431 Broome and Crosby st. Manhattan part 2

" All of our effort in recovering artifacts here in New York City is mostly focused on sites
being destroyed in development. Our aim is to save the past and share with the public."

I have been digging for New York's artifacts since 1969. My first dig was on Governor's Island, which was my father's duty station, and I stumbled upon a time capsule of New York's military history in the moat of old Fort Jay. In the dirt under the old drawbridge were relics dating from the War of 1812 all the way to the Civil War including buttons, musket balls and bullets, coins, pottery, and even a small cannon ball.

In 1976, I moved to Manhattan and attended the High School of Art & Design at 57th Street and 2nd Avenue and began looking for historic artifacts in the urban canyons of
New York. During the late 1970s, there were massive construction sites where pieces of New York's past were being destroyed by the dumptruck load. In trying to save as much as I could, I explored the old 17th and 18th Century landfill areas in South Street Seaport and the 19th Century landfill that was to be the future site of the Jacob Javits Convention Center.

www.newyorkartifactart.com
Scott Jordan
Dolhathai Srijamcharoen

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