Not today, but over the last few weeks...CW tree bumping paid off YUGE.

[smokeythecat]

I have to clean everything up. It's going to take awhile. Found three trees very close together. I wound up digging and digging and digging and digging, then dug some more. It took days to get, I think everything, out of the holes. Looks like the trees grew up around a "let's dump this stuff here" place at a Civil War site. Not a battlefield, but I guess a camp. Place is not on any CW map I can find. Looks like the place was hunted before but these three trees are very close together, and no one bothered squeezing between them. Not a tight fit, just not friendly considering the briers I had to move out of the way. This is otherwise known as a "honey hole".

Now, don't hurt me, I don't have any pics yet. Never can seem to remember to take the camera out with me and have NEVER done a a live dig. I'll try to post within the next day or so, but I'm still knocking rust of some of the stuff.

To wit:

CW bullets, Union and Confederate and not known
Numerous Union eagle buttons
junk iron
more junk iron
and more junk iron ( a lot got tossed)
1 ink bottle
2 cast iron axes, they were literally on TOP of each other. Had been placed there together about 1863.
More junk iron
iron barrel straps
more CW bullets
top vent to a kepi
military buckle piece
more bullets
yet more eagle buttons
knife part
large grape shot? it cleaned up real pretty and smooth
more iron junk
broken ceramic pieces (tossed most as non-descript)
ration can
more iron junk
another bullet
iron tool for a musket
broken glass (threw most of it out, could cut my little finger on it)
coin
underwear button x like 5
another ration can
military buckle part (now I know what it is!) Yeehah. Happy dance.
porcelain buttons
BETTER button
small buckle
another small buckle
I think a third one

I will be at work tomorrow and digging Saturday. Will get pics starting Saturday pm or Sunday.

I guarantee a total freak out on your part. LOTS of hard work, though.

Stuff is scattered all over the place here at the house. Like I said, more cleaning to do. Some pieces are fresh out of the ground and I deliberately left the dirt on them, for now. I'll try the new camera out on these.

 

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[vpnavy]

Nice finds and looking forward to seeing your pictures! Thanks for sharing...

 

[trapperart]

Sounds good looking forward to pics

 

[Rogue Relic Hunter]

cant wait to see some pics. love to stumble onto something like that. congrats!

 

[kingskid1611]

Can't wait to see the pics. Maybe take a pic of where they were found. I always check around trees and the place you describe I would have been right in the middle of just for the cool fort factor.....yeah I am still like a kid inside. Congrats!

 

[smokeythecat]

Here you go: Taking awhile to get pics.

Two axes, two ration cans, broken 18th century kettle piece and other stuff.

 

[smokeythecat]

And for more: Horseshoes, heel plate, buckle, top to larger ration can, spoon handle, glass and ceramic pieces, 2 barrel bands to muskets, small buckle, U shaped thing is guide for side of a canteen for the strap, two musket tools, 2 underwear buttons.

 

[smokeythecat]

And more: Now to better stuff:


Knife handle, kepi buckle, assortment of bullets, drops, Confederate and Union. Iron Key, knapsack hooks, kepi vent (brass), buckles, grommets, porcelain button. Now the shotgun slug was about 50' away, not under the trees. There was stuff scattered all over the place, but the trees had the honey hole.

Soil was very odd. Part of the area was in clay, there was also a grey layer or two, stuff came out cleaner in the grey soil and just under the leaf mold the relics came out of the ground like they were just put there. Almost no rust, and the brass came out nearly new. Nearly. Not quite. Greyer/darker bullets were near top of the ground in the loamy soil and the "redder" or darker ones were deeper in the clay area. Notice on the spoon handle the thing is still bright and shiny?

 

[smokeythecat]

And the buttons:

First group is backs and a NY staff front and ring. Look at the gold on the ring. Others are cleaned eagle buttons.

AND NOW:

 

[smokeythecat]

My camera hates me. Won't focus so great. So apologies in advance. Here is the NEW uncleaned stuff, the little staff cuff button I sort of overcleaned, but what the heck! Kepi buckle, cartridge box buckle, porcelain button, Infantry I button, I have another almost identical to this one, knapsack hook, button back.

 

[smokeythecat]

There are another hundred misc. items, mainly bullets and nails and this:

Again apologies for the camera. Had the flash on. Button and plate are actually darker. Both just under leaf cover in the dark loamy stuff. No cloth or leather with either, but I'll take them. First Confederate button since 1991 and those two were toasty. This one looks dropped yesterday.

Plate I haven't researched to see which one it is yet. Found both pieces within 5' of each other, so think a match, but not precisely sure. It is a little bent up and I brushed the shovel over the front of the thing so dinged it a little.

What a season! I've mainly been doing beach hunting except for this one site, which I stumbled on. Like I said, not on any map at all. I think I cleaned it out pretty good, although we all know how this works. No such thing as cleaned out and I found 100+ nails and 100+ pieces of glass, the ink is the stoneware kind and it's laying around here somewhere, I think in the bottle cabinet. Off to work! Need more cat food money.

 

[Rubka888]

Thanks for the pics! That CS Buckle is awesome! You sure earned those finds!

 

[A2coins]

Did a treasure chest come with all those finds Amazing I like to see when people hit spots like that Great job Thanks for sharing My turn next!!!!!!

 

[relic nut]

WOW!!! Had to go wipe the drool off my face! That's outstanding! I think your buckle is a CS Richmond sword belt buckle. Hell of a find and hell of a hunt congrats. To me that's a banner hunt just because of the amount of good stuff to come from one spot. CW sites like that are rare today. Congrats

HH RN

 

[smokeythecat]

I have at least 50ore pieces from the area. Mainly dupes of what you see here and camp lead.

 

[EasternShoreMetal]

Fantastic Finds!
I can attest, it's a real huge pain to dig under roots. I've spent a half hour just to get at only one thing only 8 inches down, sometimes a good thing, sometimes not.
You hit the Motherlode! Love the buckle especially, but I would have been tickled with the buttons. Great work. Thanks for posting the pics. HH.

 

[david680]

Great finds! Is that a seated half dime? Love the buckle!

 

[btjbtj]

Amazing finds! thanks for taking the time to share your excellent post and photos. Congrats. -Lisa & John

 

[smokeythecat]

Yes, that is a seated half dime. My second ever.

 

[smokeythecat]

I take a pair of hand shears and a foldable saw into the woods with me. The snippers (shears) zip through roots up to 1". I have to research which plate the CS is but I think its one of the "Virginia" styles. I bought a CS oval once years ago but ran out of money and had to sell it a few years ago. It's not like you can get a "set" of plates anymore. Prices are too high.