Isaac
Hero Member
- Joined
- Oct 11, 2013
- Messages
- 773
- Reaction score
- 1,335
- Golden Thread
- 3
- Location
- Fairfax, Virginia
- 🥇 Banner finds
- 3
- Detector(s) used
- Whites MXT All Pro, Garrett AT Pro
- Primary Interest:
- Relic Hunting
Yesterday, my buddy Jim and I went and picked up my buddy Robert to hit some cellar holes. Since we are all basically the same age, it makes for fun hunting! 
We picked up Robert at 6:30, stopped at a Dunkin Donuts, and went to the first site... and it was pounded.
Oh well, we had lots of other sites in mind.
Then at around 7:30, we parked at some power lines and hiked about half a mile to our next site. We kinda "winged it" in hopes two areas adjacent to each other were actually both sites, or if at least one was a site. We got off the trail between the power lines, took a left on a trail, then hopped a stone wall next to the trail, we immediately saw a mound and walked up to it, there was the hole. A nice small colonial... unfortunately Jim noted the iron on rocks - a tell tale sign there was other detectorists here. That didn't stop us though, as Jim got a clear high tone only 5 minutes in right on the lip of the cellar hole and it was a copper. He yelled out "copper", and me and Rob ran over. We saw the most GORGEOUS New Jersey state copper in his hand! We all got small buttons, tombac and brass, but none with backmarks, so we assume the site didn't make it far into the 1800s. I then wander away from the cellar hole a bit into an area with some vegetation, and get a nice 65 signal on the MXT all pro and saw a small disc in the hole. With a little rub, I saw a clear bust of King George II and the text around it. I knew by it's size it had to be a farthing, and then got a date as well, 1749.
I got a really deep signal about 20 minutes later closer to the cellar hole, it sounded kinda like a 10" copper. I let Jim use his AT PRO to scan the signal, NOTHING.
so I dig... and dig... and dig... and then I finally get a signal on the pinpointer and pop out two cuff sized buttons attached by a small string of hemp or cloth of some type. 10 inch deep cuff buttons... that's a little deep for just a couple small buttons... so I rescan the hole with the pinpointer and get more signals. I grab a handful of dirt and popped out two more of the same cuff buttons. I recheck the hole and get another signal, but this one I can't find with my hands... I used my shovel to dig my hole out a little more and in the clod I saw a shiny button, coat sized! It was a tombac, I grab the handful of dirt loosened by the shovel and three more coats and another cuff came out, all the coats have different designs which is very odd. What an interesting find!!! 
All with shank as well. Maybe a coat or garment was lost here when the settlers moved out from this site?
We ended up leaving after a while and go the opposite direction to another site we marked... we followed a very faint trail through thick mountain laurel, and stumbled upon a wall, followed it up a hill, and we saw a tiny corral and a small depression right next to it. Immediately me and Rob start popping EARLY buttons: cast drilled shank, pewters, lead, two-pieces, and a couple tombacs and a couple brass. I then get an iffy signal in the cellar hole and I got a silver cufflink with a tudor rose type pattern on it. My first ever silver cufflink, I was really happy about that. Rob got an amazing pewter button with a design... big one too with an intact shank and seam... can't wait to see how that cleans as well. The signals slow down dramatically so I went ahead and gridded an area between the depression and well... at the end of my grid I get a great 75-77 signal and just knew it was going to be a really early British copper, turns out that I was wrong, it is in fact a DRAPED BUST HALF CENT, and it's condition is phenomenal! I'm scared to clean it anymore, but it's an 1805. This was probably dropped after the site was occupied based on the other finds. Rob also got a nice shoe buckle frame with a design. Everything from this site dated to the 1700s except the half cent. This was my first half cent, I was so pumped!
The finds halted so we got out of there, but we will be back to both these sites one day for sure. I bet there's more targets waiting to be found. The next 10 or so sites were disappointing to say the least. Mostly pounded or turned out not to be sites... the only finds for the rest of the day were a few more tombacs, and Jim dug ANOTHER half cent, 1804. I've never seen TWO dug in one day. Thanks for looking!
We picked up Robert at 6:30, stopped at a Dunkin Donuts, and went to the first site... and it was pounded.
Oh well, we had lots of other sites in mind.Then at around 7:30, we parked at some power lines and hiked about half a mile to our next site. We kinda "winged it" in hopes two areas adjacent to each other were actually both sites, or if at least one was a site. We got off the trail between the power lines, took a left on a trail, then hopped a stone wall next to the trail, we immediately saw a mound and walked up to it, there was the hole. A nice small colonial... unfortunately Jim noted the iron on rocks - a tell tale sign there was other detectorists here. That didn't stop us though, as Jim got a clear high tone only 5 minutes in right on the lip of the cellar hole and it was a copper. He yelled out "copper", and me and Rob ran over. We saw the most GORGEOUS New Jersey state copper in his hand! We all got small buttons, tombac and brass, but none with backmarks, so we assume the site didn't make it far into the 1800s. I then wander away from the cellar hole a bit into an area with some vegetation, and get a nice 65 signal on the MXT all pro and saw a small disc in the hole. With a little rub, I saw a clear bust of King George II and the text around it. I knew by it's size it had to be a farthing, and then got a date as well, 1749.
I got a really deep signal about 20 minutes later closer to the cellar hole, it sounded kinda like a 10" copper. I let Jim use his AT PRO to scan the signal, NOTHING.
so I dig... and dig... and dig... and then I finally get a signal on the pinpointer and pop out two cuff sized buttons attached by a small string of hemp or cloth of some type. 10 inch deep cuff buttons... that's a little deep for just a couple small buttons... so I rescan the hole with the pinpointer and get more signals. I grab a handful of dirt and popped out two more of the same cuff buttons. I recheck the hole and get another signal, but this one I can't find with my hands... I used my shovel to dig my hole out a little more and in the clod I saw a shiny button, coat sized! It was a tombac, I grab the handful of dirt loosened by the shovel and three more coats and another cuff came out, all the coats have different designs which is very odd. What an interesting find!!! All with shank as well. Maybe a coat or garment was lost here when the settlers moved out from this site? We ended up leaving after a while and go the opposite direction to another site we marked... we followed a very faint trail through thick mountain laurel, and stumbled upon a wall, followed it up a hill, and we saw a tiny corral and a small depression right next to it. Immediately me and Rob start popping EARLY buttons: cast drilled shank, pewters, lead, two-pieces, and a couple tombacs and a couple brass. I then get an iffy signal in the cellar hole and I got a silver cufflink with a tudor rose type pattern on it. My first ever silver cufflink, I was really happy about that. Rob got an amazing pewter button with a design... big one too with an intact shank and seam... can't wait to see how that cleans as well. The signals slow down dramatically so I went ahead and gridded an area between the depression and well... at the end of my grid I get a great 75-77 signal and just knew it was going to be a really early British copper, turns out that I was wrong, it is in fact a DRAPED BUST HALF CENT, and it's condition is phenomenal! I'm scared to clean it anymore, but it's an 1805. This was probably dropped after the site was occupied based on the other finds. Rob also got a nice shoe buckle frame with a design. Everything from this site dated to the 1700s except the half cent. This was my first half cent, I was so pumped!
The finds halted so we got out of there, but we will be back to both these sites one day for sure. I bet there's more targets waiting to be found. The next 10 or so sites were disappointing to say the least. Mostly pounded or turned out not to be sites... the only finds for the rest of the day were a few more tombacs, and Jim dug ANOTHER half cent, 1804. I've never seen TWO dug in one day. Thanks for looking!
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