After a long Hot day of detecting colonial buttons, 1/2 of a seat is better than none

[silversweeper]

Last year I'd been granted permission to detect some of the grounds on one of the oldest houses in the area, but our one trip there was extremely hot and miserable, and fruitless, so I hadn't been back since. A few cannon balls had been found on the land but we aren't sure where exactly. The land was a plantation where settlers who came to the area would stop at and camp/visit. And there were also slaves there before the Civil War. We keep hoping to find some Confederate relics on the grounds and had wished we could find the Colonial camping spots. I had recently borrowed one of the cannon balls to aid in a talk I gave to some classes of local 3rd & 4th graders recently on CW relics and when I returned it I thought I'd have another look with my etrac while I was there. Well I didn't find the rebels, I don't think, but I did perhaps locate one of the Colonial camping spots. In two days I've dug 10 Colonial era thru early 1800's buttons ( a few are still soaking and not in the pictures). My very first good target was a nice heel plate (thought for sure I'd found Johnny reb!), next was an 1837-47 R. & W. Robinson gilt button with a basket of flowers on the front. After finding the heel plate, when I dug this button and saw how it was made....and that it had some kind of design on the front...I was convinced it was a Uniform button and I might have something I'd been looking for for a long time.....my first Reb button. Alas it wasn't to be, still a very nice button though. Next target was a small tombac flat button and then a small fragment of thin decorative metal (possibly off of the front of an old picture frame). That was it for the 1st day's few hours of hunting. Returned today, couldn't help myself, and after digging some aluminum can slaw and other trash (as well as a 20 inch deep Milwaukee's Beast can!!!!!), I found a small round ball and a fragment of what may be a lead ingot (still cleaning it). Again thought I'd found the rebs, especially when my next target was a large brass rivet. But then I proceeded to dig several more flat buttons, mostly tombacs and they all range from early to late 1700's to early 1800's. The sun was beating down and my etrac screen had been too dark to read for quite some time so I was digging all conductive tones, hoping for a colonial coin. I promised myself that I would leave if I found just one old coin, it was just too hot to stay all day. I got one more good signal/tone and when I dug it I could see half of a tiny thin disc. At first I thought for sure it was just trash but then I saw just a sliver of silver/gray under the dirt. I kept thinking "half of a reale, half of a reale" but when I poured some water on it I saw the bottom part of the elusive seated lady liberty! Okay it's not a reale, not whole, and not in the best condition but this is my very first seated coin and my oldest silver, 1851! I'll take that even if it isn't Colonial. Of course I swung around that area for a while after finding it but didn't find anything else but one more small round ball (both round balls are pistol or squirrel shot size). One of the flat buttons which is missing the shank has a strange backmark. It has an etched design around the rim on the back and what I think is a crown above the shank. Going to research that and see if I can find out more about it. Also found a nifty little Tallio cufflink, one half broken. I've seen those on here before.
HH all!

 

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[CRUSADER]

Nice cufflink, seen a few posted but never had one yet. Cool.

 

[Rick (Nova Scotia)]

Boy has that coin seen a beating.

Cufflinks are a scarce find, strangely, this is the second one I seen since I got one on April 26th

 

[jamesbibb]

coin could be counterfiet due to the iregular break

 

[Giant056]

Excellent bunch of relics I'll take any kind of a seated, they don't come around often enough around here

 

[CMDiamonddawg]

Talley Ho cufflink .. Ho found at least 3 of them here in Jersey , dug in Mo. is krazy , they are usually an East coast find . Half dime took a hit but is a difficult small piece find and a very nice dig .. all together with the rest .. A Really Good day for you !

Dawg

 

[silversweeper]

I think the half dime is authentic. The area where it was found has been farmed continuously for the past 200 years or so and most likely heavily fertilized and treated with chemicals for many years. The back of the coin looks chemically "burned". Have not decided yet if this was just a small isolated "camp" area or part of a larger complex where the slaves may have had their dwellings. Land owner thinks the slaves were housed close to this area and the spot where I've found most of the buttons and the half dime is the area where he thought there was a barn torn down just before he can remember as a child. All he remembers is a pile of wood/building refuse and later some spread of limestone rocks where the building was. Some of the smaller limestone rocks are still there and are how I located the spot. His family has owned the place since the 1920's, before that it was lived on by descendants of the first American settler in the area circa mid-late 1700's. Am hoping for more finds from the area but corn is already 4 inchs tall so hunting there is about over for the summer.
HH

 

[jewelerguy]

cool finds

 

[jamesbibb]

Ok but you may want to tkae a closer look

Here is a capped 1/2 dime I found as well thats counterfiet. Sometimes that odd break and pitting appearance is due to poor metal compostion with a silver overlay. Cant tell by the pics you have for sure. but the break is very aggresive to have been a soft metal like silver