I think it was a cold spring house root cellar for keeping milk, butter and such. These were always placed in running water going through them. Your creek might have been diverted since that time or the person diverted it on purpose for their ease of access to the spring house. So they used the natural spring and that’s why it’s so close to the creek because it was always flowing. People used what they had to survive. If you check on Spring house, you’ll find other countries still use them now and often rebuild the house over them because the wood would rot easily because of the moisture. That’s my belief just from research and seeing them in videos.

Holly was meant to be a farm dog! She’s a lucky girl to have found such a good home ❤

I'm 74 and I remember wanting so bad to show my daddy something when I was a child. When He came to see it, I felt so important and adored him all the more.

I think you’ve found an old spring house where they kept things that needed to be kept cold like milk, butter, meat, anything that needs to be cold! It’s near the creek which may have been bigger and closer to it at that time! Many times they were built over a running creek to keep it cool and the stone and earth would naturally help keto it cool! Keep us updated , maybe check out the records at the courthouse and old newspapers in the library , you might get some info about your properties history! God bless ❤️🙏🙋🏻

Yay! You found yourself an old cold house. Back in the old days they would build a little one room structure out of stone and mud over the creek and under the trees. It would keep your food cold and water clean. The house that would be near there is probably nothing but a foundation that has done been buried under the leaves and compost.

My grandparents had what they called the spring house. It was near a natural spring in a little grove of trees. It was always cool there. Part of the walls were stacked rock and part was dirt. It had a wooden log or timber roof and moss grew on it. They stored all kinds of food there. They set milk cans in the spring and the milk got really cold. You could keep canning jars on the shelf. You could store baskets of potatoes, apples and root vegetables all winter. I think they put straw in there in the winter and set the bushel and half bushel baskets in the straw during the winter. I remember going in there with my grandma and digging apples and potatoes out of the straw. She wrapped the apples individually in newspapers and the apples were as fresh as the day they were picked. They had an orchard and each type of apple was in a different basket. When they got electricity they got a refrigerator and didn’t need it for keeping milk cold but still used it for a cellar. Pretty much every farm had a root cellar. I bet you could ask some of the neighbor farms if they have a spring house or root cellar and find out if this is what you have.

15:40 Holly digging & then lying down, looking soo pleased with herself & laughing, giving you the answer! - too cute!!🧡

Since mary carl is home schooled u could use ur researching as part of her schooling! I love seeing her on the show!

You could try calling the closest university with an Archeology department. They might send someone to check it out. If it interests them, with your permission, they may excavate it for you. It could have historical significance. Which is why I wouldn't start digging it up myself.

Holly has really hit the jackpot with your family. Lucky doggie.

My in-laws had a similar find on their property in Virginia. The spent years excavating and, as they moved along, they found more and more areas. It was thought to be a pioneer family's homestead. Some of the things they found dated back to the Revolutionary War time. They had a cistern that, evidently, was their garbage dump. There were old medicine/ liniment bottles and pots and broken pieces of farm equipment. The Historical Society picked through and said it looked like more than one generation had lived there. When they moved because of age-related health reasons, the site was about half explored. I'll bet that your university's Archeology Department would love to get in there to explore and give you more answers.. Holly has landed in Doggie Heaven. I hope her previous owner can watch and see what a good decision she made for Holly's sake.

The way the rocks are placed, it appears that there could possibly be an spring, where someone gathered water. The rocks appear to be wet. If you dig the leaves & bushes away, you may actually find water. Keep us posted.

After seeing pictures and reading descriptions, I think it is an old Cold Spring House. They were built on top of cold springs for keeping perishables cool. I love how Holly seems to love running around in the stream.

Watching Holly run around and through the water, made me laugh and smile. Holly was definitely meant to be at the 40. While you were still in the camper, and not looking for a dog, thank God the owner wasn’t looking to rehome Holly during that time. Holly is definitely a blessing and meant to be Jason’s sidekick.

It is a very interesting structure and I am fascinated by the responses below. My hubby is a dry stone waller. The stones do appear to have been considerately placed in the same skilled way as a waller would build without mortar. The size of the stones on top though seem a bit small to support a roof structure unless it was something just placed on top for easy removal. Dry stone walls are very resillient to heave, (they will rise and fall with frost, for example) and were primarily built for boundaries and small structures. See if you can spot any 'through' stones which tie the wall together depthwise, or if you can spot whether or not there is a camber, or a wider base but there will be no 'foundation' to speak of. Many a dry stone wall has saved the lives of sheep in winter snow storms in Scotland where I am from originally. Sheep against a dry stone wall have been found alive after being buried in snowdrifts for days. The width of the base will be a good indicator of what the original height would have been of the finished walls- you can find descriptions of dry stone wall construction and plans online. I don't have a clue what this construction might have been for but does the creek section that you crossed at the start run as high as this structure? it could have been used to power a small water wheel inside the structure and there may have been a sluice gate to help build up the water pressure. that would have been a three sided structure with an open side facing the creek below where the water was discharged to. With so many people suggesting a cold spring house root cellar which sounds totally plausible it would indeed be worth getting an expert opinion as to what you have right there on your land. A great discovery! I hope the mystery is solved!

Aint nothin better than a mystery! MC floors me every time she pipes in on a topic! That baby child if far beyond her years! I have one of those...he is 19 now! He got a leadership promotion at his very first job 6 months after starting! At a big giant company! Some people are just super extra special and it sure is a pleasure being their mamas!

When my great grandparents came to Oklahoma their first home was a dugout home. They dug a room in the side of a bank just above the creek. Makes me think of that. That would’ve been in the early 1920’s .

It could have been like what they used to call a spring house. It was cooler to store food before refrigeration. Used same as a root cellar. I remember my grandma using hers before they got electricity. Oh to have the chance to explore it now.

Underground bunker for soldiers in the war? That’s soo very cool and I can’t wait to find out the history! ❤ Also it was very good to see MC in the video, she’s so educated and such a sweetheart 💜

Holly has a very joyful spirit. She's a once in a lifetime doggie. 😂❤

Holly is such a joyful dog,she lifts my spirits on this gloomy Michigan day

Because of the location on the incline of a small hill, it might have been a "bunker" of sorts during the Civil War (with water close by). Learning more about the history of your land will be exciting. Please keep us posted. P.S. Great sleuthing, Brooke and MaryCarl! 👍👏✨❗

Smith Family, I'm hard pressed to think of a more enjoyable video on your channel. I've been following you for awile now and I do think this is my favorite. Your zest for life is apparent throughout this one. It was great to see you all having fun too. I felt like I was right next to you. Lovin y'all Bunches from Oregon!! 💌🥰

This. Made me. Cry. I just lost my little. Dog. Thanks. For. Sharing. !!!❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

I think I might contact the local university and see if their archeological classes could come out and unbury it as a class project. Let the "pros" handle it, it might be a major historical find! Super cool!

I hear Holly saying, "hey, Dad, this is a very special adventure! Look at what I can do! " She may be the happiest dog I have ever seen..

Two ideas occur to me: (1) Root cellar (2) Collapsed burial crypt, in which case you are likely to find graves around it. The stones could be buried two feet deep under that layer of decomposed leaves. Read the legal description on your deed, line for line, to find mention of a cemetery, burying ground or grave yard. VERY common in rural areas. Cemetery may be an “EXCEPTION” on your deed, meaning you don’t own the “hole in the donut”.

SENDING PRAYERS 🙏🏼praying everyone in Alabama is safe from Tornados.

If Holly's former person doesn't/can't watch your videos that would be sad. It would be a great way to see that she is thriving now that she lives on the 40. Her exuberance is contagious.

We had a root cellar that had a dirt roof. It finally started caving in and we collapsed it. That could be where the dirt came from, and yes it had rocks for walls. Root cellar or spring house that used the stream to keep it cold. A log house would have rotted out and disappeared. Any stones could have been re-used or just moved over time. Holly in the stream just made me smile. She is living her best life and I'm so glad you guys found her. I love that you are keeping the jar!

So nice to see our favorite farm girl, MaryCarl, today. Such a lovely young Lady. You have been missed. 🙋🏼‍♀️

Holly sure has livened up the farm and gets into investigating the land. She is a treasure that just keeps on giving !! MaryCarl is so smart and does her own investigating . What a wonderful life y'all have 💗😊❣️👍

You need to ALWAYS take MARKING RIBBON when out on the property!!

“An ancient dog bed”. I love that 😅. Holly is a treasure. I hope her former owner is able to watch her on your channel. She’s living her greatest life. It’s so much fun seeing the three puppies running and playing. Thank you for sharing your adventure with us. So much fun 🥰

I've seen active springs where some time long ago someone built a stonewall simular to this with a stream of water pouring from the rocks. It's a place people would gather to collect spring water.

Do some metal detecting around the area, if you found that jar, there is no telling what you can find. All the dogs going on the hike with y'all was fun to watch. Holly is a hoot! Sunny was just chilling and Arlo, well, More Cowbell! LoL!

I think Holly loves her new home. So much to explore.

Putting that antique sink on the porch has paid for itself multiple times already :D I love it.

What a fun diversion for you! The fact that Brooke and Jason got right in there with bare hands and shovels was awesome to me! The whole "crew" was digging and investigating. :)

Check with your oldest surviving neighbors where local settlers established homes/trading posts along local creeks/water ways, paths/roads, etc.

I would contact your state university archeological department. They would probably love to have a local "dig". This is fascinating! Way to go Brooke!!! Y'all have a blessed day!

A springhouse would have been a simple stone structure to keep the spring water clean and to store milk, butter etc. To keek them cool during summer. My grandparents had one that reminds me of that. The spring water was so cold it would make your teeth ache when you drank it straight from the spring.

Holly is such a hoot in the creek. She’s so much fun. I’m so glad she is yours.

Sounds to me like you found an old spring house. We had one when I was a child. I loved how cold it kept our fresh milk!

Contact the historical society in your area and maybe they'll know people who would want to check it out.

You guys made a really cool find. And watching Holly play in that water was hilarious. And that tree MaryCarl found was so cool!

My grandmother's farm, middle of Oklahoma, had a spring house built right above the stream that ran through her farm. By the time I was born, it wasn't in use any more. She had an ice box, on the back porch for ice block deliveries. About the time I turned two, my uncles bought her an electric refrigerator and had to have the house wired for electricity, too. This was early fifties.

Possibly since you found a jar maybe a moonshine distillery. Or defiantly a root cellar where the spring cool ground kept it cool during the hot months. So cool finding something where someone once was.

That jar is from the 1940's. The structure probably was a root cellar or maybe a canning shed, having running water right there would've made it easier to can a big harvest.

Jason ,I am pretty sure that is an old spring house . My grandpa built one when I was a child. We kept our butter and milk and cheese in it . We churned our own butter and the milk stayed so cool in there. Grandpa later built another one later on when the spring he built it around went dry.

Someone worked that land very hard and I think we all would love to hear the history

After Jason found the quart bottle, I think your find use to be a moonshine still. They needed to be close to water! It will be fun finding out! Love, love your show! Please be blessed ❤

You need to watch Sidestep Adventures, Robert and his friends look for old homesteads and graveyards and can pretty much tell you what it might be and the time period.

If you are concerned about Arlo getting lost, we recommend the Whistle GPS tracker. We used to have a dog who was a runner and Whistle always let us find him. We live on 43 acres, so we definitely understand.

MaryCarl is so pretty. I’m glad she decided to be part of this video.

This was fun. I am older now and can't go roaming anymore and watching you guys just lifts my spirits. I wanted to get in there and help dig. lol Your channel is the best. Your family is the best. Thank you for including us.

That was fun. Thanks for taking us along. Holly is an awesome asset to the farm. She was so proud of her spot!!

Being so close to spring it's possible it was a spring house over a spring that over time stopped flowing from that area. Or a cold cellar, being built into the hill would have kept things cold.

I think you are right. It was a cold spring house. My daddy had one. Beautiful woods!

Love how u 2 as a couple work so good together u don’t argue or fight u discuss that’s beautiful👍👍👍🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼

You could metal detect around the old foundation and see what kind of relics you find to try to date the area. you could also look on old maps to see if there was a structure there on the property previously. Love your videos!

Jason, you might find more information on your new property by going to the county office where the Property ownership has been recorded. You might find out the complete history of what and who have been on that property!!! Good luck 🥰🥰🥰

You go Brooke, don't give up. That is a good mystery. I love that creek almost as much as Holly. As a child we always played in the woods and we too rocks and made small rooms just for playing in. they were our "forts"

Your channel brings me pure joy! From the music to the accents to the animals, and now Holly, my heart smiles, and my eyes tear up!

Could it be an Ice house? Lots of the old Manor House’s in the UK had Ice houses nest to a lake, river or stream where they kept big blocks of ice to last the summer.

Holly is such a wonderful addition to your family. It was such a joy to watch her having such a good time running through the woods and creek.

Look at all those beautiful Ferns and stuff growing around there

With it being close to the creek it could’ve been a spring house to keep things like milk butter and cheese cool during the warm days of spring and summer

Oh my goodness! This is such a fun video! Checkin out the rock walls, trees, the beautiful creek with the jar was in it was really cool, the cool tree MaryCarl found growing into the other tree, and Holly helping dig the hole( herself a cool bed ) and her just havin a blast in the creek! Love today's video! So glad MaryCarl and Brooke went exploring! God bless!😊❤️

I think it was a cold room for keeping dairy products/and other things cold. They were called spring houses. You should really check it out because I think it might go back probably in and around the 1800s or before

Holly sure loves some Jason when she was digging she was watching Jason as he was laughing she was laughing so cute

At least you have a good supply of rocks for a project around the house. Maybe a outline for a flower garden

Looks like a hidden structure built to hide an “illegal still” built possibly during prohibition days, especially given the fact that it’s near a water source & also finding the jar close-by! The metal is probably part of the still itself🤷‍♀️.. exciting historical find on your property, though👍!! 😊

Every state has a land grant university that houses the state extension service. They will be able to tell you who to call in the Anthropology department who can tell you 1). If there is a person or department that looks into structures like this in your state and who to call and 2). If it would be ok for you to dig the area or if you should wait until someone with the proper credentials can come check it out. You live in an area with great history attached to it and while this could be a simple spring house it could also be the remains of something with much greater historical significant. Before you dig around and possibly destroy a significant find you should get it checked out. Just advice from a retired anthropologist who has seen too many sites damaged by curious land owners. And if nothing else they could tell you what it was and when it was built. It just seems to me, with no sign of a dwelling near by it wouldn’t be anything having to be connected to food storage or anything of that sort.

I believe the answer is it's the storage area for produce to keep fresh during the summer months

What a treasure! I always dreamt of finding something cool in the woods by my house growing up, but I never did. Also, I really appreciate the comment section on this one, there's so much wisdom down there!

Whatever it is, it is so cool. You could get some little archeologist tools and brushes and record the digging to reveal what the discovery is. So neat. The old jar is really interesting too, yall could use it as a vase for your beautiful flowers. Holly is really a joy to watch. If you guys find out what it is, please share with us. That is very interesting.

Just when Holly thought life was perfect and couldn't get better at Cog hill farm, he goes and finds the BEST creek EVER!!

Hi..... Jason and Brooke and Mary Carl nice to see you all love watching your videos homestead 👋 bye 👋 bye 👋 bye 👋 👕🐔🐓🐣🐥🐩🐕🐈🐑🐄🐖🕊🐝🌱🌺🌹🌻🌼🌸🌷🏡🎥👍👍👍

No idea! But Holly is precious!! I can't believe Mary Carl has just grown up!! She is so pretty and Love her hair!!

Good morning from NH 5 degrees this morning ☕☃️❄️ I made some popcorn for this adventure 😁 I love exploring the woods and finding old cellar holes! They have a story to tell💞 can you go to town hall , archive s, and find history , old pictures of your property, might be fascinating 🥰

Jason, you reminded me of a highway crew. You were working & the 3 dogs were supervising. Lol! Those pups are such a joy! Especially watching Holly have the time of her life playing in the creek!!! If we could all remember to simply enjoy the simplest of things and innocent amazement! Like MC's tree. She certainly is getting TALL! Great to see her!❤

Back in late 1958 near a old home place was a cave built large enough old woman would store potatoes and summer flowers to go dormant in through winter

It was a spring house for keeping your vittles cool. That piece of metal was what was left of a five gallon white gas can that was used to keep food in in the spring house.

Holly is so funny. Y’all watch out for them copperheads. 🐍🐍👀👀

That maple could have started growing there long after that structure was built, too! I see people recommending archaeologists to look at it. Great idea! It could be much older than you think! Super cool 😎 Texas Deb ❤️

I don’t know how else to tell you how worried I am for the cog Hill Family! Please stay safe! Watching Ryan Hall ya’ll weather channel. So many of us love you. So glad you have your safe tornado shelter.🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼

Being that close to a creek or water supply& finding a Mason jar I would certainly lean to calling a moonshine still. Especially if it was built back between the 20's up to the 40's,it makes it the perfect time period. It certainly is an accurate detection. COOL find!

It almost looks like an old stairwell, or maybe a spring box? Root cellar? Interesting! I know my mom said they used to keep their milk and things like that in the spring box to keep it cold. Even now up in those mountains in NC alot of people have natural springs that supply their water (best water EVER!)

What a cool find! We bought 5 acres of wild woods in 2012. Had the middle portion graded off for our dream home. Built 2013. Left everything surrounding us as natural as possible. We found several bent trees that were formed by the Indians that traveled through here (the trail of tears) (research)…many other relics imbedded in the soil and woods. It’s so cool to know we are living on their land they trodded many moons ago, I’m trying to preserve their historical walkway. Enjoy your journey! Love your videos! God bless!

What an adventure for everyone, especially the dogs😊 I would suggest contacting a local Historical Society or something similar, or as some else suggested, the University where you took Peaches. Holly had a blast in the creek🤣 Take care & cheers 🐨🦘🥰

What a fun adventure!!! You are so blessed!!!

An exciting find for sure. I keep thinking a storm shelter. BTW So impressed with Mary Carl’s art work of the Victoria Crown Pigeons.

I absolutely love watching Holly (and you guys) all living your best lives! I always look forward to Monday, Wednesday and Friday to spend a little part of my day with you all. Huge fan! Just curious… does Holly’s previous owner watch your channel now? If so I can’t imagine her being any happier seeing where her pup ended up (hitting the jackpot with the Smith family).

I am 80 years old. When I was a girl my great grandparents lived on a farm near McCalla Alabama. They had a spring house where they kept milk and butter. They used to send us kids down to get milk when we visited.I think what you found may very well be one of those.

You guys out there digging Brings back memories of my Dad. We'd be out digging for fossils & other things all weekend.

Your jar is most probably an antique Knox jar Pail that came with a metal handle attached to the top of the jar and had a screw on lid made in Jackson MS at the Knox Jar and Bottle Company between 1932-1952. To make sure this is the exact jar check near the neck of the jar and see if there are two small indents on opposite sides of the jar neck. That would have been where the "Pail" handle would have been attached. Again the significant markings are "NO 5 PAIL" and a Keystone with a letter J embedded in it. It looks to be about a half gallon size. I would bet what you found is one of two things, either a moonshiners stash house or someones root cellar. Being that it is near good water I would bet on the Moonshiner though. Need good clean water running downhill to feed a still site for the business of distilling some hooch. I have seen several of these sort of caches in both the hill country of Virginia and North Carolina that I know were used for storing moonshine. Imagine if you would 8-10' long of a stone encased storage area with a few branches across it and a tarp laid on top and covered with leaves and debris. It would be invisible to anyone but those that put it there. And during the time of that type of jar there was a thriving business in illegal moonshine up and down the east coast and especially in rural wooded area.

I would definitely do some research and see if there is any major battles around that area during the civil war or could it be part of the underground railroad system that is very interesting thank you for sharing please let us know what you find out. God bless you and your family .

cool the last of the original homestead or pasture wall. Holly, the boarder collie is so freaking happy!

The tree Mary Carl found is really neat. And the Rockwall site is very interesting. A root cellar is a good guess for what it was. It was nice to see Sunny come on an adventure with all of you.