Found a pocket book....216 years old! APPRAISAL!

You better baby the crap out of that place!!! I wouldn't even touch them papers without latex gloves!!!!!!! No telling what the oil in your skin might do to something that old and potentially very valuable. I'd take pics of them and get em to a environmentally controlled safety deposit box too. Be ashamed if something happened to them. I'd be extremely careful with that furniture too and not scratch ANY of it or try to clean or repair ANYTHING!!!!!!! Any old wood restoration should be handled by a REPUTABLE PROFESSIONAL antique restorer. If you alter any of it in any way you'll KILL the value. PLEEEEEEEEEEEEASE be careful and don't screw any of it up!! That'd make me sick. I'd look inside some of them walls and carefully in the attic for sure!!! Just make sure it's stable before climbing on anything. Look for any hiding places in the house. No telling what you might find. I'd give both of my nads to have access to that place!!! :tongue3:
 

Re: Found a pocket book....216 years old!

Skrimpy said:
Dimeman said:
I would go and search every nook and cranny in the old structures, looking for hidden walls, hidden areas under the staricase, over each door .......etc., etc.

... What else would have been seen as contraband to the Brits? Copies of the declaration of independence? Have all of the silk originals been found? What about other revolutionary material like other poems, weapons caches, or militia records/money? Anything is possible here and I have to 2nd what someone else said about there being a reason you have become involved in this. After seeing how you handled the curious mountain stick my thinking is there is no other person to be working this old house but you.

I agree, 100%. You couldn't be more right. That was a terrific tale, and this one seems to be shaping up just as wonderfully.

HH
Nan
 

Kevenater said:
No updates? he hasn't posted in awhile. wonder why........
I just purchased the book "Search!" by James Warnke on ebay . It should arrive any day now . It's about cache hunting .
We've got the place all buttoned up now , to help keep out vandals and scrap metal hunters , etc .

Has anyone ever read that book? I saw it being recommended in a cache hunting thread .
I found this item back in August -http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php/topic,174051.0.html
 

Mojjax, this is an awesome thread. You might contact "If Walls Could Talk" on HGTV. They love this stuff.
I agree with the others. If the fellow hid one thing, He hid others. Tap the walls, floors, stones whatever for loose spots.

Congratulations on the finds.
JG
 

Mojjax cool find!!
how long have you owned the property, and how long did the
owner/s own it before you, i rememmber reading something
once about a battle over ownership for??, i think something in a well
this was many years ago, and not sure how any of it turned out
so maybe add seeing a lawyer, and your insurance agent, to your
list of things to do about your GREAT find, would be something
else to think about
 

Aaron Jr. BLANEY
[1071]
18 Apr 1776 - 31 Jul 1834
BIRTH: 18 Apr 1776, Roxbury, Suffolk Co., MA
DEATH: 31 Jul 1834, Bristol, Lincoln Co., ME
BURIAL: Bristol, Lincoln Co., ME
Family 1 : Betsey DENNIS
MARRIAGE: 18 Dec 1803
Arnold BLANEY
Eunice BLANEY
Susannah Kinsman BLANEY
Betsey BLANEY
Aaron BLANEY
David Dennis BLANEY
James Monroe BLANEY
Caroline BLANEY
Henry BLANEY
INDEX

[1071] !Birth: Chuckie Blaney, 1/98; son of Aaron Blaney and Eunice Segar.check C.C. Blaney's "John Blaney of Lynn and some of his Lineal Descendants", Typescript, 1951.

!Marriage:ditto

!Death:ditto

!Burial: Old Walpole Meeting House Cem. -- C. Blaney

!1793 - went to Damariscotta, Me. as clerk to cousin Oliver Gridley. Worked with several businesses, postmaster of Bristol 1806-1834, treasurer several yers, rep. to state legislature 1824-1827, justice of peace. Mass. Militia 1814. Large landowner, home built 1820, burned about 1876. Letter, reminiscences. -- C. Blaney, 1/98
 

1st sewing machine:

History and development of the sewing machine

In 1791 British inventor Thomas Saint was the first to patent a design for a sewing machine.[4] His machine was meant to be used on leather and canvas. A working model was never built.

In 1814 an Austrian Tailor, Josef Madersperger, presented his first sewing machine, the development started in 1807.

In 1830 a French tailor, Barthélemy Thimonnier, patented a sewing machine that sewed straight seams using chain stitch. By 1841, Thimonnier had a factory of 80 machines sewing uniforms for the French Army.[citation needed] The factory was destroyed by rioting French tailors afraid of losing their livelihood. Thimonnier had no further success with his machine.

The lock stitch sewing machine was invented by Walter Hunt in 1833.[5] His machine used an eye-pointed needle (with the eye and the point on the same end) carrying the upper thread and a shuttle carrying the lower thread. The curved needle moved through the fabric horizontally, leaving the loop as it withdrew. The shuttle passed through the loop, interlocking the thread. The feed let the machine down – requiring the machine to be stopped frequently and reset up. Hunt eventually lost interest in his machine and sold it without bothering to patent it. In 1842, John Greenough patented the first sewing machine in the United States.

Elias Howe patented his machine in 1845; using a similar method to Hunt's, except the fabric was held vertically. The major improvement he made was to put a groove in the needle running away from the point, starting from the eye. After a lengthy stint in England trying to attract interest in his machine he returned to America to find various people infringing his patent. He eventually won his case in 1854 and was awarded the right to claim royalties from the manufacturers using ideas covered by his patent.

Isaac Merritt Singer has become synonymous with the sewing machine. Trained as an engineer, he saw a rotary sewing machine being repaired in a Boston shop. He thought it to be clumsy and promptly set out to design a better one. His machine used a flying shuttle instead of a rotary one; the needle was mounted vertically and included a presser foot to hold the cloth in place. It had a fixed arm to hold the needle and included a basic tensioning system.

This machine combined elements of Thimonnier's, Hunt's, and Howe's machines. He was granted an American patent in 1851 and it was suggested he patent the foot pedal (or treadle) used to power some of his machines; however, it had been in use for too long for a patent to be issued. When Howe learned of Singer’s machine he took him to court. Howe won and Singer was forced to pay a lump sum for all machines already produced. Singer then took out a license under Howe’s patent and paid him $1.15 per machine. Singer then entered a joint partnership with a lawyer named Edward Clark, and they formed the first hire-purchase (time payment) scheme to allow people to afford to buy their machines.

Meanwhile Allen Wilson had developed a reciprocating shuttle, which was an improvement over Singer’s and Howe’s. However, John Bradshaw had patented a similar device and was threatening to sue. Wilson decided to change track and try a new method. He went into partnership with Nathaniel Wheeler to produce a machine with a rotary hook instead of a shuttle. This was far quieter and smoother than the other methods, and the Wheeler and Wilson Company produced more machines in 1850s and 1860s than any other manufacturer. Wilson also invented the four-motion feed mechanism; this is still seen on every machine today. This had a forward, down, back, and up motion, which drew the cloth through in an even and smooth motion. Charles Miller patented the first machine to stitch buttonholes (US10609).

Through the 1850s more and more companies were being formed and were trying to sue each other. This triggered a patent thicket known as The Sewing Machine War (see Adam Mossoff's article [6]). In 1856 the Sewing Machine Combination was formed, consisting of Singer, Howe, Wheeler and Wilson, and Grover and Baker. These four companies pooled their patents, meaning that all the other manufacturers had to obtain a license and pay $15 per machine. This lasted until 1877 when the last patent expired.


Dave
 

This is an utterly astounding find, simply put. I think those appraisers definitely gave you a very low price; no matter how reputable they are, they definitely seemed to want those relics for a low price, perhaps to sell off at a greater profit margin. If you're still holding on to the documents and purse, please keep them in a cool, dry environment with extremely clean air. Moisture, pollen, dust mites, and all that other junk in air can eat away at the material and fade the ink. Vacuum seal both if you can, of course. If you must handle them, try and pick up a set of white cotton gloves, which are very cheap when you can find them. I find that they're better than latex: they breath better, are reusable and washable, and your hands don't get that powdery crud on them or smell funny afterwards.

Anyway, to quote a famous treasure hunter, "it belongs in a museum!" Of course, check with any surviving family first. If they don't seem like the kind of people who are capable of properly caring for these artifacts, then proceed to find a museum that's interested, and willing to pay and give credit where credit is due. I'm not much of a supporter of the keeping of certain artifacts, especially one of a kind pieces such as these. Things like coins and buttons and even stuff like cavalry swords or bits of jewelry are plentiful, and every museum has at least a dozen examples. But something like what you found is truly unique and it should be out there to be enjoyed and appreciated by everyone. (End of "preaching.")

But again, this is a simply spectacular find, and you have done your country a great service by recovering it and finding out all you can about it. :icon_thumright:
 

Yes So Cool.... Love history, this story is the best I have ever read anywhere.
I agree with tricia posting, sounds weird definitely....however check her post again.
Do not part with anything... unless you really need the cash

Then I would only part with one or 2 small things only if a must.
BY ALL MEANS IF NOT TOO LATE..... your pocket book 500.-1000 is a joke whomever gave you
that appraisal, will sell for much more.
If No need to sell it Don't.

*** As great as your postings and information I have read here, "If I were you I would" you must be tired of that phrase by now.

"Write your story of this great property as if a journal include your photos, letters, history of and more"
You won't have to worry about cleaning out brush. Save it...... write it....... no location......

I would not let anyone in your area know of your discoveries, unless maybe part of family of
the history.

However, I am not sure I would want to do that either.... wow
Could one of family have claims to any of the personal property?
Which is not considered as real estate.

As a realtor, any property vacant in boo coo land, I want to view walk in,
my hubby can't stand it but I have to just because, has nothing to do with items always vacant.
It is just the mystery of.

This post will last for many years,
Can anyone update status of? Of course curious..... owner is probably going crazy by now with
all of the questions and postings since first post.

I noticed over 10,000 viewers for this one, wow most definite history....

Thank-You, just joined treasure net today best story ever glad I joined, have done nothing but
read for the past hour plus more.

Thanks everyone for your info, your research results into is amazing

Respectfully,
Kimberly
 

leanback said:
Yes So Cool.... Love history, this story is the best I have ever read anywhere.
I agree with Tricia's posting, sounds weird definitely....however check her post again.
Do not part with anything... unless you really need the cash

Then I would only part with one or 2 small things only if a must.
BY ALL MEANS IF NOT TOO LATE..... your pocket book 500.-1000 is a joke whomever gave you
that appraisal, will sell for much more.
If No need to sell it Don't.

*** As great as your postings and information I have read here, "If I were you I would" you must be tired of that phrase by now.

"Write your story of this great property as if a journal include your photos, letters, history of and more"
You won't have to worry about cleaning out brush ever again. Save it...... write it.......give no location......


I would not let anyone in your area know of your discoveries, unless maybe part of family of
the history.

However, I am not sure I would want to do that either.... wow
Could one of family have claims to any of the personal property?
Which is not considered as real estate.

As a realtor, any property vacant in boo coo land, I want to view walk in,
my hubby can't stand it but I have to just because, has nothing to do with items always vacant.
It is just the mystery of.

This post will last for many years,
Can anyone update status of?
Of course curious..... owner is probably going crazy by now with
all of the questions and postings since first post.

I noticed over 20,000 viewers for this one, wow most definite history.... less than 200 responses, I had to post mine.

Thank-You, just joined treasure net today best story ever glad I joined, have done nothing but
read for the past hour plus more.

Thanks everyone for your info, your research results into is amazing

Respectfully,
Kimberly
 

AWESOME FIND! I love old places and ya never know as shown in this thread what you will find. I'd pull out all the drawers and check to see if anything is behind them or stuck to them also check it real good for hidden doors and such. Sounds like you could make off pretty good with just the furniture. As stated I would go through that place one wall at a time checking baseboards and everything else I could to see if there were hidden places.
 

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