No idea...anyone?

[Johnnybegood]

Dug this up today on a possibly old parade field.anyone?

 

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[OWK]

Tent rope tensioner

 

[OWK]

http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/w...cs-what-they-solved-tent-rope-tighteners.html

 

[Johnnybegood]

Thanks

 

[vince76]

Bike brakes!

 

[scotter1]

maybe an old tap for maple sap

 

[villagenut]

OWK got it right...tent rope adjuster. The first two that I ever dug back 35 years ago I thought they were miniature cooking pan handles and I tossed them out. It was at a CW campsite, but without google back then I had no clue. Definitely a sign of old time tenting.

BTW...dont toss yours out, its a good artifact.

 

[creskol]

The trouble is, they are post Civil War.

 

[villagenut]

Yes, very well may be, they were not used exclusively during the CW but many decades following too. Really depends on the context, which comparing with other finds from the same site, location of the finds and what the terminus post quem tells you. If you were to find this in Arizona along with coins from 1900 era....chances are.....not CW. If it were dig in Tennessee along with Minnie balls, buttons and camp lead, well, there's your context.

 

[flyadive]

I have a few of these myself! Never thought of posting them! Thanks guys!

 

[creskol]

Yes, very well may be, they were not used exclusively during the CW but many decades following too. Really depends on the context, which comparing with other finds from the same site, location of the finds and what the terminus post quem tells you. If you were to find this in Arizona along with coins from 1900 era....chances are.....not CW. If it were dig in Tennessee along with Minnie balls, buttons and camp lead, well, there's your context.

That design wasn't even developed until after the Civil War, with the first patent issued in 1880.

 

[villagenut]

These little trinkets have caused as much controversy as the chewed round ball There is no disputing the 1880 Patent on the tensioner. The fact that many of these unmarked examples have been found on older sites have led many to believe that the idea and manufacture of this object may predate the actual patented example.Similar to a patent date on a kerosene lamp knob does not mean that before that date, none were ever made(just an example). I really can only attest to known wooden tensioners being used during the CW but surely there is reason to all this controversy. If anyone knows the full story, I would love to hear it.

 

[creskol]

These little trinkets have caused as much controversy as the chewed round ball There is no disputing the 1880 Patent on the tensioner. The fact that many of these unmarked examples have been found on older sites have led many to believe that the idea and manufacture of this object may predate the actual patented example.Similar to a patent date on a kerosene lamp knob does not mean that before that date, none were ever made(just an example). I really can only attest to known wooden tensioners being used during the CW but surely there is reason to all this controversy. If anyone knows the full story, I would love to hear it.

After the War, many of these sites were used during veteran reunions, many of these camps were also used during WWI, and I suspect they were used for a multitude of other things like people camping to scour relics and take what they could find. I have also hunted camps that were obviously used as lumber camps based on the relics we found. Interestingly enough, I found a Carling's Black Label Beer can in the very bottom of a hut that I could have sworn was never dug out.