Okay. You said it was like ten inches down, so I'd guess it's probably not something related to your house, it's probably some bit of infrastructure from the old street. Which means we should be thinking in the realm of "outside municipal access covers", and not "something installed to make my house better".
10” isn’t all that deep. 4-6” slab with some subgrade. That’s 10” and would be about the depth for backflow preventers. Which that likely isn’t. But depth means nothing.
Can you try that thing where you put a sheet of paper over the letters and gently rub a pencil sideways over it, see if you get any more details on the letters?
Not sure it helps, but I fiddled with the levels & stuff to try to make the lettering clearer. Didn’t have much success, but I do see something that could be ‘co’ to the right:
It's Latin.
It says "Don't dead open inside."
Was your house built on the site of a previous house?
it actually was a street prior to 1954
Okay. You said it was like ten inches down, so I'd guess it's probably not something related to your house, it's probably some bit of infrastructure from the old street. Which means we should be thinking in the realm of "outside municipal access covers", and not "something installed to make my house better".
10” isn’t all that deep. 4-6” slab with some subgrade. That’s 10” and would be about the depth for backflow preventers. Which that likely isn’t. But depth means nothing.
Uhhh was it a bombed out one?
What are/were the names of the local water, electricity, gas companies?
Either that or a prototype slime monster trap...
it's changed over the years. I'll check what it was back in the 50's
Can you try that thing where you put a sheet of paper over the letters and gently rub a pencil sideways over it, see if you get any more details on the letters?
Rubbings. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubbing_(art)
Probably something like a sewer drain access point
Don't open that! If you do, I'll know where the next pandemic began.
Are there any wires attached that aren't in the picture? First thing I thought of was some kind of grounding device.
looks likes it's just surrounded by dirt
...and nothing underneath?
not that I've been able to see less I start digging
I would do that. Start on the side away from the bolts and see if that is a lid.
You don't have a call before you dig phone line in your area?
I would have to yes.
Is that another cover lid with screws? The letters look like C U B E, though it could be a 6 and an 8 where I think it's C nd B
Not sure it helps, but I fiddled with the levels & stuff to try to make the lettering clearer. Didn’t have much success, but I do see something that could be ‘co’ to the right:
No harm in spinning the bolts out I wouldn't think. If it's sewer maybe it's covering a conventional looking plug cap.
If it's pressurized there could be harm
Especially if it is suage