Hi, Listers I'm a writer doing a magazine piece on the custom of using datestones in residential construction. There's not much written on the subject, but one source told me he thought it was something the Germans brought to the U.S. Somehow, this rings true. I DO know that, here in southeastern Pennsylvania -- a major destination for German immigrants -- there are lots of old stone houses with late 18th and early 19th century datestones. Anyone have any info re: this? Mark E. Dixon Wayne, PA