Georgetown College Cadets Button....

[zaxfire69]

Hello everyone. This was found on an old plantation site down here in Natchez, Ms...Been finding lots of Civil War era 3 ring bullets in the area..I can't find any information on this particular button. Would like to see if anyone has any information out there on this button and why it would be in an area where we are finding bullets and such. Thanks in Advance...Zaxfire69

 

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[wkrp43]

Dunno, but sweet find!

 

[zaxfire69]

I found this doing some research. NOW in the article it says that the Georgetown College Cadets were divided during the Civil war and some fought for the North and some for the South. To find this in Mississippi I think is very important. What do you guys think?

Georgetown University - The Hoya Battalion

 

[duggap]

I found what I think is your button in Albert's button book. Try and read the backmark for us just to be sure, but I would bet you got the real thing. Hope you know that is one hell of a find.

 

[zaxfire69]

UPDATE: OK after having a friend look in his Albert's button book...

SU 123 in Book.....

Georgetown college cadets, Washington , D.C., "Jacob Gminder./Baltimore", staff, 1789, relative value 10


RIGHT NOW I AM WAITING ON THE BACKMARK PICTURE!!!!!!


1789 ARE YOU SERIOUS!!!!

 

[zaxfire69]

OMG if only I had dug this One!!!!!!!!

 

[CC Hunter]

Interesting button!

The date of 1789 corresponds to the founding of Georgetown College (now University), rather than any reference on the actual button time period. Three-piece staff type buttons of this type were primarily seen only in production beginning from the 1830's onward.

The listing in Alphaeus Albert's button reference, for Georgetown College Cadets, SU 123, only lists the one backmark of; JACOB. GMINDER. / BALTIMORE.

German immigrant Jacob Gminder was operating in the military supply business in Baltimore, from 1859 up to about 1900. According to Warren Tice in Uniform Buttons of the United States 1776-1865, the precise wording of JACOB. GMINDER. / BALTIMORE, is listed as being a correct period backmark for American Civil War buttons.

The predominance though, of all various Gminder backmarked buttons, fall into the post-Civil War time frame, and display different variations of backmark wording and lettering. Of note here, is that fact that I could not find any reference to a Georgetown College Cadets button in Tice's expanded guide for uniform buttons, although there are many other Southern schools, colleges, and universities listed that are known to represent pre-war and war time period buttons. Considering the guidebook by Tice only covers the span up to 1865, lends the possibility that this particular Georgetown College Cadets button is considered post-Civil War by leading collectors.

CC Hunter

 

[duggap]

CC Hunter I was afraid that might be the case after he mentioned Waterbury. Still a pretty nice find but wish it were civil war era.

 

[zaxfire69]

So you guys are thinking Post Civil War Ok...Either way it was found in the same area as a bunch of 3 ringers and other items...IN NATCHEZ........I think it is an awesome find and a great rare button. Not to many of these floating around.

 

[HutSiteDigger]

He just posted the back-mark in Today's Finds as "Waterbury button co extra" which dates it to the 1860s. There is a 1860. Tintype photograph of an unknown pre-Civil War Georgetown College Cadet with button. Gift of the Liljenquist Family, 2010. in the Georgetown Library. You should tell your friend that - if he ever wants to go there and look at it. I found on the Georgetown website this photo which should be that 1860 http://www.library.georgetown.edu/dept/speccoll/amhist.htm photo, Georgetown Special Collections: American History, i seem to not be able to find this photo on either of those pages but if you go to Google and type in "Georgetown College Cadet 1860" it will pop up this image in "images" and direct you to the Georgetown website I posted.