Another good day at the confederate/bushwacker civil war site...

[MrMarsHill]

Hey everybody! Hope your weekend was nicer than mine, lol. Heavy, cold rain until today... and then just beautiful! Me and my parents decided to head out to our remote civil war site where we have recovered lots of relics. Our possible Confederate or bushwacker camp/fire fight site. Most relics have been posted here at one point or another I believe. Buttons and bullets galore, nothing too special. Today was MY DAY! Sadly, only 2 finds but both were mine Haha! I found these 2 plain sided minie balls, I believe these are Enfield type(mainly CS use?) The first seemed just like all the 3 ring and plain 57 cal bullets we have dug... but the second seemed larger. I compared the 2 and the second is NOTICEABLEY larger in length than the first. On my digital caliper the "long bullet" measured .559 caliber and is 1.08" long. It weighs 574 grains. I believe this to be a dropped bullet. It has some pitting, but no major deformation or sign of firing. The "short bullet" measured .571 caliber and was .98 " long. It also appears dropped and maybe even nose cast? My mother remarked on the "flat top" and after closer examination you can see a tiny excess amount of lead at the tip and mold seam at the tip of the bullet. I believe this was a common occurrence with CS made bullets? Any info in that is much appreciated for sure.These are my first 2 plain, no ring bullets and from MY personal FAVORITE SITE! Yes, I even like it more than the new cannonball site! I want to give you guys the provenance so bad, but I know local hunters will head right out to our area. While we hunt almost solely on private ground, there is lots of room with no fence or signs etc. Dont wanna give up my good spots, lol! It is a really Interesting and significant part of the civil war, one you probably have never seen any relics recovered from, but have probably heard of... It drives me crazy. One day I may sell one or 2 and then the word will be out... but these are like gold nuggets to me at the moment! I'm addicted to the story, the beautiful area, the remoteness of it, the untouched forest floor that you can dig 2 feet deep with your bare hands it's so soft(compared to our usual red clay).. I just love this place all around I reckon, lol! Any help in identifying this larger sized bullet is much appreciated. My current research shows it's probably just a longer version of an Enfield, but the measured.559 cal and length dont quite match.Also any info on the whether the smaller one is "nose cast"? It's probably hard to tell in pics, but there is definitely something going on at the tip of the bullet. Thanks for the ongoing support you guys and get ready for another cannonball hunt in the next few weeks! I also JUST uncovered an area with 1700's era artillery and infantry very near our property as well(YES, in Western NC!)... gotta get out and look for those musket balls and cannonballs next! Thanks for any info or opinions and happy and safe hunting to all!
Jim Brown
Bonez Customs and Collectables
@bonezcustoms on IG

 

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[Digger RJ]

Nice!!! Congrats!!!

 

[Professor of Engineering]

Great job!

 

[tnt-hunter]

I love digging civil war lead and you have 2 nice ones. Keep swingin and posting.

 

[smokeythecat]

Nice. Those are British style Enfield bullets and they were used by both sides.

 

[MrMarsHill]

Thank ya everybody and I have a question for you Smokeythecat. Me and my dad go back and forth on this all the time, lol. Obviously, any bullets could have been purchased, stolen, found, fired, dropped, carried etc by EITHER side. But this is where the confusion comes in for us. We have both heard that Union bullets have 3 rings, confederate 2. We've also heard that reversed(2 ring union,3 ring confederate),lol. The most common thing I've seen is that the bullets with NO rings were atleast intended for the CS? It seemed to be the only steady bit of info I found researching.Thats where my opinion was formed. My dad just says he has no clue as to the "side" they are just civil war bullets and everybody used everything. I fully agree with the main idea that everybody used everything available. But certain bullets were atleast made or meant for specific sides during the war correct?I'm really asking, I literally just have a bunch of conflicting research that is more confusing than helpful, lol! We know who was on THIS site, so we can say with more than fair certainty (down to the names of the people)who were using these bullets. The bushwackers would have surely used anything they could get their hands on and has made for a nice variety. I'd appreciate any clarification on how to classify a bullet like this as CS or US if its possible. I know some like the star and "US" base Washington arsenal are Union bullets(used by both sides in the midst of war of course) but INTENDED for USA, and certain "tell tale" Marks, designs etc can be attributed to CS arsenals as well. But, are these plain, unmarked bullets, whether 2, 3, 0 rings just anattributable to either side as far as who they were originally intended for? I'm sure lots of manufacturers sold to both sides, I could see that throwing a pretty big brick in the works so to speak as far as ID.I'm in total agreement with you on the fact both sides used whatever though. I have a fired .58 cal star base that mics to the exact bore dimensions of a confederate .577 cal rifle and the 3 rings are so flattened they are almost invisible. The bullet is also quite noticeably stretched in length as well. I can only figure this was a Union made bullet fired from a SLIGHTLY tighter Confederate rifle barrel. Could have just been a very fouled rifle too I reckon? I use my research to help me provide provenance to my personally dug civil war relics from this particular spot. I know exactly who was there, I know who they were, when they came and left... just about as much as you could know lol. I appreciate all the comments and look forward to your reply! I hope I made sense, while attempting to explain my confusion lol. I need to get a good deal on one of the bullet ID books with the variety of stuff we find, anybody have a copy of one they'd like to get rid of/trade for? Again, thanks for the support and safe and happy hunting to all! Have a good Halloween and dont eat too much candy, lol!
Jim Brown
Bonez Customs and Collectables
@bonezcustoms on IG