1775 King George??, Civil War Button (maybe 2), Oyster Shell Button, Clay Pipe

[pjroo33]

Well, today ended up being a great day of detecting for me. I got a chance to go out with a friend for a few hours and found some very nice relics. This was a homesite dating back to the 1700's where I had previously found a 1775 Machin's Mill copper.

My first find of the day was another 1775 copper. I think it is a King George III, but I'm not 100% sure. The reverse has a clear date of 1775, but the obverse is a mess. I had no idea what this coin was until it was cleaned at home. I'm wondering if this could be another Machin's Mill?? What are the chances. I've placed a picture of todays coin next to the confirmed Machin's Mill. Todays coin is on the right.

My second find of the day was the eagle button. I'm wondering if this might be my first Civil War button? The backmark says Waterbury Button Co. I know very little about buttons, but I've been told it might be from the Civil War. Any info would be greatly appreciated.

My third find of the day was a flat button with a backmark that says Imperial Orange Gilt. I would like to know more information on this button as well.

My next two finds were found on the surface while I was digging other targets. I think the white button is made of oyster shell Not sure... I've never seen one before. My last find was a clay pipe bowl. Another first for me. Is there a way to date something like this by its shape?

Overall, I had a great time and came home with some good finds. If anyone has any info on the coin, possible Civil War button, or the Imperial Orange Gilt button, I would appreciate it.

Thanks for looking!!!!

 

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[Kirk PA]

Re: 1775 King George??, Civil War Button (maybe 2), Oyster Shell Button, Clay Pi

You are definitely hitting some nice Colonials lately. Keep up the great work!

Keep the passion high!

Kirk

 

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[dwayne sueno]

love that clay pipe. great day of detecting! dwayne

 

[West Jersey Detecting]

Re: 1775 King George??, Civil War Button (maybe 2), Oyster Shell Button, Clay Pi

Congrats on a nice KGIII.

I did some research on the brass button, and it appears to be post Civil War Army General Staff Officer's button. These buttons made by Waterbury Button Co. During the CW era have a depressed back mark, yours has a raised mark.

FYI, The Waterbury Button Co. Used the "WATERBURY BUTTON Co." back mark from 1849-1965!

 

[edflower]

The pipe looks like a typical tavern pipe; they were commonly used by patrons in taverns to smoke tobacco in the years before other means of smoking (first cigars, then later cigarettes around the beginning of the 20th century, as I understand it). The practice was for tavern owners to sell their customer a pinch of tobacco, and lend them the pipe to smoke it in... As I have been told, the size of the bowl is the best indicator as to its age... The larger the bowl (yours appears medium-sized to me), the cheaper the price of tobacco was during the pipe's working life. I've been told that the size of the pipe-bowl increased throughout the 1700s as tobacco production in the Colonies increased, and therefore the price dropped. These pipes were of course often broken during use, then discarded. I've seen many of them (bowls), especially from former outhouse pits (sit on the crapper and have a smoke!?!) although finding a complete pipe is much rarer. Someone more familiar with this type of artifact can certainly provide a better ID.

Ed

 

[West Jersey Detecting]

Re: 1775 King George??, Civil War Button (maybe 2), Oyster Shell Button, Clay Pi

The pipe looks like a typical tavern pipe... Someone more familiar with this type of artifact can certainly provide a better ID.

Ed

Without the stem intact, it may be difficult to determine the age of the pipe. I found this a while back.

Clay Pipes:
Dating pipe stems:
Clay, or kaolin, pipe stems look a bit like narrow white tree branches with holes down their centers. According to an article by Maj. Robert J. Dalessandro, pipe stems were the "17th, 18th, and 19th century equivalent of the cigarette butt". Clay pipes had very long stems and as the stems became clogged, the ends would be broken off and discarded. It's not uncommon to find these discarded pipe stems, but it wasn't until excavations at Jamestown in the early 1950s that archaeologists began realizing that these discarded stems could help them date a site. J. C. Harrington, an archaeologist with the National Park Service, studied hundreds of dated pipes and realized that the stem's bore diameters directly related to certain time periods. These are the guidelines Harrington determined:
Bore Date
9/64" 1590-1620
8/64" 1620-1650
7/64" 1650-1680
6/64" 1680-1710
5/64" 1710-1750
4/64" 1750-1800
You can determine the approximate dates of pipe stems you find like this: carefully clean the stem, removing dirt from the hole. Gently insert drill bits of the sizes mentioned above into the hole - the one that fits snugly gives you the size of the bore, which you can then match to a specific period.

 

[pjroo33]

The pipe looks like a typical tavern pipe; they were commonly used by patrons in taverns to smoke tobacco in the years before other means of smoking (first cigars, then later cigarettes around the beginning of the 20th century, as I understand it). The practice was for tavern owners to sell their customer a pinch of tobacco, and lend them the pipe to smoke it in... As I have been told, the size of the bowl is the best indicator as to its age... The larger the bowl (yours appears medium-sized to me), the cheaper the price of tobacco was during the pipe's working life. I've been told that the size of the pipe-bowl increased throughout the 1700s as tobacco production in the Colonies increased, and therefore the price dropped. These pipes were of course often broken during use, then discarded. I've seen many of them (bowls), especially from former outhouse pits (sit on the crapper and have a smoke!?!) although finding a complete pipe is much rarer. Someone more familiar with this type of artifact can certainly provide a better ID.

Ed

Thanks for the info Ed!

 

[pjroo33]

Re: 1775 King George??, Civil War Button (maybe 2), Oyster Shell Button, Clay Pi

The pipe looks like a typical tavern pipe... Someone more familiar with this type of artifact can certainly provide a better ID.

Ed

Without the stem intact, it may be difficult to determine the age of the pipe. I found this a while back.

Clay Pipes:
Dating pipe stems:
Clay, or kaolin, pipe stems look a bit like narrow white tree branches with holes down their centers. According to an article by Maj. Robert J. Dalessandro, pipe stems were the "17th, 18th, and 19th century equivalent of the cigarette butt". Clay pipes had very long stems and as the stems became clogged, the ends would be broken off and discarded. It's not uncommon to find these discarded pipe stems, but it wasn't until excavations at Jamestown in the early 1950s that archaeologists began realizing that these discarded stems could help them date a site. J. C. Harrington, an archaeologist with the National Park Service, studied hundreds of dated pipes and realized that the stem's bore diameters directly related to certain time periods. These are the guidelines Harrington determined:
Bore Date
9/64" 1590-1620
8/64" 1620-1650
7/64" 1650-1680
6/64" 1680-1710
5/64" 1710-1750
4/64" 1750-1800
You can determine the approximate dates of pipe stems you find like this: carefully clean the stem, removing dirt from the hole. Gently insert drill bits of the sizes mentioned above into the hole - the one that fits snugly gives you the size of the bore, which you can then match to a specific period.

That is interesting. I can probably still measure the hole with a drill bit. The hole at the base of the bowl is where the stem would have attached.