1749 Real, 10 British Coppers, Rat Tail Spoon, Shoe Buckle....FAMILY CONNECTION

[Ahab8]

Fair warning to everybody.... This will be a long post. If you want to skip to the pics I don't blame you. This hunt was a very special one to me and involves a site that has a connection to one of my ancestors. I almost hate to admit how many hours I spend doing research. It's a stupid amount and a huge time commitment. I spent 4 months working 7 days a week in Stowe Vt last fall. I had no time to hunt for months. But I spent my nights trying to stay awake and do some research. From this research I have lined up quite a few sites. This particular site was a log cabin that belonged to the business partner of one of my ancestors that landed here in the 1700s. David and Thomas owned a mill together. Thomas's log cabin was close to the mill and had an "office" of sorts where the two would conduct business. This bit of info was found in some of my moms extensive geneology collection. I recently found a map from 1751 that showed the mill and Thomas's home close by. David(my ancestor) lived close by on the top of a nearby hill. These maps are very rough and just show crudely drawn houses in the vicinity of where the actually were.
Fast forward to last night. I got home from a long week of working in NH. My T2 SE had returned from its upgrade and I was shocked to see that First Texas had basically replaced everything. That machine was destroyed when I sent it out. It's been dripped a million times, stepped on a bunch, and taken two brief falls into the ocean....with me attached. I'm pretty sure the machine has not been right for a very long time. So this morning I picked a site and headed out. The machine ran great and I found an early copper. Great day already. After a few hours I decided to go somewhere else. I knew I wasn't far from the mill site. I figured what the hell, I'll see if I can locate an iron patch. Maybe I will get lucky. I parked my truck and headed out through the forest. These log cabins had no cellar holes so there is zero visible sign of a home. You just have to get lucky and hit the iron patch. Just a few minutes in I hit some iron. Got a high tone and pulled a copper....then another and another. Then a beautiful pewter shoe buckle (the pictures do it no justice), then several more coppers. I was so excited that I had found the home site of David's partner. I'm guessing this was the office area with all the coins. I kept hoping a Spanish silver would pop out. Sure enough a nailed a gorgeous 1749 Real with incredible detail and a great even dark toning. I also dug a really thick rat tail spoon in great shape. It's amazing to think one of my ancestors may have touched something that i dug today. I have barely scratched the surface here and can't wait to get back. When I finish this site I will attempt to find the site of my ancestor David. He too had a log cabin that will have no visible sign.
This has been a damn tough week with the Tnet happenings. But I have a great life with a ton of great people in it. Lots of them on this site. This day was exactly what I needed. Best of luck to all

 

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[Ahab8]

Wonderful finds! And very wonderful to be detecting in an area where your ancestors lived - a dream come true!
Congrats! Andi

Thank you Andi. Special indeed

 

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[JerV3]

Great stuff man

Great research as well. You do a nice job tracking down sites. I've been hunting 22 yrs and I know it's pain staking reading maps etc

Great story, that reale is crisp. Nice site with early finds.

By the way this is my 5,000 post. Great post to do.it on lol

HH Jer

 

[Carolina Tom]

Killer Abe, just killer. Congrats!

 

[oxbowbarefoot]

Unbelievable hunt! You've got some great sites near you, and with your research skills, you're killing it!

 

[treblehunter]

Congrats Abe, at least you didn't have any close calls on this hunt (bee stings, cliff fallings, near drowning). I'm always envious of your virgin sites, my neck of the woods is frequented every year for the last forty years. There is no such thing as a virgin site.
I'm very happy for you even though I'm jelly.

You mentioned in another thread your fear of persecution. That is the thing most people don't understand, George's sites are mostly virgin just like this site of yours. People find greater and quality finds at virgin sites!

 

[gwdigger]

Crazy hunt with loads of quality finds. Few and far between, days like these.

 

[Coilcrazy2]

Awesome hunt and the history of the place is really something! the reale is beautiful and that spoon is a rare one!

 

[joeyfresh]

I too love that dark toning that comes from a couple hundred years in the dirt. I thought about lightening it up a bit but decided to leave it dark

It's perfect as is!!

 

[K1DDO1979]

Awesome stuff you got. I always like seeing your finds! [emoji106]

 

[TheGreatNorth]

Amazing coppers!! And what a beautiful Reale! All that research paid off! Great post, great finds!

 

[Ahab8]

This is the dream right here! Finding great artifacts that are connected to your ancestors! CONGRATS

Nothing in this hobby could mean more to me. These personal connections are amazing

 

[Ahab8]

All I can say is that you deserved to have a sick hunt like this man. You've been working tons and haven't gotten out much, so I couldn't be happier for you on this one. The reale is one of the nicest I've seen and a style I'd love to dig That shoe buckle and spoon are fantastic. And, I bet digging all those coppers was just a ton of fun, not to mention some of the best condition KGs you could ask for. Nice work Abe and I cant wait to see what else you pull outta that place man.

Thanks buddy it felt great. I researched like crazy when I couldn't hunt. The first two sites of this year have been a dream come true. War of 1812 pewters and a pile of 1700s coins and relics. This season will be awesome. Glad to share it with you and others. This reale is amazing. So nice to find this style

 

[Ahab8]

View attachment 1282056
View attachment 1282057
ONLY SEEN A FEW RAT TAILS IN THAT KIND OF CONDITION - NICE BONUS TO THE COINS

Psyched to add another early spoon buddy. I know you're a big fan of them. This spoon is so thick. Never seen an early handle that's so beefy

 

[Ahab8]

Great story and excellent finds! You had me hooked as soon as I read the part when you said "I recently found a map from 1751."
Must have been amazing to dig that Spanish Real after over 250 years in the ground, and having come from a piece of history that you're connected to!

Yeah I love studying these old maps. They are so crude and it's like a big treasure hunt just trying to decipher them. I have a 1688 map that is pretty wild

 

[Ahab8]

An amazing collection of finds, huge congrats, lots of excitement in those holes! Also, not often said on here but nice pictures, thanks for taking the extra time to get us all such nice pics to enjoy, ;-)

Thanks pal. I recently got a nice camera and have been experimenting with lighting and backgrounds. Thanks for noticing

 

[Ahab8]

That is crazy cool.
It's time to first learn how to spell Genealogy.
Then I come to the realization that my birth
in this country marked first generation citizenship.
Okay, so we don't have any colonial connection or
property. Well that's okay. There isn't a location in
NYC that hasn't been touched by some type of
Colonial activity. Your research has paid off big
time.
Congrats on some incredible finds.

Thank you. New York has incredible early history. It's a shame that so much has been developed over. I am so lucky here in Maine that a lot is left undeveloped

 

[Ahab8]

Beautiful finds Ahab and another spoon for your collection

Thanks man. Happy to have another. Now I gotta build some displays

 

[Ahab8]

Man that's spectacular I do research but you make me feel like stepping up my game congratulations

Joe it's a double edged sword my friend. I get totally obsessed sometimes and unfortunately sacrifice valuable time with other things in my life. When I work on the road it's a bit easier. No distractions in my condo or hotel room

 

[Ahab8]

As you know from my previous posts, I love old coppers. You found a number including a 1723 Hibernia. To top if off you come up with a beautiful 1749 reale. Talk about making me jealous. Those KG's came out great also. Really nice going and it shows that doing your homework really pays off.

Thanks Don. I'm psyched with the Woods Hibernia. A first for me. This Mexican reale is so crisp. Very happy to find so many early coins

 

[Ahab8]

Amazing to visit this site with ole Abe on my mind and see this. Honestly was just getting ready to text you and see if you had been hunting any and see this. Wow. Man you continue to amaze me. Will touch base with you soon. Congrats and HH Brother.

Hey there Mark. Funny you logged on just after this hunt. I have barely gotten out in the past 6-8 months