The sea gave back its treasure today!

smokeythecat

Gold Member
Nov 22, 2012
20,807
41,071
Maryland
🥇 Banner finds
10
🏆 Honorable Mentions:
1
Detector(s) used
XP Deus II
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
I went to my new favorite spot in Delaware for the past 3 days. Please read on, you won't be disappointed. The site was where the British ships "The Three Brothers" sank ca 1770 and on September 2, 1785, after a fierce storm the "Faithful Steward" sank with about 270 people on board, immigrants heading to the new American State to start new lives. All the women and children, and many of the men died, about 200 all told. They were buried on the beach. I had heard about the spot years ago, but never bothered to go. The "cargo" was reportedly halfpennies and back 20 years ago, who wanted a halfpenny? I already had some.

This year was different. Late in the summer I started detecting after a zillion year absence. I did get a few nice pieces, but after Hurricane Sandy I got nothing. Everybody else seemed to be getting stuff, but I got nothing. Then a few weeks ago I started finding some NICE coins, 18th century coins and modern American silvers. I mean really nice....

I got fed up at work and took a mid winter "vacation" Thursday thru Today. Thursday, I detected about 6 hours and found 1 new penny, 1 new dime, a cell phone and a car fob to unlock somebody's car. Whoops! Also got some amazing shells, Thursday the shells were "in". One conch was 9" long and it perfect shape.

Friday started out better. I got 15 or so pieces of brass (copper) ships plating, one piece was 6" x 6", the biggest I have found so far. I found about 6 modern coins and 1 colonial brass button. The brass button is significant, due to the fact that they were not carrying clothing as cargo, so it more then likely came off of one of the deceased. I also got a large pewter "thing". I have to clean it up some but it's very old. On the way out I dipped a little closer to the water's edge and got a loud signal. 3" down was a 1784 Irish penny. Definately from the wreck. That's what they were carrying. So it was a good day. hiberniajan12.jpghiberniajan12a.jpg

Today started out very foggy and dreary. However it was close to 50 degrees at sunup! It rained heavily last night. I got there at sunrise, because I just get up early. Truged to the beach, it was high tide (I knew that beforehand.) The shells were gone. The sea had taken them back. I went past the point where I had been detecting the previous two days, heading north toward the old Life Saving Station. There were no targets anywhere. Having stated a 7 am, it's now close to 8:30 and all I have is 2 pulltabs. Where did all that little brass go? I tried pulling more out of the same area and there were no targets anywhere. So after having walked a mile or more, I turned back toward the inlet. The sun had come out and was burning off the fog. It's 8:45 am and actually starting to get warm out. I passed by two pieces of fishing gear. No targets whatsoever. Not even a pulltab collection. No bottlecaps. Zip. I passed what used to be a really nice set of pliers, now rusted. Left them there. Walked ten more feet and I saw it before the machine did. There was one of those annoying peel off gold inserts you see on some of the single serving milk jugs they sell in convenience stores. Well, I spotted it on top of the ground just as the machine went over it and had a machine-cow. Yes, I see it. So I stopped and kicked it with my left foot over to the right. At which point, it flipped in the sand and I realized that little tab on the back of the bottle seal wasn't there. And the thing looked "funny." And the thing had a design on it. (note to self: do not leave glasses in car). So I stopped, pulled up my bucket I sit on ( and carry stuff out with), and stare at this little gold colored thing on the top of the ground. So I picked it up and realized it was a coin. But there is no way in creation (or outside of it), you can find a gold coin on the top of the ground. Let's get real, ok? So "can't see squat" turns it over and over and over looking for the word "copy". It's not there. And it's heavy. And the edge is serrated. And I sat down on the bucket and cried like a baby. See the next post, below for the pics.
 

Last edited:
Upvote 41
Thanks. I can remember that day like it was yesterday. I only got one old coin from that beach this year, my digging partner got 2. Last year I didn't go much. Sand is all wrong at this time.
 

Beautiful Gold coin, BIG Congratualtions! :occasion14:
 

Great find Smokey. Congrats :icon_thumleft:
 

Bump for the Tesoro guys and gals.
 

Voted banner as well, that is one beautiful find.
Wish I picked up detecting when I lived in Maryland, had to
wait till I got to Colorado.
Kudos!
Carl
 

That's awesome, I lived in Newark Delaware about 25 years ago. no detector that, but man those are dome great finds!!!
 

Banner great post I got buzzard bumps just reading it Well done
 

Smokey, great finds. I have detected that beach about 5 times for 2 hours each over the past 16 years and only found 1 Irish copper. I found it while they were working around the inlet with heavy equipment moving sand. Sounds like you hit the right spot at the right time. I know a fellow who lives down there who usually finds several old coins per storm. Living 300 miles away I don’t get the chance to come as often As I would like.

The story goes that after the wreck of the Faithful Steward whenever there was a storm people went tot the beach and picked up buckets of copper coins. The manifest listed 300 barrels of coins.

Great story and great finds. I vote banner as well.
 

Crushed it again Smokey!!!:occasion14:
 

Thanks for bumping the thread Smokey. One of my biggest regrets in metal detecting was losing an argument on the way to Coin Beach back in the late 1980's after a strong Nor'Easter. My regular hunting partner at the time insisted on OC, and I argued for Coin Beach. We did this all the way to OC. I finally deferred because i didn't want it to become heated and he was more experienced. We found only modern clad at OC - which to me, is not worth the time. With an hour of sunlight left, I didn't say anything and just drove to Coin Beach. As the sunlight was fading, we got there to see a line of kids, apparently from a Boy Scout troop, carrying white 5 gallon buckets off the beach. They were happy to show us their half-cent finds. Some of them had hundreds. These were all surface collected; not one had a detector.

We grabbed our detectors and found about a dozen half-cents each just under the surface before we lost the light. We had no headlamps on this trip as it was supposed to be a day trip and it was cold.

Returned many more times after hurricanes and Nor'Easters and we were not allowed on the beach.

I think I just talked myself into making another trip - before the Park re-opens for the season. Thanks again. I do enjoy your writing.
 

Last edited:
Thank you all. And for reference, look at the date of the first post. I was there a few weeks ago and didn't even get any nice shells. No big storms this winter, however March is here! I'll attempt to get all my coins from there in one shot and post it. You'd better not have any soda in your mouth at the time or it will come out your nose. I put a LOT of hours in there.
 

BTW - "Today" was relative. He's the take from the site. DSCN0100.JPG The 1774 Gold Guinea, a cut pistareen (Spanish) and two 8 reale cobs. The first two items were found the same day, which was at the time I posted the original thread. The Two 8 Reales were 2018 and 2019 finds. Until I went to look at that other black "disc" I thought it was iron from a ship. We find big hunks of that a lot and a lot of it looks like cobs. I was really surprised it wasn't magnetic. I finally got it cleaned. This one hasn't been posted before.

And now for da' coppers: Last one found was in 2015, after that I started going to more CW sites.

DSCN0101.JPGDSCN0102.JPGDSCN0103.JPG George II and George III, some apparent counterfeits. I like the one with the rocks attached the best.

Some have dates, many are Irish.

And now for more cool stuff: DSCN0104.JPGDSCN0104.JPGDSCN0105.JPGDSCN0107.JPGDSCN0108.JPG

Can anyone identify this last coin? I didn't realize I had it! Or I just forgot. Legend is LOUIS LEGRAN_ THEN __DEFRANC and on the reverse
SOLIS OPUS

and on the bottom

FRIE whatever whatever whatever I assume it's French either a coin or token.

I have more ships' plating, buttons, all kinds of stuff...somewhere. And I don't know where it is at the moment! A quest is on!
 

Last edited:
That was least 10 stays at the local hotel, 8,000+ miles on the truck and a quadzillion hours on that little strip of sand.
 

Outstanding sir! "had a machine-cow" laughed so hard and it is so appropriate.

Curious as to the wind and wave speed and direction ? Was it cutting into the beach there?

Best regards and awesome story!

ATB

FS
 

Top Member Reactions

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top