal.  And never forget that pulling pants up or letting them down to use the toilet would sometimes cause coins and other valuables to be lost and face it……not many people would have any desire to try and retrieve those lost items.  I actually have an old friend that found an 1887 $20 gold coin in a privy dig. 

LiDar can sometimes provide another layer of detection, particularly in wooded rural sites. While LiDar is not a magic privy detector, it can reveal subtle depressions, backfilled mounds, or repeating patterns behind institutional sites.  I don’t usually rely on that marvelous tool for that job, but any source that provides information is always welcome.  Here is a screenshot of a known 1800’s homesite with two Privy holes next to it.

Note that the signs are subtle but they are there. One of the things on using LiDar is to know that nature doesn’t work in straight lines.  So when LiDar is deployed in your quests, you look for such things.  And many times when looking at LiDar images, you will see impressions of old country roads.  And down those old pathways, you will find old homesites, and somewhere close by, within that 50-100 ft distance, there will be the remains of a privy hole.  LiDar is a great tool for finding this sort of thing, but feet on the ground is what is required to prove the truth of that impression you get using LiDar.  I prefer feet on the ground because every single homesite I have ever come across I know for an almost 100% certainty, they had a privy. I can then use my super powers of knowledge of placement to know where to look nearby.   The best use, in my opinion, is that LiDar will absolutely show you the old homesites, and those in turn will lead you to the privy location just as a matter of course in your searching the premises.

Wisconsin code for rural school privies. – Madison, Wis., 1918 – Source Library of Congress

Uncovering the Hidden Treasures Below:  Tools, Techniques, and What to Expect Below the Surface

It is a given fact that you must have permission to dig out a privy.  So, I am not going to address that aspect.

An old privy pit becomes one of the most historically productive excavation features on a homesite. Privies served as household sanitation for decades, and because families often disposed of bottles, broken ceramics, and personal items into these pits, they can preserve some of the most artifact-rich deposits on the property. The key is understanding that a privy dig is not about speed or brute force—it is about controlled excavation, safety, and careful recovery.

The first step is preparing the right tools. A full-sized spade shovel is typically used for removing topsoil and sod cleanly, while a narrower trenching shovel can be useful once the pit outline is identified. Most experienced hunters also keep a hand trowel nearby, because the deeper layers often contain tightly packed glass and fragile items that can be damaged by aggressive digging. A long probe rod—usually four to five feet with a T-handle and a durable metal tip—can help confirm disturbed soil zones before excavation begins, especially in areas where the pit has partially collapsed or been backfilled.

Back-Yard and Privies in Terribly Filthy Condition, 76-78 Borden Street, Providence, Rhode Island. – 1912 November – Photographer Hine, Lewis Wickes, Source – National Child Labor Committee Collection

Safety gear is essential from the beginning. Privy pits almost always contain broken glass, jagged ceramics, rusted metal, and sharp debris. Heavy cut-resistant gloves should be considered mandatory, along with eye protection. Many diggers also wear a dust mask or respirator, especially in dry soil where fine particles rise quickly. Even though human waste has long since decomposed into humus and earthy soil, privy fill can still contain mold, contaminants, or sharp hazards that require caution.

When excavation begins, the most important practice is removing soil in controlled layers rather than digging straight down aggressively. The top layer is usually modern overburden—grass, roots, and surface soil that accumulated after the privy was abandoned. Once the fill dirt begins to change color, the digger should slow down. Privy pits often show a clear soil contrast: darker, richer organic fill compared to the surrounding undisturbed ground. This is one of the strongest confirmations that you are in the correct feature.

As you work downward, it is common to encounter household debris mixed throughout the fill. Bottles may appear intact, but more often they appear in clusters of broken glass, ash, and domestic refuse. This is where patience matters. Many of the best finds occur along the sides of the pit, where bottles were tossed and settled against the walls rather than directly in the center. A hand trowel and careful scraping are far safer than chopping with a shovel once artifacts begin to appear.  You should also consider a stiff brush for getting dirt away from the edges of items found.  By coincidence, I use a plastic toilet brush with stiff bristles.

Depth varies by region, soil type, and site use. A rural farmhouse privy might extend four to six feet deep, while a hotel or boarding house privy may have been dug deeper or replaced more frequently due to heavy use. In some cases, pits were lined with wood, brick, or stone, and those structural elements may appear as the excavation progresses. Rocky ground often produces shallower pits, while soft loam allows deeper digging and often preserves glass exceptionally well.

Regulation of Privies in the District of Columbia. January 15, 1897, Source – Library of Congress Control Number 2024853229

One historical detail that fascinates bottle hunters is the presence of “toilet water perfume” bottles. During the active lifetime of the privy, scented liquids were sometimes used inside outhouses to help mask odors, and these products were sold in distinctive decorative bottles. While the perfume itself is long gone, the bottles remain as period artifacts. Today, the privy soil smells like humus and earth, not waste or fragrance, because the organic material has fully decomposed into the surrounding dirt over many decades.

Another important reality is that privies were often moved rather than emptied. When one pit filled, the household would dig another a short distance away. This creates the possibility of multiple pits behind the same structure, especially at hotels, schools, and high-occupancy sites. If one privy is found, probing outward in a line can sometimes reveal additional replacement pits nearby.

As artifacts are recovered, they should be handled gently. Glass bottles can be extremely fragile after a century underground, especially if they have internal cracking or thin walls. The safest approach is to rinse gently with water and use a soft brush rather than scraping with metal tools. Proper preservation often matters more than immediate cleaning, especially for embossed bottles or rare pieces.

Be EXTREMELY aware of the possibility of sidewall collapse.  There have been instances where people have been severely injured and even killed because they were in a deep hole and the sidewalls collapsed, pinning or even suffocating them as a result.  The best privy dig is the one you complete in safety and take the prizes home with you.

A careful privy excavation is as much historical recovery as it is detecting. Done correctly, it can reveal medicine bottles, perfumery, household ceramics, coins, buttons, and personal items that tell the everyday story of the people who lived there. With permission granted, the right tools, and a slow, deliberate approach, the old privy truly becomes what many of us researchers call it: the hidden vault behind the house.

In the end, privies aren’t random holes. They are needed  sanitation features, placed with logic, shaped by terrain, and often tied to the richest artifact deposits on a historic property.  Can you Dig it?