need advice on cellar hole hunting

[BillZ]

The wife and I are spending more time looking for old settlements in wooded parkland.
We haven't done a lot of it or hunted with anyone who has. I would like to start a thread where experienced cellar hole hunters could give some tricks of the trade.

In other words, What is your best source for finding cellar holes?
What kinds of things do you look for once you find a location?
Where do you have the best luck, just outside the hole, in the hole, or some distance away?


I know some of you guys/gals have a lot of experience hunting cellar holes and I would appreciate any tips you are willing to give.

[del]

In other words, What is your best source for finding cellar holes?
What kinds of things do you look for once you find a location?
Where do you have the best luck, just outside the hole, in the hole, or some distance away?

no.1 there are a few great sources to finding old cellar sites .
finding maps of the area from local libraries , internet sites , talking to local people in the area and walking or hiking into the woods looking for tell tale signs of a site.

the things that i look for are stone walls ( might not be prevolent in your neck of the woods so might not apply) huge trees or clump of them out of placed in the middle of a field. pottery shards or brick fragments and glass pieces in an area of plowed field is a good sign of a house site.


once you found a site usually the barn is within eye sight or a stones throw away from it and the most heavily traffic area to detect , usually the closer to the house the more iron you will run into but there are good things hidden by the iron so you have to be patience.around the well and behind the cellar are great spots to detect alot of times there was a place the family would picnic or gather outside and it might take a few trips to locate this spot but it can be a great day when you do .