Very Unusual Finds

[FoxHound0985]

Hi there, I will post these as "finds" because in a way, I did find them. I actually bought these bullets at a shop in Jacksonville, FL. I used to buy Civil War Bullets by the handfulls at wholesale price. Anyways, I used to take a toothbrush and water, and gently brush off the fine powder that covered them while leaving the patina. I was brushing off the powder off this minnie and i saw the words "The Yank Killer" emerge from the oxidation. It was written in ink about 140 years ago. The other bullet is a .69 Caliber smoothbore musket ball. I was cleaning it off like I do with all the rest of my new bullets and I noticed weird marks in the lead. I looked closer with a magnifying glass and I realized that they were cloth marks! Some poor guy actually got hit by this HUGE bullet. In my opinion it is kinda creepy to own something that probably killed someone.

I guess I really didnt "find" them, but I "discovered" them. Let me know what you all think. Thanks and H.H.!!

Fox

 

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[omnicognic]

don't despair about the cloth marks, they are most likely from the wadding! still some very cool "finds!" 8)

 

[Coin_Saver]

Well, if u remember, civil war guys used to write stuff on their bullets

 

[FoxHound0985]

don't despair about the cloth marks, they are most likely from the wadding! still some very cool "finds!" 8)

I had thought about the wadding as being a possibility as well, but then I ruled it out when I fired a ball out of my .58 caliber muzzleloader with a wad. When I recovered the ball, I found that the cloth marks had been worn almost smooth by the force of the gasses behind the bullet. Also, the cloth marks were on the impact side of the Civil War ball. If I can get my camera to work, I will post a picture of the ball from the side. HH

Fox

 

[Carl in CO]

Cool story! Guess you know which side fired the bullet with the ink on it. I couldn't see it in the picture. Seems like it would have some additional value to a collector. If I had that, I'd have it mounted in a case. Great conversation piece.

 

[cwbullet]

Thanks for sharing I would love to see more pics.

 

[Leon]

Very cool Fox,,,
I just dug my first 3 ringer the other day...
Didn't think I would ever find one here in the middle of Indianapolis, What a rush...
Just thinking about the last guy to ever touch it was like you said probably over 140 years ago...
I sent you a PM about the jar, also...
Good Luck & Happy Hunting~

 

[JARMAN]

cool finds Fox,Best of luck.

 

[allen]

cool finds, even if they was bought. id not worry about if they killed someone. that was a long time ago, lol.