10/13/2026
October is Archaeology Month! ⌛⛏️
One of the most exciting parts of archaeology is connecting individual experiences to the broader historical context in which people lived. Sometimes, even the smallest artifact can tell a much bigger story!
At first glance, this artifact (recovered from our recent dig at Breed’s Hill!) looks like little more than a dirty piece of plastic. But with a little archaeological detective work, we were able to uncover a really cool history!
The text “East Ind Ale” led us to John R. Alley, an Irish-American brewer who founded Eblana Brewery in Roxbury/Mission Hill’s Stony Brook Valley in 1885-1886. The brewery produced several ales, including East India Stock Ale, and continued operating until 1918 (see photo 2 for an image of the brewery). The building is currently for sale, has a long standing Raze or Repair order from ISD and has been through Article 85. Currently, the demolition delay for this property has expired.
But there was still a mystery: we couldn’t find a matching label. Then, another fragment of text caught our attention: “ial base b.” Initially, we interpreted this text to refer to perhaps the base of the bottle or some serial number associated with the drink, but we were delighted to find that it actually referred to “official base ball” instead (obvious to us now).
A little more research revealed that our artifact was part of a celluloid baseball schedule and score counter produced as a promotional item in the 1910s, before Prohibition. Associated with Alley’s and Pfaff’s B**r, these double-sided schedules featured rotating dials showing game information for two Boston teams: the Boston Americans and the Boston Braves. The team names refer to the Boston Braves, an MLB team that plated in Boston for the National League from 1871 to 1952. The other team, the Boston Americans, refers to the original name of the Boston Red Sox, who adopted the name "Boston Red Sox" prior to the 1908 season and moved to Fenway Park in 1912. ⚾
Swipe to photo 3 to see a much cleaner, intact example from an online collector’s listing!
And just like that, a dirty piece of plastic became a link between Boston’s brewing industry, local businesses, and the city’s baseball teams. This is one of the things that makes archaeology so exciting: even the smallest artifacts can tell us something about the people who lived here, the products they enjoyed, and the pastimes they engaged in.
Want to discover more of Boston’s history? As part of Archaeology Month (and all year round!), the public is welcome to visit our exhibits at our lab in West Roxbury: 201 Rivermoor St., Boston, MA 02132.
Stay tuned for more announcements throughout the month! 🎉👀
