DownNDirty
Bronze Member
About a week ago I decided to take a day off work and scout an area that I had researched extensively. I knew this area was settled pretty heavily during the latter half of the 18th century. So the plan was to ride around and try to get access to plowed fields. To my dismay I found that most fields had already been planted; however I did get permission for a large field that had yet to be planted. An hour of swinging produced no results.
Fast forward to later in the day- I lucked out with a great permission from an old fellow who not only said yes but started reeling off other old sites I should try! Pretty rare in this day and age. So I decided to investigate an area of the field that is close to a major creek. Right away I was seeing lots of pottery shards and brick fragments so I knew I was i the right area; a couple hours of swinging produced several flat buttons and a few other items.
I went back two days later to the site and found more flat buttons and pottery; here are my finds from the two days
Last Saturday I took a friend to the new site to see if we could produce some better relics, and I was not disappointed. We started out by finding more flat buttons, some with interesting designs. My buddy found a pewter button with three holes-and all three were in a line. I have never seen one of those before.
Then I decided to explore a small patch of trees that is right next to the home site, and that turned out to be a lucky move. As I was swinging through the underbrush between the field and trees the AT Pro sounded off a sweet low-to-mid 70s signal. What I dug was a big surprise in a very small package, and a definite bucket lister for me!
It's an 1836 capped bust half dime. My oldest American coin by a long shot.
After we celebrated the good find it was back to swinging the field. My luck continued with an odd-looking cufflink that is curved lengthwise
followed by a very ornate flowered "Scovills & Co" button with a lot of gilt still on it
and two small brass buckles
Well the finds were getting scarce so we decided to explore a very large field across the highway that is owned by the same guy who owns the first field. There is a creek that runs through the middle of the field, and as soon as we got out in the field a high spot next to the creek caught my eye so I headed straight to it. Just a few minutes later I found a flat button, then another.
My buddy was finding flat buttons too and some pottery and brick, so we knew we had found another 18th century home site. Next I dug an ornate brass cuff link complete with a full shank
Among the button finds were three "dandies"; here are my two with a tombac for size comparison
The finds continued, with a small two-piece "ball" button missing the back
both halves of a broken brass harness ornament (they were pretty far apart)
and even a complete arrowhead
Here are all my finds from Saturday
I have to say that was one of my best days detecting, and the fact that I enjoyed it and the great weather with a good friend made it all the more special. Man I love this hobby!
Tomorrow I have the day off for Confederate Memorial Day and I plan to celebrate by heading back to that second field. I think I might be able to find one or two more relics there
Fast forward to later in the day- I lucked out with a great permission from an old fellow who not only said yes but started reeling off other old sites I should try! Pretty rare in this day and age. So I decided to investigate an area of the field that is close to a major creek. Right away I was seeing lots of pottery shards and brick fragments so I knew I was i the right area; a couple hours of swinging produced several flat buttons and a few other items.
I went back two days later to the site and found more flat buttons and pottery; here are my finds from the two days
Last Saturday I took a friend to the new site to see if we could produce some better relics, and I was not disappointed. We started out by finding more flat buttons, some with interesting designs. My buddy found a pewter button with three holes-and all three were in a line. I have never seen one of those before.
Then I decided to explore a small patch of trees that is right next to the home site, and that turned out to be a lucky move. As I was swinging through the underbrush between the field and trees the AT Pro sounded off a sweet low-to-mid 70s signal. What I dug was a big surprise in a very small package, and a definite bucket lister for me!
It's an 1836 capped bust half dime. My oldest American coin by a long shot.
After we celebrated the good find it was back to swinging the field. My luck continued with an odd-looking cufflink that is curved lengthwise
followed by a very ornate flowered "Scovills & Co" button with a lot of gilt still on it
and two small brass buckles
Well the finds were getting scarce so we decided to explore a very large field across the highway that is owned by the same guy who owns the first field. There is a creek that runs through the middle of the field, and as soon as we got out in the field a high spot next to the creek caught my eye so I headed straight to it. Just a few minutes later I found a flat button, then another.
My buddy was finding flat buttons too and some pottery and brick, so we knew we had found another 18th century home site. Next I dug an ornate brass cuff link complete with a full shank
Among the button finds were three "dandies"; here are my two with a tombac for size comparison
The finds continued, with a small two-piece "ball" button missing the back
both halves of a broken brass harness ornament (they were pretty far apart)
and even a complete arrowhead
Here are all my finds from Saturday
I have to say that was one of my best days detecting, and the fact that I enjoyed it and the great weather with a good friend made it all the more special. Man I love this hobby!
Tomorrow I have the day off for Confederate Memorial Day and I plan to celebrate by heading back to that second field. I think I might be able to find one or two more relics there
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That sounds like a really good new spot you found. Looking forward to seeing what else comes from there.
