How to do research?

Go to library of congress online and type in your county and state under maps and see what you can find , and like MDS said diary's ,civil war books lots of reading .....
 

OK, I'm guessing your asking the near impossible.

Because I'm all for sharing but why would any US guy share freely 30 years of experience, when you have to gain it.

That is madness. Good luck & start reading & researching, instead of taking shortcuts.

Or just get out & search your own sites, don't ask the stupid.
 

Where are you located kimonswanson643?

old-cabin8.jpg
 

Oh wait, did a little research and saw you are in Knoxville, TN (:laughing7:).

Here is an excerpt from "History of Pennsylvania Volunteers 1861-65
5 Volumes 1869".

"45th Regiment: The command marched on the evening of the 11th in pursuit of the retreating enemy as far as Rheatown, returned to Blue Springs on the 13th; and moved by rail with the brigade to Knoxville. The attention of the country was now directed to the field of operations in East Tennessee and Northern Georgia. The hostile armies were each being strengthened by large reinforcements. General Hooker, with two corps, the Eleventh and Twelfth, was ordered from the army of the Potomac to the aid of Rosecrans. Longstreet, hastening to the aid of Bragg, joined him in time to participate in the battle of Chickamauga. With Grant, Sherman, Burnside, Thomas and Hooker to lead the Union forces, the country looked forward to the result with confidence. Constant marching and an Occasional skirmish occupied the time of the regiment until the 30th when orders were issued to build winter-quarters. A beautiful grove of oak, twenty-five miles south-west of Knoxville, was selected for this purpose. With much labor, convenient log huts were constructed, covered with shelter tents but the period during which they could be enjoyed was short.

These are the little nuggets of info you need to look for.....send me a pm with your address and I will send you this CD free of charge for you to research. Theres alot more info there for your area.


mountainman10.jpg
 

Old plat maps land patent maps go to library and check out books on local history. A lot of local historical organizations have put books out and you can find them in libraries. They have old maps and history of your area. Look at sat maps of you area and you can see where old homesites have been in farm fields due to diff looking ground in that area or white looking from old foundations. Ask someone locally who may know like an older person. Stories change over the years but most are based in facts. Good luck.
 

CRUSADER said:
OK, I'm guessing your asking the near impossible.

Because I'm all for sharing but why would any US guy share freely 30 years of experience, when you have to gain it.

That is madness. Good luck & start reading & researching, instead of taking shortcuts.

Or just get out & search your own sites, don't ask the stupid.
Click to expand...

Ok I know your a Gold member and have posted a lot, but why on earth would you say something basically calling a new member stupid? All he was asking for was some tips on doing research. Most people come here not only to view amazing new finds, but also to maybe pick up a few tips to help them better their detecting experience. Maybe instead of posting "the stupid", you she feel honored that people come here to ask for help from members like yourself that have years of valuable experience to share!
 

Doing a Google search can bring you an amazing amount of information. Try entering "(your city/state) in the civil war" and you will get some great information and places to start.
 

MCollett said:
Ok I know your a Gold member and have posted a lot, but why on earth would you say something basically calling a new member stupid? All he was asking for was some tips on doing research. Most people come here not only to view amazing new finds, but also to maybe pick up a few tips to help them better their detecting experience. Maybe instead of posting "the stupid", you she feel honored that people come here to ask for help from members like yourself that have years of valuable experience to share!
Click to expand...

I think we're seeing the OP's question in two different lights. You're seeing it as a simple "how to" question. But when you follow the question to its logical extreme, is where it gets sticky. In other words, ... what ? HOW TO FIND JUICY SPOTS TO GIVE UP OLDIES. Ok, now that we've established that, guess what it's basically asking then: WHERE ARE THE JUICY OLDIES?

Do you really think a long-timer is going to give a total stranger an "x-marks-the-spot" . As someone who's been in this for 37+ yrs, and having paid the "school of hard-knocks", it does get frustrating.

Yes yes I know it's getting harder and harder for newbies. Because the same old sorry books and reference they find, are no-doubt the same exact sources, citations, and references we already exploited 20 & 30+ yrs. ago. Ouch.
 

Because I'm all for sharing but why would any US guy share freely 30 years of experience, when you have to gain it.

That is madness. Good luck & start reading & researching, instead of taking shortcuts.

Or just get out & search your own sites, don't ask the stupid.
Click to expand...

It would only be "madness" if you actually lived near this person. That would be the only reason I can think of not to offer helpful tips to the OP. Why would anyone outside of Knoxville, TN care if this guy dug up some relics after getting some good tips here?
 

Do you really think a long-timer is going to give a total stranger an "x-marks-the-spot" . As someone who's been in this for 37+ yrs, and having paid the "school of hard-knocks", it does get frustrating.
Click to expand...

Again, why would you care? You live thousands of miles away from the OP. What harm would it do to offer some tips? This isn't the California Gold Rush we're discussing here. This guy would probably be thrilled to find a Civil War era bullet. Only "worth" a few bucks, but priceless to someone who's never found one. Just my take on this subject...
 

I will help you. I've been doing this a long time, nearly 50 years. So, I'll get you started. Research when you break it down is merely the seeking of information which starts with a question or series of questions which you seek the answer(s). Logic says that before there is an answer there is a question. Your mission now is to prepare a list of questions you want the answer too. Now, if you don't know what the questions are then you'll have to do a bit of research to find out what they might be. If you need help with that re-read this.




l
 

Sheeeeze I know it's been a long winter but it will thaw at some point!
I believe Kim-643 asked how to do research not where is your X marks the spot treasure hole.

Besides how many times have we heard of another great find being made at a so called "hunted out" spot.
There's more buried than we can all dig up in our life times.
 

Welcome to t-net! :cat::hello: :icon_thumleft: :occasion18: :hello: :cat: Please ignore anyone who assumes you're after their special detecting spots, because your post was clearly only asking us for some tips! Besides the specific internet research that some recommend, I've found my local libraries to be treasures as they often have old books & maps written by and for locals! Such books mention locations where there used to be fairgrounds, schools, lodges, churches, popular picnic grounds, outdoor gambling (!), and so forth. Books mention stores & other buildings that no longer exist, and even rumored "lost" local treasure troves! Such research is fun & useful. Another way to pleasantly get solid tips is to let old & young people know of your detecting interest. When I'm at beach or park detecting, I've been amazed at how many people approach me with solid tips. Young people know a lot more than lots of us old folks think they do! In our area, we're fortunate that a local man has collected hundreds of photos from the olden days, and he has actually posted many of these photos online! Your area may have something like that. HAVE FUN! :blob9: And let us know what you dig up! Andi
 

Welcome to t-net! :cat::hello: :icon_thumleft: :occasion18: :hello: :cat: Please ignore anyone who assumes you're after their special detecting spots, because your post was clearly only asking us for some tips! Besides the specific internet research that some recommend, I've found my local libraries to be treasures as they often have old books & maps written by and for locals! Such books mention locations where there used to be fairgrounds, schools, lodges, churches, popular picnic grounds, outdoor gambling (!), and so forth. Books mention stores & other buildings that no longer exist, and even rumored "lost" local treasure troves! Such research is fun & useful. Another way to pleasantly get solid tips is to let old & young people know of your detecting interest. When I'm at beach or park detecting, I've been amazed at how many people approach me with solid tips. Young people know a lot more than lots of us old folks think they do! In our area, we're fortunate that a local man has collected hundreds of photos from the olden days, and he has actually posted many of these photos online! Your area may have something like that. HAVE FUN! :blob9: And let us know what you dig up! Andi
 

Kimons, The biggest boon for me has been to join my local metal detecting club. People are very willing to help and usually can pool your resources to find really good places to hunt.

Good luck and good hunting!

Greg
 

Welcome k.s.. Research is looking for proofs or confirmations of a lead and adding to your notes.,like a site, or just a solid evidence serendipity drops on you while following a lead or browsing history. Old maps can tell where traffic should have followed waterways or terrain.Water alone important when on foot or riding beasts. Plat maps reveal ownership,not always by an individual and can reveal what was on a property and when first developed. Local community seniors can be a rich source of verbal info, but please be fair and polite about it ,if they don,t want to share info or refer you to someone ,leave them be on the subject. If they put you in the way of a successful hunt, you may want to enhance their well being a tad in return. They are true history as you are ,just longer.
Keep records/notes of your leads and add to them over time as well as occasional review of inactive ones. Minds are funny how puzzles can be solved..Memory as you may have all ready found plays tricks on all of us, hunters,writers,tellers of tales.If your into Civil War era, study it from a participants perspective of the who,why,how,when,and where. The where looked usually nothing like it does now.Sound reasoning when allowed determined where to sit,lay down,get drinkable water,graze an officers horse. After the ladies created a sanitary commission to combat great illness numbers ,even where to go the bathroom was established. So finding camp sites can follow original methods ,requirements and locations? Distance traveled between camps affected by? H.H.
 

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A great place to do research is your local county historical society. I obtained detailed maps of my county from 1854 and 1876 for a small fee. They have been of great help to me in finding good old spots to hunt. They usually have reference book to read also. Your library should have or be able to get you any books written on the history of your area, I found one for my county printed in the 1830s, and there were some good leads to be gleaned from it.
 

Hey! I would be tickled to death to find a Civil War era bullet. I've been detecting now for about 3 months. I live in the Catawba Valley in NC so not a whole lot of CW activity around here. I started doing research on the Civil War with hopes of one day finding an area on which to detect. I have purchased a couple books, read hundreds of diaries and letters written by both Union and Confederate soldiers (which I found fascinating) to friends and family members. This has all lead me to believe I know "areas" but not actual locations of sites. That is the part that is most frustrating in my research. I don't live near enough any of these areas to ask around and talk to the locals. But I'm finding that just doing the research has become fun. So although I may never find that dropped Civil War bullet I've come to understand and learn so much about the war itself that I've already found treasures.
 

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