General Washington shoe buckle

[Dug Life Metal Detecting]

I was told to post this here so it would get more looks....

 

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[testing123]

Both pics are of the same buckle.....and I truly hope your not trying to discredit my find......

Im sure the post had 0 intentions of discrediting your find. You posted two pics of what look like two buckles because they were different in each pic. After looking it appears the second pic contains a second fragment. I too first thought it was two different buckles. Don’t be so quick to jump on people.

 

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[paleomaxx]

Below is a photo of a set of shoe buckles actually worn by George Washington that reside in the Mount Vernon collection:



These buckles are silver frames with copper accents. Below is another set of shoe buckles that were auctioned off some years ago. Their provenance was confirmed and they were probably worn around the time of his inauguration.



Note the extensive use of cut paste stones and the frames are silver with gold gilting.

While George Washington was not a flashy individual, he was still a member of the upper class and would have conformed to the standard dress of the time. Shoe buckles of the upper class were quite flashy and their construction would reflect the wealth of the owner. I would actually argue that, compared to other period examples in the Victoria and Albert museum, George Washington's above buckles are fairly modest for his station. But when compared to the dug specimen, you can see the difference in terms of materials and quality. The dug specimen is base metal (brass) with no silver washing and the floral motif is relatively simple which strongly suggest a buckle worn by the working class for occasions. That does not diminish the significance of your find though. Through research I did find one other example of a shoe buckle that depicted George Washington:



This piece is brass with silver wash and was auctioned off by Heritage Auctions a few years back. Based on the style of the eagle they surmise that it was made around 1792 and they highlight how infrequently they see buckles like this. It's clear that shoe buckles glorifying George Washington were manufactured and worn by ordinary citizens of the US, just at a very small scale compared to buttons and cufflinks making them rare pieces.

 

[tahomatom]

If indeed this is a shoe buckle , there should be another one out there !

I agree. Go find the other one or something to sport your find from the same farm.

 

[Steve in PA]

Actually....when you start doing the research its not as far fetched as it seems... The area the buckle was found was inhabited bya number of early American politics... The Meriwether Lewis family... The Johnson Family (vice pres Richard Johnson) LaFayette was here.... The Taylors where here.... GWs personal powder flask was willed to a Lewis descendant that was less than 15 miles from the spot. The Washingtons where god parents to the Lewis children. All the families intermarried...
We know that Pattison was a tinsmith from Berlin Conn.
Which was frequented by Washington regularly. He was also commisioned to produce articles for Washingtons military... It may not have been a piece that belonged to GW himself...... then again.. it very well could have

We also know that Washington never set foot in Kentucky.....

 

[curbdiggercarl57]

Three words, Whoa!

 

[WG2020]

LOL..very nice find Dug Life...do you have any additional back story on the find...not to challenge your find’s provenience but as you can see from the many posts and replies on the board that the folks here value the story of the find just about as much as the find itself...again very nice find...good luck with your hunts. Walt

 

[smokeythecat]

What people like to hear is the backstory. House built what year...found with...what?...been there x many times before or first time, that type of thing. Did you look for the other part, etc? Any dated coins? What detector were you using? That's all. Nothing about questioning the find itself.

 

[Relicific]

That’s a great find
Congrats

 

[Mine Shaft]

Check when antiques road show is coming your way or neighboring city for that matter. They would love to get a hold of that piece + free appraisal.

 

[pa-dirt_nc-sand]

By the time George was recruited to General he was incredibly wealthy, Martha was quite a catch. I agree with Paleomax that he would have worn the highest quality shoes, buckles, clothing of any upper echelon gentleman of the time. Still a sweet find and could potentially be from a Rev War period supporter. Congrats!

 

[Professor of Engineering]

Outstanding find, sure hope others can help in the ID.

 

[ColonialDude]

I never said it did prove any thing...... I said it could be a possibility. I have an idea....prove it wasnt.

Not that I'm interested in getting involved in any argument...but I will. Unfortunately that's not the way it works with provenance. Provenance needs to be proven...not unproven. Regardless, it's a fantastic find and should be on the banner.

 

[Jose The Goon]

Actually....when you start doing the research its not as far fetched as it seems... The area the buckle was found was inhabited bya number of early American politics... The Meriwether Lewis family... The Johnson Family (vice pres Richard Johnson) LaFayette was here.... The Taylors where here.... GWs personal powder flask was willed to a Lewis descendant that was less than 15 miles from the spot. The Washingtons where god parents to the Lewis children. All the families intermarried...
We know that Pattison was a tinsmith from Berlin Conn.
Which was frequented by Washington regularly. He was also commisioned to produce articles for Washingtons military... It may not have been a piece that belonged to GW himself...... then again.. it very well could have

Extremely interesting find. Congrats ! I'm speculating/thinking outside the box a bit, but it may not necessarily be a shoe or hat buckle. It could be a piece/buckle that broke off of some sort of gear or accessory. Possibilities like a horse bridle/halter/stirrup etc., canteen strap, saddle or an aforementioned powder flask strap for example. Interesting that "General Washington" was engraved on the piece to be seen from two perspectives/views. Upside down/right side up, & from right or left.

You've done much research & know the history. We know that GW never set foot in Kentucky but his family & friends did. I'm sure GW had many items custom made for him either by his own commission or as gifts from others to honor him & his service. It stands to reason that many of his personal items were given to others while he was alive & willed to others after his death. Family would be a logical choice to have received most of his stuff.

The following text & images are a few things I dug out that might be helpful to you in your quest to zero in on things:
"Betty Washington Lewis married Fielding Lewis, a widower with three children, on 7 May 1750. The couple had eleven children with six surviving to adulthood and the family included: Step-son John Lewis born 22 June 1747 in Fredericksburg, Virginia and died 23 November 1825 in Russellville, Logan County, Kentucky. He married five times. During his lifetime, he spent time in Fredericksburg, Virginia. He also lived and had land holdings in Spotsylvania County, Culpeper County, and Loudoun County, Virginia, as well as Logan County, Kentucky. He served as land agent for his Uncle George Washington. He was a revolutionary war patriot."

As you can see, John Lewis, GW's sister's step-son, Was GW's land agent. We know that GW owned 5,000 acres+ in Kentucky though he never went there.
It is logical to assume that GW interacted with his sister & her family & probably sent them "things" over the years.
Link to GW's sister & family: https://bettywashingtonlewis.blogspot.com/2011/03/children-of-betty-washington-and.html

Also, I did put together a crappy photoshop job of your piece as I imagine it would have looked like when it was whole, before it broke off of something. In my judgement, because of the contour of your piece it may, and I say "MAY", have looked like my image. (pure guess & speculation) See image below.
Congrats on your very cool find & thanks for sharing it and your research & speculations. Happy hunting & CHEERS !! J.T.G.

 

[Dug Life Metal Detecting]

That not totally true.... there are accounts of him surveying lands of Virginia that would eventually be Kentucky... Also....the Rev Gano that baptisted GW ended up In ...... Georgetown... Im not implying that he personal wore the buckle.... but the fact that it might have been made for him... by Pattison... and then passed on to others in his circle of confidants is quite the possibility. I have never once stated it was his "personal" buckle. As a popular figure in Colonial times im sure he was on the recieving end of many gifts.
Call it what you like... its one of a kind.... with an intersting back story that will probably never be told (my wife says otherwise as she i pouring through family lineages and local history).

 

[Fullstock]

What an amazing find! It looks like you’re only missing a small piece to make it complete, I would be pounding that site hard! But then I bet you’ve been doing that already.....[emoji16]

 

[Dug Life Metal Detecting]

We also know that Washington never set foot in Kentucky.....

not totally true.... there are accounts of him surveying lands of Virginia that would eventually be Kentucky... Also....the Rev Gano that baptisted GW ended up In ...... Georgetown... Im not implying that he personal wore the buckle.... but the fact that it might have been made for him... by Pattison... and then passed on to others in his circle of confidants is quite the possibility. I have never once stated it was his "personal" buckle. As a popular figure in Colonial times im sure he was on the recieving end of many gifts.
Call it what you like... its one of a kind.... with an intersting back story that will probably never be told (my wife says otherwise as she i pouring through family lineages and local history).

 

[Dug Life Metal Detecting]

What people like to hear is the backstory. House built what year...found with...what?...been there x many times before or first time, that type of thing. Did you look for the other part, etc? Any dated coins? What detector were you using? That's all. Nothing about questioning the find itself.

The house is long gone..... last mention is on 1879 map. Original land grant is still trying to be located. Other artifacts in the ground suggest the dwelling was inhabited by people of higher stature (shards of porcelain and glass) Tombacs and early brass flat buttons have been found. Large cents ranging from 1846 to 1853 are the only coinage to date to come from this field. Also pre civil war military buttons. This is an extremely old area in Scott County Ky.... area of the first permanent settlement by Robert Johnson...father of Richard Johnson (Ill let you figure out the significance). All finds are with ATPro. For more pictures of relics you can go to Dug Life Metal Detecting fb page...

 

[smokeythecat]

I took a look at the facebook page. Most of what you have from the site is early to mid 19th century, including some of the buttons. The few earlier buttons were easily used much later than 1800. My dad had a "button box" and I found 18th century buttons in them!

With your 19th century context for most of your finds, with a hand engraved late 18th century shoe buckle engraved as such, the people who lived there probably had it as a souvenir.

 

[Gene Mean]

Very exciting find. Congrats!

 

[Daryn]

Nice period tribute piece. From what I’ve read about Washington I don’t think he’d wear something so gaudy with his name written on them. If they were made for him, he was a generous man and may have given them away as a gift.