1-24-08 Brrrrrrr.........., Guess I don't have enough "Yankee" blood in me, cause this cold weather has sure put a slow down on relic recovery ! About 10 days ago though, Jack Ferguson and I got out for a nice Sunday afternoon, though still bundled up well. Actually, the site we hunted was down in a hole too, with little sunlight. We visited a very small Union Artillery camp within 30 minutes of the house, and though it's been detected several times by different people, we still found enough items to prove military occupation. Located near a historic road, and a long gone cabin site, this little spot is still more fun than doing domestic chores for the afternoon ! . .lol . . We each recovered a cuff button, and several bullets and round balls, and I got the prize of the day, though I'm not sure Jack thought so ! Well, I'm weird anyway, but I think anytime you can recover a period tin can, and it's solid enough to preserve, it a rare day anymore. Someday the tin and iron that hasn't been recovered, will be gone forever due to ground action . But, this is one ration can that's gonna be
around ! SB
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| Total for both of us included, 2- rough eagle -I- cuff buttons, several bullets, and a nice solder seamed ration can. |
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1-3-08 Just this last weekend before New Year's Day, Doug Dorothy and Jack Ferguson spent the
afternoon,detecting at an old long gone cabin site. Located in an area familiar to Confederate Partisans
during the war, today there is nothing to see of the old site, except a small pile of rocks where the
chimney once stood. Both guys found several items, including lots of Civil War Period solder sealed tin
cans. But, Doug won the prize of the day, recovering a nice brass Colt Pocket Pistol Bullet Mold ! It's
a great example, and of course, being brass, opened fairly easy after some oil and elbow grease !
Congrats Guys, and Yes, I will be available to provide another detector on your next trip !!!!!! . . lol .
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| I'm jealous ! I collect excavated brass bullet molds, having found several myself ! |
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1-3-08 Just a few days before Christmas, I snuck out late one
evening hoping to just dig a bullet or two ! Good thing I wasn't
expecting much more too ! . . lol . . With only an hour or two, I
opted to go to an old hard hunted camp very near my home. Grass
was down, soil was moist, and I found that bullet or two just before
dark. Actually dug one little cuff button that's had a hard life, a small
brass buckle, 3- of the little .36 caliber teardrops, MM99, and one
little Beauty ! Got one little .36 Sharps Multi-ring bullet in that little
patch of teardrops. Amazingly too, I failed to gouge it during recovery !
. .lol . . Before I took the picture, I had to wash the little multi ring
under running water, and see it's condition. It'll Do !
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| Not a whole lot, but still history coming right out of the ground ! |
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12-16-07 Just a week or so before the Nashville Civil War Show, my old digging buddy, Tom Bowen came out from California to see if he could still dig a relic ! Traveling along with Tom, was Wayne Sherman, another California collector, and longtime Cavalry Re-enactor/Living Historian. Wayne has collected for years, but never done relic recovery. We decided on a large local camp, associated with the Pea Ridge campaign, bundled up, and hit the trail. The campsite has been known for several years, and detected fairly hard, but still produces a few items. What we really didn't know, was whether or not the foilage would be down enough for us to detect. Turned out to be half overgrown, and grazed down in the other half. We detected most of the afternoon, and all found a few relics. Tom dug a nice iron bullet worm, I got an eagle coat button and a couple of bullets, and Wayne dug his FIRST dropped bullet, a nice dropped .69 caliber three-ringer ! No small feat for someone completely unfamiliar with detectors, and sweeping an old, hard hunted campsite !
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| Wayne Sherman proudly displays the FIRST bullet he ever excavated himself ! It's a nice big .69 caliber 3-ringer too ! |
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| Tom Bowen & I looking at a GS eagle coat button. |
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| Scant finds for three guys, but just enough for us all to make CONTACT with history ! |
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11-7-07 FINALLY, got to get out and hunt a few relics Sunday afternoon ! After all summer of no
hunting it was good fun too, even if we only found a few pieces. Jack Ferguson tagged along and
recovered several musket balls, and one .54 minie. I called the landowner previous to our visit, and
he gave me permission to bring my two new relic "trainees", and they got to run and smell, and run
and smell, and run some more. I'm sure they had a good time ! I dug a few round balls, and one of
the State Guard Minies, which was a real happy surprise ! It was a beautiful day, we got our exercise,
and managed to save a few pieces of history ! That's what it's all about !
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| Relic "Trainees" Bonnie & Clyde come in at day's end. Bringing up the rear guard is Jack Ferguson. |
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| L to R: A pair of .69 musket balls, a .44 pistol ball, State Guard Minie, and a .36 Colt pistol ball. Under that is a buttplate screw, part of an iron key, and clean square nail, plus a couple pieces of lead. The rare little minie mics out at about .458 diameter, and .852 length. |
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9-19-07 Mr. Matt Longwith, of Cane Hill, Arkansas, sent this picture just the other day. Seems Matt thought summer had lasted long enough, and he couldn't wait to get his detector back out ! So Matt made a trip out to his "super secret" old pre-Civil War housesite, not too far from his home. Managed to come up with a few odds and ends, and these seven buttons. Looks like 5 coin or flat buttons, one badly deteriorated pewter button, that may have been early military, and one real nice US Great Coat button ! Matt said the shank's missing on his coat size Great Coat, but the "United States" backmark is easily read. Look like a good day of detecting to me, and I'm just about to buy a weedhook, and get back out myself ! Congratulations Matt !
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| Nice early US Great Coat button, and designed flat button on right ! |
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| CLICK HERE TO GO TO JUST OUT OF THE GROUND 15 |
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