A Little Silver … Plus a Couple of Bonus Finds

I’ve been out on several short hunts lately. No stellar finds in recent weeks, but I have gotten onto a few decent digs.

Here is my latest video, with story and pics below.

I hit up an old school in my community that was only used for about 10 years. It was just after the “age of silver,” around 1965-1975 or so. I didn’t hold out much hope for finding anything good. But I managed to dig 57 coins, including 7 wheats and these two “bonus” silvers!

I also dug this old “Senior Key” from 1988. My heart skipped a beat when I rolled it over in my plug. I thought it was gold at first. It is initialed on the back, and with just a little detective work I managed to find out the name of the owner. She still lives here in this community. I’m waiting to get her number from a friend and reunite her with her lost jewelry this week.

Finally, yesterday I hunted a trusty cornfield with my buddy, Western KY Digger. I pulled several flat buttons, pieces of buckshot and various small lead pieces, as well as a brass o-ring and j-shaped hook. Hard digging, but lots of fun. Digger dug a rather large flat button and the biggest zouave button I’ve ever seen.

Thanks for reading and looking! I hope to have more for you next week. I’m working on permission for a couple of new spots.

I Keep Digging Eagles!

I had a great week this week. No decent coins to speak of, but I keep pulling curious relics out of this old Kentucky ground.My first (and coolest) find this week was on Monday. While hunting a familiar piece of ground, I got a sketchy but repeating signal at eight inches. By far the deepest target I’ve dug on the site.

I was mystified when I pulled this out of the ground …

Here’s a reverse view.

I had no clue what it was. A disc with a curious General Service eagle and a strangely wide shield. A FMDF member quickly identified it as a “sash” belt buckle from around 1855. It was marketed for both civilian and military use, and is apparently one of the rarer forms. He posted a picture of an intact buckle here …

Here is a picture of it in context, with several other (what I believe are) Civil War era artifacts from the same site:

Then yesterday I hunted for a short while at a couple of different sites. I hunted an old home site near a Civil War skirmish location with Western Kentucky Digger in the morning. I only found a very small, shankless, flat button.

Afterwards, I went downtown to our local park. It is SOOOOOOO trashy, so I was only digging deep targets. Then I got this solid 42-44 VDI signal at about 4 inches in depth. Flipped the plug and found this little baby!
It’s 15 mm, and either a Yankee cuff or kepi button. Still has a little gilt on it.

Here’s a pic with a ruler for perspective:

Curiously, it was a tin-back button, as evidenced by the rust …

This led me to have some authenticity doubts, since there have been re-enactments on this site for the last two years or so … but I have difficulty believing that a button could go that deep in that short a period of time. I’e consulted with a couple of local CW diggers, who have assured me that there were, indeed, tin-back versions of this size button, especially on the kepi hats. The ones I’ve talked to seem to think that it’s the real deal.

Pretty cool …

Here’s my latest video, with both of these finds and more. Enjoy, and HH!

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Garrett GTP 1350 & PP, Whites MXT / Oldest Coin – 17** 1/4 Cut Spanish 8 Reale / Silver Coins – 120 / Coin Count – 2,453 / Clad Total – $168.38

Kentucky Diggin’ – Episode 14

Feature:  The New York State Militia Button!

New York Militia Button! In Cadiz, Kentucky!!

I am absolutely, completely, totally, out-of-my-mind thrilled and flabbergasted.

This hobby is so cool …

This afternoon, after several hours of research and writing, I decided to get out and enjoy the weather.    I took off at 3:00 in search of a place to detect.  I’ve had my eye on an empty lot in town for quite some time.  You see, there are many empty lots that people abandoned years ago and the city now keeps them up, cuts the grass, etc…  This lot is right on the “edge” of town and easy to access.  So I hit it.  I only had about two hours until dark, so I was moving pretty fast.

Boy, am I glad I did.

About 30 minutes into the hunt, I got a solid 45-47 VDI at about three inches of depth.  Intrigued (I hadn’t seen anything in that range up until that point today), I dug.  And out popped this gorgeous, golden, button!!

It is a New York State / Militia button!  The back mark is “Steele & Johnson.”  I’m no button expert, but with the little research I’ve done it looks to be authentic Civil War era.  Dropped by a New York Militia soldier right here in Cadiz, Kentucky.  Unbelievable!

I also dug a toe plate, which I normally associate with Civil War sites.  Perhaps this unit simply traveled down this road into town??

I dug some other interesting stuff besides the button.

This lovely 1900 Indian Head …

A nice old 1919 “greenie” Wheat Penny …

The oldest Rabies Tag I’ve ever found …

I also dug a curious looking key, a HUGE stick of pure lead, and another 11 coins totaling 53 cents in clad.  Here’s a total pic (minus the clad):

Thanks for looking!  Video will be rendered and posted in the morning!

A First! Union General Service – Eagle Shield Button!

Western Kentucky Digger invited me out to hunt with him at a Civil War skirmish site / old home site. Actually, there are multiple old home sites in these fields.

Anyhow, before I tell too much … here’s Kentucky Diggin’ – Episode 11!

I dug some flat buttons, a rivet, a piece off of a toe plate, some small pieces of flattened lead, and various other whatzits.

But the BIG war find for me was this 20mm Union Eagle Button! A first for me! Any info would be most appreciated …

Here’s a picture of the flat buttons and other stuff. I found one other “item,” but I’m saving that for another post.

Thanks for looking!
Geoff

Marine Button Restoration Update

I’ve been working on my Marine Corps button for the past couple of days.  I was hoping to get rid of some of the crud and get a glimpse at some type of mark so that the forum button wizards can make an ID.

It looked like this out of the ground …

Now, here’s the fruit of all my labor …

And I did manage to squeak out a mark …   you can just see a “… S & CO …”

Eager for more info!  Thanks!

Marine Corps Button and a Barber!

Well … let’s get started with the newest episode of Kentucky Diggin’!

I hunted yesterday for a couple of hours at an old homestead house.  No joy on that one.  Dug a 1942 Wheatie and some relics, but nothing earth-shattering.

So, this afternoon, I went back to my old hotel.  I had only been hunting 20-25 minutes when I stumbled across this amazing find.  A U.S. Marine Corps uniform button!

I need some forum button “experts” to weigh in and tell me a date on this button.  It’s about 29.5 mm in diameter.

Two questions?  How old is it, and how can I clean it?

A few minutes later I dug this awesome spoon …

The back is marked, “Am’n Sterling Co.”  But it doesn’t look sterling.  Another mystery.  Here’s the mark …

Besides a pile of old trash and various “whatzits,” I did manage to pull my one and only coin for the day … an 1893-O Barber Dime!  It’s my fourth silver of the year (all dimes, and all in the 1800′s … interestingly enough), and the fifth silver found on this site.

Here are the pics …

Thanks for looking!  Be sure to go to my YouTube channel and hit the “subscribe” button!

Big Gold! (My Hands are Still Shaking!)

Let’s just start with the video …

So, as usual, I made my way back to my old mineral springs hotel site yesterday afternoon. I only had three hours to hunt, but I wanted to get some dirtfishing time in because bad weather is moving in tonight.

I decided to hunt near the top of the hill where the building sat. I actually focused on an area slightly behind where the “later” part (built in 1885) stood. I worked near a small cluster of trees.

I had only been at it for about fifteen minutes when I got a solid, repeating VDI of 74 on my MXT. Looked like a solid penny, so I dug, expecting an old wheatie. I cut a nice, big plug … and my head almost exploded when I saw this staring at me out of the bottom of the plug …

Holy Shamoley! That’s gold! And not just any gold. It’s BIG Gold. Here’s a shot fresh out of the dirt that I captured from the video.

It is so HEAVY! I mean, it’s the biggest gold ring that I have ever, personally, seen. Just a little under a full half-inch in width …

Here it is in my lovely wife’s hand …

It is 18k, and bears the mark of, “Mermod & Jaccard Jewelry Co.”

I did some research on the mark, and found this information on a site describing some art deco silver pieces made by this company:

Quote:

The “Mermod, Jaccard” mark is that of a company that was founded in St. Louis in 1829 by Louis Jacquard. He was joined by A.S. Mermod in 1845 and Goodman King in 1865, and the company became Mermod, Jaccard & King Jewelry Co.

So … the company existed under the names of “Mermod & Jaccard” only between the years 1845 and 1865. That means this ring was manufactured just before or during the Civil War!!

The ring has a fancy script-inscribed name inside, but I cannot make it out due to what appears to be heat damage. Indeed, even if the ring were an inch or two deep in the ground when the building burned, it was close enough to incur some damage from the intense heat.

Needless to say, I am seriously stoked about this find. I hope to be able to find someone nearby with a scale tomorrow so I can get an accurate weight and calculate the exact gold content. I weighed it on a small scale at the hospital where I work a part-time job, and it totaled it at exactly 0.5 ounce, but I don’t trust that measurement … seems a wee bit hefty (but close!).

Honestly, I’m not sure if this ring will have more value in its gold, or in the fact that it is a 160 year-old antique. From that perspective, I’m not even sure how to get it checked out.

I also found some other whatzits and a 23mm flat button that had me thinking “half cent” for a while … but only left me broken-hearted.

Thanks for looking, and enjoy the video. And give some thought to hitting up my Youtube channel and subscribing.

Blessings,

Geoff

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Garrett GTP 1350 & PP, Whites MXT / Oldest Coin – 1801 Draped Bust Large Cent / Silver Coins – 51 / Coin Count – 2,046 / Clad Total – $144.69

**NEW VIDEO** – 1805 Draped Bust Dime and Other Goodies!!

Well, I went back to my old hotel site this afternoon. That site has given me five indians, a couple of wheaties, and one barber dime. My daughter has also dug an indian, a couple of wheats, and a three-cent piece.

This site is sort of “low yield – high quality,” if you know what I mean. Not many targets, but everything is guaranteed to be old … since the place burned down in 1925.

Anyhow … I have a confession to make. On the way to the site I prayed. Actually, a lot of you know that I am a pastor, so I’m no stanger to prayer. But on this particular day, I prayed very specifically, “Lord, please let me find something absolutely incredible today.”

And the Lord sure does move in mysterious ways …

I had been digging for about a half hour on the hill descending from the back of the hotel site. I hit a nice strong 76 signal on my MXT, and it said it was only 2 inches deep, so I shoveled over a large plug and began to break it up with my fingers. My heart hit my throat when I saw blackened (i.e. OLD) silver … and the right-facing bust of a woman. I rinsed with a little water and saw the date … 1805.

I just about poooed me overalls …

I had dug that unbelievable find! An 1805 Draped Bust dime. It is oversized compared to modern dimes (19mm) and razor thin. Unfortunately, the back looks like it was scratched by something long ago … perhaps a plow. But enough talk! Here are the pictures!!

Since the date shows and the outline of the bust is clear, it graces as a “Good,” which the Red Book showed as a $475 coin in my 2009 version … I’m guessing it’s a $500 coin today.

Boo-yah!

About 3-5 feet away I dug a perfect musket ball drop. I’ll be getting it measured with the calipers tomorrow.

I also dug a really nice flat button with shank attached. It treads, “Best Quality London.”

I also dug a really rough 1900 Indian Head, an old kid’s play spur, and what appears to me to be a piece from an old colonial buckle.

Here’s a pic of the whole pouch …

Thanks for looking! I shot video, but it will take me a while to edit and upload. Should be ready for viewing by tomorrow morning. I’ll post a link to my channel.

Blessings to all.

Hunter Homeplace

I went with a friend of mine to hunt his family’s homeplace this afternoon. His family migrated to Trigg County, Kentucky, from Virginia sometime in the mid-1800′s. The family has retained ownership of two acres with the original homeplace and family cemetery.

Here is a picture of the original home site.

The cemetery is very close, just down the hill.

And here is a picture of my finds. Two Lincolns, two buttons, a buckle, and an unidentified “whatzit.” It was a very difficult place to hunt. Lots of junk metal all over the place. And I think the land has been slightly bolldozed.

Here is a close-up of the two buttons. I’m not sure about the one on the left. The button to the right has an elk on it ans says, “Elk Brand.” Interestingly, “Elk Brand,” is a line of clothing, primarily blue jeans, manufactured in this county for most of the 20th century. I assume that the button came off of an old pair of jeans. I’m going to take it by the company offices this week and see if they recognize it.

I would appreciate any help in identifying the button on the left. (Both are 17mm in diameter).

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NOOB: Hunting Since 11.24.08 / Garrett GTP 1350 & Pro Pointer / Oldest Coin – 1912 Barber Dime / Silver Coins – 14 / Coin Count – 183/ Clad Total – $13.83 / Ring Count – 5