Misc Brass Relics

[ANTIQUARIAN]

I found these two relics in the top row, in 2015 in the same field behind a c1820 farmhouse.
The length of chain I found at another c1820 homestead site.

I have know idea what these pieces may have been from, so any help would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Dave

 

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[firemanphob]

Could the top right piece be a leaf from a shoulder epaulette? (not sure on the spelling)

 

[ANTIQUARIAN]

Could the top right piece be a leaf from a shoulder epaulette? (not sure on the spelling)

I never thought it might be an epaulette, although it does seem a tad small.. but that's interesting.
The land was settled by a British veteran of the War of 1812 who came here from New York State.
I found the British Cavalry badge that I use as my avatar... in fact I found 6 of them and a backpack plate at this same farm site. (see pics below)

"Epaulettes first appeared on British uniforms in the second half of the 18th century. The epaulette was officially incorporated into Royal Navy uniform regulations in 1795, although some officers wore them before this date. Under this system Flag Officers wore silver stars on their epaulettes to distinguish their ranks. A Captain with at least three years seniority had two plain epaulettes, while a Junior Captain wore one on the right shoulder, and a Commander one of the left."

Thanks very much Mike.
Dave

 

[HAJ]

That top right object is interesting. It is very close to something i found on a colonial site dating no later than the Revolution. See the photo below. Sorry for the lack of a scale, but it is almost the same size as yours, just a little smaller. It is brass, with a remnant of an iron pin going through the top part. In the middle there is a small strip of brass passed through the slot; it forms a small loop on the front side (not clearly evident in this photo). I always thought that it could be a home made escutcheon plate for a small box or something similar.

 

[invent4hir]

ANTIQUARIAN, these are really nice finds! You cleaned them well and took great pics w/ ideal lighting. Unfortunately I'm no help w/ IDs this time.

 

[Goldiver]

Does the Tudor Rose piece have a straight pin attachment on the back? It may likely be a shako cap boss or similar cap adornment.

Steve

 

[ANTIQUARIAN]

That top right object is interesting. It is very close to something i found on a colonial site dating no later than the Revolution. See the photo below. Sorry for the lack of a scale, but it is almost the same size as yours, just a little smaller. It is brass, with a remnant of an iron pin going through the top part. In the middle there is a small strip of brass passed through the slot; it forms a small loop on the front side (not clearly evident in this photo). I always thought that it could be a home made escutcheon plate for a small box or something similar.

View attachment 1705490

Thank you for your post and pic HAJ.
The piece you found is very similar to the one I found.... an escutcheon plate for a small box makes sense.

Now all we have to do is figure out what both of these were attached to.
Dave

ANTIQUARIAN, these are really nice finds! You cleaned them well and took great pics w/ ideal lighting. Unfortunately I'm no help w/ IDs this time.

Thanks very much for noticing invent4hir, it's hard to get a decent pic in my basement workshop.
I actually use two different directional lights to take my pics, one incandescent the other florescent.

I always say, "A good pic say's a thousand words, a bad pic say's very little."

Best of luck to you my friend,
Dave

Does the Tudor Rose piece have a straight pin attachment on the back? It may likely be a shako cap boss or similar cap adornment.

Steve

Thanks for your post and for your theories Steve.
This site never saw military action, but it did have two brothers who were both ex-British military men, so you never know.

There's no sign of a straight pin attachment, of course it may have been a clean break.
I show both the back and the front of this 'Tudor Rose' type flower in the pics.

Thanks again for your help,
Dave

 

[ARC]

"This site never saw military action, but it did have two brothers who were both ex-British military men, so you never know."

Farmhouses were always a place utilized for food, rest and encampment for whatever period until "moving on".

Anything is possible.

 

[CRUSADER]

Fob watch chain??

 

[ANTIQUARIAN]

"This site never saw military action, but it did have two brothers who were both ex-British military men, so you never know."

Farmhouses were always a place utilized for food, rest and encampment for whatever period until "moving on".

Anything is possible.

Thanks for sharing your theory ARC.
You're correct of course, there were a number of rebellions against the government here in Upper Canada (now Ontario) in the 1830s.
So who knows, maybe this site did see some type of 'military activity' in that respect.

The Upper Canada Rebellion

"The Upper Canada Rebellion was an insurrection against the perceived oligarchic government of the British colony of Upper Canada (present-day Ontario) in December 1837. While public grievances had existed for years, it was the rebellion in Lower Canada (present-day Quebec) that emboldened rebels in Upper Canada to openly revolt soon after. The Upper Canada Rebellion was largely defeated shortly after it began, although resistance lingered until 1838 (and became more violent) - mainly through the support of the Hunters' Lodges, a secret anti-British, US-based militia that emerged around the Great Lakes and launched the Patriot War in 1838-39.

Both before and after the War of 1812, the government of Upper Canada continued to fear what it suspected might be a growing interest in American-inspired republicanism in the province. Reasons for this can be found in the pattern of settlement across the province over the previous half-century. Although the British had originally hoped that an orderly settlement in Upper Canada would inspire the former American colonies to abandon their republican form of government, demographic realities intervened. After an initial group of about 70,000 United Empire Loyalists were thinly settled across the province in the mid-1780s, a far larger number of American settlers came after Lieutenant-Governor John Graves Simcoe offered cheap land grants to promote settlement.

Although these settlers, known as "late-Loyalists," were required to take an oath of allegiance to the Crown in order to obtain land, their fundamental political allegiances were always considered dubious. By 1812, this had become acutely problematic since the American settlers outnumbered the original Loyalists by more than ten to one. It was this reality that led American legislators to speculate that bringing Upper Canada into the American fold would be a "mere matter of marching." Following the war, the colonial government took active steps to prevent Americans from swearing allegiance, thereby making them ineligible to obtain land grants. Relations between the appointed Legislative Council and the elected Legislative Assembly became increasingly strained in the years after the war, over issues of immigration, taxation, banking and land speculation.

The rebellion led directly to Lord Durham's Report on the Affairs of British North America, and to The British North America Act, 1840, which partially reformed the British provinces into a unitary system, leading to the formation of Canada as a nation in 1867."

Fob watch chain??

I'm not too sure, it seems very thin for that Cru.
I found this at an early homestead site that produced eight Sappers and Miners buttons and misc. others in a 20' x 20' area. (See pics)
We think a coat was lost either on the site or possibly left in the house when it was abandoned then razed.
Dave

 

[DCMatt]

The 'mushroom' shaped item could be half of a cloak clasp. It is hand made so we're unlikely to find a match on-line.

The chain is the correct style for the Georgian era. It could be part of a chatelaine - which before the 1830's was known as 'equipage'.

 

[ANTIQUARIAN]

The 'mushroom' shaped item could be half of a cloak clasp. It is hand made so we're unlikely to find a match on-line.

The chain is the correct style for the Georgian era. It could be part of a chatelaine - which before the 1830's was known as 'equipage'.

Thanks very much for your post and for your thoughts Matt!

Best of luck to you,
Dave