Can someone help ID these things?

[sms28]

So I've been on this site for about 5 years now but this is my first post so we'll see how I do haha! A few days ago I found an old military camp from 1870 and found a lot of good stuff but these two medallion type things are a mystery to me so if anybody could tell me what they are would be amazing! They are the exact same on both sides about 3/4" long and 1/4" wide

 

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[diggummup]

Yes, still unsolved. Very few items escape the Treasurenet sleuths.

I've posted several over the years.

 

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[DCMatt]

I spent a little more time on this today.

I also think it is part of a watch fob.

I suspect it is related to the 16th NY cavalry, who in 1870 would still take pride in being "Lincoln's Avengers" - having tracked and killed John Wilkes Booth after the Lincoln assassination.

Here is a special medal commissioned by one of the officers of the 16th. The LA in the center stands for Lincoln Avengers. This is the only known surviving example of the medal.



I will speculate that watch fobs were also specially made for the men of the 16th

 

[DCMatt]

From the book: chasing Mosby, Killing Booth:

View attachment 1475733

Nelson Sweitzer was the officer of the 16th.

 

[A2coins]

Welcome great post!!!!!

 

[DCMatt]

Going on the assumption that these pieces are from a watch fob chain, I've been looking at different styles.
It seems the Edwardian era (1900 - 1910) chains are more likely to have rectangle links. This would tie in nicely with the '50' on the back of the items. 50 years since Lincoln (election, assassination, whatever...).
Now if we can determine what cavalry unit(s) were in the camp, we may be able to extrapolate a theory on who owned these.
The 16th NY cavalry consolidated with other regiments at the end of the Civil War to form the 3rd Regiment Provisional Cavalry.
According to Wikipedia: "Beginning in February 1870, most of the companies of the 3rd Cavalry Regiment began moving individually to the Arizona Territory,
but the Regimental Headquarters and Company I moved to Camp Halleck, and Company D to Camp McDermit, both in northern Nevada."
Edwardian watch fob chain:

 

[DCMatt]

Here's another Egyptian art deco. Must be early 20th C:

 

[Bramblefind]

Here's another with some additional information --

https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/abraham-lincoln-cunningham-33-120b-1859636485

 

[Bramblefind]

And a TokenCatalog listing-

(crossed swords) / (Lincoln head to left) / (ax in log) (TC-474681) Unknown, U.S.A.

 

[DCMatt]

Great research, as usual, Bramblefind!


The items in the two postings appear to be the same one - with a greatly enlarged hole in one corner.


I'm still not convinced it is a token. If it was a 50 cent token, wouldn't it indicate cents? Even 50 cents seems like a considerable sum given the meager pay of army soldiers of the day.


And why 4 holes? I could understand all of them having a hole and one or two of them having multiple holes, but all of them having 4 holes makes me think they were hooked on to each other or other similar obects.


So far, all I can think of is a watch fob chain since the orientation is wrong for it to be from a medal.

 

[diggummup]

Great research, as usual, Bramblefind!


The items in the two postings appear to be the same one - with a greatly enlarged hole in one corner.


I'm still not convinced it is a token. If it was a 50 cent token, wouldn't it indicate cents? Even 50 cents seems like a considerable sum given the meager pay of army soldiers of the day.


And why 4 holes? I could understand all of them having a hole and one or two of them having multiple holes, but all of them having 4 holes makes me think they were hooked on to each other or other similar obects.


So far, all I can think of is a watch fob chain since the orientation is wrong for it to be from a medal.

Yes great research Bramblefind. Interesting there are so many of these and none attached to anything. I tend to agree with you Matt. Lest we not forget the actual size of this thing which is 20mm x 11mm or about the size of one of these earring hooks, small for a token or chit imho...

 

[Bramblefind]

I agree too - I'm not sold on the sutler token either. It appears that some of the biggest experts in this field of study haven't been able to firmly place what these are.

This is a snippet of the listing for "King-885" from the Robert P. King book "Lincoln in Numismatics" from GoogleBooks-

 

[Plug N Play]

This is similar in design ...

https://www.etsy.com/listing/500511742/vintage-1908-william-howard-taft?ref=market

 

[TheCannonballGuy]

DCMatt wrote:
"I'm still not convinced it is a token. If it was a 50 cent token, wouldn't it indicate cents? Even 50 cents seems like a considerable sum given the meager pay of army soldiers of the day."

The average DAILY pay for a laborer in the 1860s was 50 cents.

I can't help but mention, that 50-cents-a-day wage is why, contrary to the (false) image of Confederates portrayed on TV and in movies, at the outbreak of Secession and the civil war only the richest 6% of southern Whites were slaveowners. (Information source: the official United States Census Of 1860.)