any places to hunt in S.E. Pa.?

mistergee

mistergee

Silver Member
Jan 8, 2008
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Pennsylvania
i have been lurking here for several years now (only because i haven't found anything to post) and have always been interested in finding arrowheads and other American Indian artifacts, but never was able to find anywhere to look as i lived in Philadelphia. although i lived in an area used predominantley by the Leni-Lenape and spent many many years with my eyes glued to the ground i never found anything. i have moved to Montgomery county and am very close to the Perkiomen Creek. i know artifacts have been found here but after countless hours of researching i am finding very little info on artifacts found here and even less on recent finds. also many of the areas where stuff was found is now either protected or illegal to hunt. is there anyone here who is familiar with the area and is willing to point a newbie in the right direction? any help would be greatly appreciated.
 

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Network, network, network.

Make friends with the locals (especially older folks) and ask around. Somebody knows, or knows somebody who knows.

With luck, it won't be a place in a housing development or with a shopping center on it.
 

Uniface....thanks for the suggestion....its just kinda hard to find time to make new friends when travelling 1 hour to and from work. and i'm not really good at cold calling and knocking on doors, and i wouldn't know where to begin. i guess what i was asking for was for someone to say "here's a good area" and just point me in the direction of where to start. the rest i can do on my own.(knocking on doors and talking to farmers). also wanted to know if walking the Perkiomen would yield anything since i can't find anything on any recent finds and wouldn't know where to start since the creek is so big with an east and west branch.
 

Hi Mistergee,

I live just outside of Philadelphia as well. I have been collecting for 18 years, and finding collecting sites remains difficult. This is particularly true since sites come and go - last year's productive field can be this year's housing development.

I would buy a detailed atlas of the area in which you wish to collect (for the Perkiomen Creek, I would buy a Franklin's Atlas for Montgomery County), and then I would go through it page by page, looking for areas near streams that also might have farms. Then I would go visit these areas, and if you see tilled fields, ask the farmer if artifacts occur on his land, and if so, request permission to collect at an appropriate time. Right now, with corn high on many fields, you might be asking for permission to collect next spring. It is worthwhile to do R&D trips with no expectation of collecting that day, but simply lining up possible sites for a future time.

You might also look for construction sites near water - sometimes these produce artifacts. Construction sites obviously come and go, and represent short-term collecting opportunties.

Never, ever, enter private land (including construction sites) without advance permission from the owner. Also, stay off federal or state land, including stream beds within such land. In particular, do not attempt to collect artifacts in Valley Forge National Park.

I believe that when a collector has permission, he has an implicit contract with the owner that he will take nothing but artifacts, and leave nothing but footprints. No other changes to the status quo. That means no leaving of trash, no boisterous behavior, no stepping on crops, and leaving gates open or closed, as you find them.

Network with collectors and friends, as others have said. I have been introduced to a couple of nice sites through business friends.

Be prepared to put in many hours seeking out sites, and then walking the fields. I find that even productive fields normally are sparse in quality artifacts. Moreover, some large fields may have the artifacts concentrated in small areas, with little to be found over most of the field.

When exploring a site, look for sharp, lithic flakes (reduction flakes) that were struck from the manufacture of artifacts. In southeastern Pennsylvania, look for flakes of quartz, quartzite, jasper, argillite, and various flints and cherts. Reduction flakes of quartz often look like shards of broken glass. Reduction flakes are noticeably different from rounded pebbles that one normally finds, so if you encounter reduction flakes, go over that area carefully.

Avoid "quartz blindness". Quartz is by far the most common material for artifacts on many southeastern Pennsylvania fields, and it is easy to focus on all the white lithic debitage and not be attuned to other lithics of different colors. If a nice jasper point is lurking in a field strewn with quartz, you would not want to miss it.

Finally, remember that there is a great deal of competition. Walking fields for artifacts is a very common hobby, although I suspect a number of people who do it pursue the hobby rather casually. Don't lose heart if you come to a field, and find it covered with footprints from another collector.

artorius
 

Artorius...thank you for the detailed info, i am going to take all your suggestions and put them to good use. now that i have an idea what to look for i can narrow it down so as not to be wasting my time looking where there is nothing to find. i am going to see if i can find the Franklin's Atlas. i have copies of some old maps but the area has changed so much its hard to match up. thanks again and i'll let you know how i make out. :thumbsup:
 

Mistergee - I used to live in Allentown PA. I had a lot of trouble finding points, people to hunt with or places to hunt. I did however manage to find a couple of points and sites. I'll send you some very specific information in the next day or two, exact places to looks, types, flint etc to focus on. I have digital satelite photo's and directions. I don't have much to offer but I'll give you what I have. One spot is an ancient quarry site that has produced a few discarded pieces, some brokes, a little shell, lots and lots of worked flakes and debitage. These spots are all about 60 minutes from Philly and are marginal at best but that's all I have. Good luck.
 

High ground along the creek near where a feeder stream enters it. Same principle with secondary streams. Call them water intersection spots.
 

Twitch....thank you very much,that would be awesome. i can't begin to tell you how much i would appreciate that. thanks again and i look forward to hearing from you.
 

Uniface...i actually did have my eye on a creek intersection that may have promise. there is one feeder creek that intersects the Perkiomen that had both sides of the bank occupied by the Leni-Lenape before they left the area. it is built up now but there have been some points found in the feeder in the past. as soon as i can free up some time i'm gonna check and see if it has anything to give up. hopefully we'll get a gully washer to stir things up as we haven't had much rain lately.
thanks again everyone, i really didn't expect to get this much info. you guys here are great.
 

How close are you to the Delaware River?? Check out any and all fields along it, use caution though because alot of it is Park Area and subject to Federal Laws. There are alot still privately owned and if you can get permission then odds are you will find something. I hunt New Jersey and Pennsylvania and have permission along the Delaware to search certain Farm properties and no matter where I hunt I seem to find stuff. Good luck with your hunt.
 

Mistergee - I send you a document outlining 8 spots you may be able to find some points at. I also send you some different contact information for me if you have any questions or if the information isn't clear. They're not great spots but they're the best I have to offer. I also listed 2 people in the area who may be able to provide a lot more very specific assistance to you.

Good luck.

Joe
 

Hi everyone. I live in slatington. I currently have obtained permission to search a field and creek on private property. I have found what I believe to be a drill and hammer in the creek bed. I was wondering if anyone knows of any other sites to search in the are. Any info would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance!

Sean
 

Twitch, any info you could share on areas to search in the Lehigh Valley area would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Sean
 

Twitch, would you mind sending me info on places to search for arrowheads in the Lehigh Valley? I love in slatington so any info on areas around here you GREATLY appreciated. Thanks man.

Sean
 

I have the same question. I am just learning to hunt never found a thing. I live in eastern PA too. I would love to meet up and hunt together. I believe in hunting with others :)
 

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