| Recently Excavated Relics Dug by NW Arkansas, Indian Territory, & Trans-Mississippi Diggers |
02-23-07 Saturday, while this old boy had his nose to the grindstone, [Really, I'm a Miller] Jack Ferguson and Doug Dorothy got out for a little while in an old pounded Yank Camp. Took them Dad-Blasted little coils, and did pretty well. I told Jack not to be telling everyone how them little coils will sweep out relics you missed, pull treasure out of the middle of trash, and just almost make a hard hunted site seem new sometimes. But, he won't listen to me and now Doug's got one, and he's dangerous. Dug several pieces of camp lead, and 5 nice 3-ring .69s ! Those are sure pretty bullets. I don't know why Jack won't listen to me, and quit educating folks about it, heck he might as well tell the whole world. Me, I'm keeping my mouth shut ! Nobody's gonna catch me singing the praises of little coils !
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| Doug Dorothy's Saturday Finds. Love those big bullets ! |
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02-26-07 Jack Ferguson and I went hunting that new camp we can't seem to locate, Friday. Once again, we did not find the camp, but eliminated some property. Late afternoon, in an attempt to dig something to take home, we went by a house site I recently located, that appears to date to the war, or before. Nothing visible above ground, but when you walk in with a detector, you know it was there. I stumbled on it about a week earlier and dug some harmonica pieces, and soldered tin cans, just like the ration cans you find in a campsite. Friday we hunted about an hour before sundown, with more harmonica pieces coming out, and Jack dug what looks like a Kentucky Rifle brass buttplate. He also dug a fancy metal smoking pipe bowl. It is an off white color, and I thought sure it must have something metal in the bowl, but it didn't, it is constructed of metal, zinc, etc. Anyone ever seen one similiar ? Do they date to the Civil War, or before ? All we have ever seen were clay.
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| Brass buttplate, metal pipe bowl, two sided (lice?) comb, and brass items. |
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| Nice little pipe, but we are unfamiliar with the date on these. Made a great signal ! |
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02-04-07 Chuck Pourciau of Shreveport, Louisiana, sent this
image of an excellent artillery projectile he recovered recently, somewhere
west of the Mississippi River. Chuck explained that he had been doing a
little artillery shell hunting, but just couldn't find a little one. He did
however, bring home this beautiful 100-pound, flat-top Parrott Bolt for
the 6.4 Inch Parrott Rifle. It's missing the sabot, as usual for the larger
calibers, but it looks like the iron under that mud is going to clean up
very nice. Trust me, when you come home from hunting, after digging
one of these and carrying it out of the woods, and your wife says,
"Are you just now draggin in, . . . . she's right !" You will be dragging,
but certainly in good spirits !"
CONGRATULATIONS CHUCK !
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| Even with the mud/dirt still on it, looks like this one is going to clean up BEAUTIFULLY ! |
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12-29-07 Well, Mr. Jim Layes in Bentonville, Arkansas, just related that he had some luck last Friday. He's kinda secretive about it, but I don't blame him. He has been hunting for a new site like several of us, and apparently he's really warm, if not down right toasty ! After a day in his suspect area, he brought home a few pieces of lead and other positive sign. But, Friday he brought home most of an L.W. Pond Pistol, minus only the hammer and cylinder. Beautiful green patina on the brass frame and grip straps, and good condition iron barrel. The Pond was a .32 caliber rimfire, likely private purchase, and so far Jim has learned that the serial on his indicates 1863 production. I know what you're thinking, and I did too, but it was not necessary to tell Jim to go back and pound the immediate area, just in case that cylinder is still in there. He's shopping for a good used Miner's Helmet-Lamp right now, so he can just stay on the site until the cylinder pops out ! CONGRATULATIONS JIM !
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| What a beautiful green patina on that brass. Whole thing looks to clean up excellent ! |
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01-28-07 - I got to get out and dig some last week, and spent two days looking for a camp I have yet to find. Stopped to scan thru a thick patch of woods, with a lot of overgrowth, and surprised myself by finding several items.Thought I must surely be about to find a regimental or brigade camp, so went back next day, and crossed a small creek from the wooded patch, and scanned up some nice slopes, expecting to walk right into the camp. But, it was not there, so at day's end, I went back to the thick patch of growth to dig a few more bullets. Now, I don't know what to think. My little patch in the woods is about to play out, and I am just sure those bullets were dropped by soldiers from a nearby camp, but I still haven't figured out where it is !!?? Next time I get to hunt, I will definitely be back in the same area, now that I've found a few relics to whet my interest . SB
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| First day's recoveries in the thick little patch of woods. Really got me to thinking I was close to the camp. |
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| After failing to find the camp on the 2nd day, I went back to the little patch of woods, finding a few more bullets and a small side knife. Next time I definitely need to circle till I locate the camp. |
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12-11-06 Well, the week before the Nashville Relic Show, Tom Bowen from California, showed up here in Arkansas. Was taking the round a bout route to the Show, and wanted to dig a "pointy" bullet before he left. We explained that anymore we only dig round balls, and pointy bullets are getting rare ! . .LOL . . Actually, sites that haven't been pounded to death are what's rare. But, we got a fairly nice afternoon in at one of US General James G. Blunt's Brigade camps, and Tom came away with his bullet. He got 2- .69 3-ringers, and 2- .58 3-ringers, while I busied myself removing all the old lead slag from the site, so I could dig a pistol bullet and a Sharps bullet.
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| Tom's nice drops on the top row, nicely accent my few pieces & lead slag collection at bottom. |
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At just about the same time as Tom and I were mining lead, Doug Dorothy was busy at another Civil War era home site. Can't say where exactly, as I believe he was in a Yankee State. ( Ok, visiting in Iowa ) As usual he was looking for those pesky round things he collects. Found several too, and with a Civil War Date this 1864 2-Cent piece is a keeper in any Relic Hunter's Book. Thick green patina but the details are still quite visible. Congratulations Again Doug !
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![Nice Dug [Doug] 2-Cent Piece](images/292_Dougs2CentPiece.jpg) |
| Doug Dorothy's Recently Excavated 1864 2-Cent Piece. |
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| CLICK HERE FOR "JUST OUT OF THE GROUND" PAGE 17 |
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