At some time during the 17th century the settlement at Ferryland began to spread beyond the original four-acre town site. One such house, located east of the original settlement on the Ferryland Downs, was excavated during the mid-1990s.
A Ferryland legend of long standing held that a well existed somewhere in the vicinity of our excavations. The story relates how the well had stood abandoned long after its use as a water source, and that a child had fallen into the well and drowned.