Civil War Copper Plate???

[Matt1344]

Found this today detecting at a park in Huntington, WV.

I tore it up getting it out of the ground because I thought it was just a piece of scrap metal. When I saw it, I noticed it was copper and decided to keep it only for the purpose of scrapping it. I then folded it in three pieces and carried it back to the truck. aghhhh...

It wasn't until I got it home and washed some of the dirt off that I noticed it had something imprinted on it. Here is what it said:

H LONG N06
CO D I84 REGT PA VOL

After doing some research I believe the bottom line stands for Company D 184 Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteer. H LONG is for Henry Long. See more info here: 184th Pennsylvania Volunteers, Company D Muster Roll

Does anyone know what the "N06" stands for?
Was this definitely from the Civil War?
And, what was this copper plate used for? It was obviously hung on something (notice the two holes and copper wire - still attached)

This is pretty cool!

 

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[DCMatt]

BB,

That is Huntingdon County PA. Mapleton is in Huntingdon County.

DCMatt

 

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[DCMatt]

The area around modern Ritter Park must have been used by Union troops. The railroad ran along the south side of the river as early as 1853.

The 1902 map of Huntington shows the railyard is still in the area of the park.

DCMatt

 

[Matt1344]

Buckle, those are two different places. When I saw that I thought I had something there myself. What is listed is Huntingdon, PA and where I found it is Huntington, WV.

 

[evo7011]

The area around modern Ritter Park must have been used by Union troops. The railroad ran along the south side of the river as early as 1853.
View attachment 712253
The 1902 map of Huntington shows the railyard is still in the area of the park.
View attachment 712254
DCMatt

Incorrect. The RR is all still here and none of it has ever ran where Ritter Park is located. Ritter Park was originally founded in 1913 and is still pretty much the same layout now as it was back then. All of the RR line in Huntington are located near the river or in between 6th and 7th avenues. The park is located around 13th avenue.

 

[DCMatt]

Incorrect. The RR is all still here and none of it has ever ran where Ritter Park is located. Ritter Park was originally founded in 1913 and is still pretty much the same layout now as it was back then. All of the RR line in Huntington are located near the river or in between 6th and 7th avenues. The park is located around 13th avenue.

I mean "relatively speaking". The tracks are at 7th and the park is at 13th. On Google maps it measures only 500 or 600 yards. I don't know the regulations used for the Order of Encampment back then but I can tell you from my reenacting experience that it would not take too many troops to fill up that space. Of course, I've never been there so I can only speculate.

DCMatt

 

[Breezie]

First of all congratulations on a fantastic find! The NO6 is a mystery to me, but it must be pertinent and permanent because the tag maker would not have made the tag with a number that would change. Perhaps as TNMountains said it was a plate to ID his personal effects, but why would it be necessary to put NO6 on it if it already had his name and unit info? I even went way out of the box and thought maybe he was the 6th soldier in PA named H. Long? What ever it stands for, it is a GREAT find! Breezie

 

[DCMatt]

I have found references to prison No. 6, hospital No. 6, and redoubt no. 6 - all on the Confederate side... Also General Order No. 6 and Army of the Potomac Printing Division No. 6.

I suspect it is part of his address/location - like Camp NO6 - but I can't prove it.

DCMatt

 

[nhbenz]

If he packed like my wife does maybe it was luggage trunk #6. With otherwise identical trunks how else would he know which one contained his badminton set? (keeping a log of the contents of each, of course)... Just a thought.

 

[Matt1344]

Yeah, the plate is so large you would think it went on something big (like a box of personal belongings).

 

[Breezie]

I have found references to prison No. 6, hospital No. 6, and redoubt no. 6 - all on the Confederate side... Also General Order No. 6 and Army of the Potomac Printing Division No. 6.

I suspect it is part of his address/location - like Camp NO6 - but I can't prove it.

DCMatt

DCMatt, you and I must have GOOGLED and found the same No.6. The only one I found that you don't have listed is Room No.6, which was in the Northern munitions factories.

As far as his location is concerned, this is a good guesstimate. I have 2 thoughts on location.

#1 It could have been a Tax Plate/Tag, which were hung or nailed to houses to prove the taxes had been paid, and No6 was the location/region of Pennsylvania.

#2 It could have been a cemetery plot tag made by the undertaker to denote the location of where his headstone would be. Even today there are copper stakes with numbers to denote location.

I don't think it was a camp because camps changed; it had to be something permanent since it was stamped on the tag.

Breezie

 

[BuckleBoy]

Buckle, those are two different places. When I saw that I thought I had something there myself. What is listed is Huntingdon, PA and where I found it is Huntington, WV.

I didn't realize there was a Huntingdon PA. Now, if you've done as much genealogical research as I have, you'll know that the spelling of names doesn't really matter. As long as it's close. Most people spelled place names phonetically, as many period sources from censuses and deeds to diaries and letters indicate. That said, Huntingdon PA it is.

 

[nhbenz]

BB, you just reminded me of a pair of WWI dog tags I have on which the soldiers last name is spelled differently on each...

 

[DCMatt]

I don't think it was a camp because camps changed; it had to be something permanent since it was stamped on the tag.

Breezie

Some camps were semi-permanent. Winter encampments typically went from November thru March - when weather was bad and roads were too mired and muddy for troop movement. It looks like this guy was only in the war for one winter so it is feasible that he was in camp NO6 for the winter of '64-'65. Perhaps it marked his hut or, as stated earlier, it could have been on a personal trunk or box.

DCMatt

 

[Matt1344]

I really appreciate all of the help. Everything you guys have said is logical.

- It makes sense that the "N06" could have been a camp number. Obviously the number is there to further define who he was with.

- It seems likely that the tag (especially one of that size) would have been put on some large box or trunk.

- Now if I can just figure out why it was found at Ritter Park in Huntington, WV when I don't think the 184 regiment did anything significant there. Maybe just passing through or maybe this dirt is from somewhere else, even as close as Guyandotte, which is about 5 miles away.

I should note that this came from a section of the park where it looks like they at one time where going to put a very large pond (almost a little lake). So they may have very well trucked in fill dirt for the banks.

 

[evo7011]

I really appreciate all of the help. Everything you guys have said is logical.

- It makes sense that the "N06" could have been a camp number. Obviously the number is there to further define who he was with.

- It seems likely that the tag (especially one of that size) would have been put on some large box or trunk.

- Now if I can just figure out why it was found at Ritter Park in Huntington, WV when I don't think the 184 regiment did anything significant there. Maybe just passing through or maybe this dirt is from somewhere else, even as close as Guyandotte, which is about 5 miles away.

I should note that this came from a section of the park where it looks like they at one time where going to put a very large pond (almost a little lake). So they may have very well trucked in fill dirt for the banks.

Funny you mention a pond......there was a pond/lake there back in the day. If I remember correctly, a kid drown there back in the '20s or '30s and it was filled in. This area is where the playground is now located. I have an old postcard from that time period at home that shows the pond.

In other news, did you know that an elephant is buried at Camden Park and that there are at least 3 large Indian burial mounds there? There is also a burial mound at Ritter Park, at the top of the hill which they call 'gobblers knob.'

 

[DCMatt]

I reviewed the history of the 184th PA vols and there is no indication that they were in or near that area. They mustered in in May of '64, fought at Cold Harbor, spent the winter south of Petersburg at Fort Siebert and in the trenches near Fort Fisher, finished the war at Appomattox Court House, then marched to Washington DC for the Grand Review and to muster out in July of '65. Just FYI... This regiment took a SERIOUS beating during their one year of the war.

In summary...

DCMatt

 

[skeeterd]

And the plot thickens....

 

[Matt1344]

haha, yep. I'm glad we found out what we did, but this may be where it stops. Maybe in the construction of the pond the dirt was hauled in from somewhere else. That is my only guess. But pre-1920 (if the pond was there in the 20's) that seems unlikely. How it got there, we may never know! I'm just glad I found it!

 

[hdmech71]

You all are correct on most of the info you are diggin up. There was a pond and there was a dump. There was also an indian massacre there as well. Dont forget that the troops marched from the kenova area thru huntington down to guyandotte and back to camp. This area is much older than what little accounts are written about. I hunt these areas some but get tired of seeing all of the holes left undone.

 

[cti4sw]

IMHO, you can't put a price on a piece of history. It really depends on the market you put it in. When you say a "local dealer", what sort are you talking about? Antiques dealer, sort of thing? Not sure it fits the profile for an "antique", or even a "collectible". Since you did so much research on it, if I was you, I'd frame it with some of the documentation. It would probably appeal to more people like that anyway.