2014 "Button Hill" totals. 309 buttons found in 3 months!

[matt092079]

Not sure why I can't post in the annual 2014 finds, it's not allowing me to post a new thread. Says there are restrictions.

So I thought I'd post them here for now. This is just the button targets that I got from our famous "button hill" property. I hunted it hard from September until the end of December, ending up with a total of 309 buttons. Most being 1700's to early 1800's style buttons. A few military buttons, including: Pewter Waynes Legion, 1812 navy button, Royal Artillery button, Virginia button, Tennessee button and a WW1/2 cuff button.

Between my cousin and I we ended up with 545 buttons from this site in just 3 months. Felt so blessed to land such a property as this, really based on a hunch. The area is obviously old and we had found lots of relics and coins on the neighboring property, little did we know it would have held such history and quantity! Lots of speculation what was there, wish I knew for certain. Early camps, homesteads, tavern, seamstress shop...coulda been all the above. All I know is that we were lucky to get the virgin spot and hit it hard!

Thanks for looking and have a blessed and happy new year!

 

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[Ahab8]

Absolutely incredible. Best part is that you found some super nice buttons and some great coins as well

 

[matt092079]

Thanks, Ahab! I wanted to show every single button, but it was hard getting them all in the shot and keeping the detail or some of them lol All of my "good" buttons piled in the middle are also covering up buttons. lol

 

[70monte68]

Wow! That's an amazing site and a fun one to hunt. Great finds!

Don

 

[CityDigger]

Unf***ing real. That's incredible especially since it was on a hunch.

 

[danimal03]

I have collected and studied buttons for most of my life. I love to dig early buttons. that site of yours was unreal. some super buttons! I once found a small 1850's gold camp on about 2 acres. it yielded about 30 different types of buttons and I concluded it must have been a clothes wash location as buttons are tough to dig in gold camps. it was next to a creek. but 500+ buttons is just wild. congrats on an awesome spot...

 

[matt092079]

There was a church right up the road along with an old spring mill. I'm sure the entire area saw heavy traffic during the late 1700's along with multiple home sites.

 

[WildWildBill]

Never found a button, but that may change on the 10th.

 

[Iron Patch]

You'll never forget that place! It looks like it's just early houses with a lot of activity over the years. Certainly not military given your %, but as usually happens if you dig enough buttons some military does come out. That's exactly how our sites work here. In fact, if you were to take out those few marked American buttons I could easily believe it all came out of a field here.

 

[matt092079]

You'll never forget that place! It looks like it's just early houses with a lot of activity over the years. Certainly not military given your %, but as usually happens if you dig enough buttons some military does come out. That's exactly how our sites work here. In fact, if you were to take out those few marked American buttons I could easily believe it all came out of a field here.

I've never believed it to be military camps. My cousin found 5 early military buttons as well, but finding 8 military buttons still doesn't qualify it to me to be an early military camp. lol Buttons were concentrated into about 5 hot spots, with one spot being fairly large. Nothing scattered. You work an area and walk away you stop finding stuff quickly until you hit another one of the hot spots. Luckily with only 30 acres, you weren't walking far until you DID get to another spot!

 

[Iron Patch]

I've never believed it to be military camps. My cousin found 5 early military buttons as well, but finding 8 military buttons still doesn't qualify it to me to be an early military camp. lol Buttons were concentrated into about 5 hot spots, with one spot being fairly large. Nothing scattered. You work an area and walk away you stop finding stuff quickly until you hit another one of the hot spots. Luckily with only 30 acres, you weren't walking far until you DID get to another spot!

A friend of mine hunted early sites that weren't camps, but was an area where a high concentration of soldiers settled, and from the better sites about every 2nd button was military. So an actual camp would not look anything like your are finding... likely better quality, but far less to find. As I said what you're digging is pretty much an exact match for our better fields they are are all early home sites. Sure wish more were loaded like that though... sure is fun to dig buttons!

 

[CMDiamonddawg]

 

[sandchip]

Wow, I can't imagine 'cause I'm still waiting for my first. Love the pics.

 

[matt092079]

Thanks guys.

 

[beez0404]

I think the reason you were unable to post in the Annual 2014 Finds section is because there is a limit of 300 buttons from the 18th and 19 century! I would have greatly enjoying hunting the button hill. What a fantastic site.

 

[matt092079]

I think the reason you were unable to post in the Annual 2014 Finds section is because there is a limit of 300 buttons from the 18th and 19 century! I would have greatly enjoying hunting the button hill. What a fantastic site.

Perhaps!

 

[park pirate]

Man thats a lot of buttons congrats...

 

[pepperj]

Button fields seem to be common in some areas over in the UK where they burnt rags for making ash and it seems to fit this area also, but who's to say for sure. Lots of digging as the totals are crazy for anything comparable for over on this side of the pond. It could also be that it was a attempt to control one the smallpox outbreaks that occurred. Just common losses from activity seems to be a stretch as the coinage totals as well as other relics that would be higher one would think for the place.
Either way congrats on the totals and I'm sure there will be more added to the totals this season.

 

[Bill D. (VA)]

Incredible Matt! I've gotten in to a few big button producing sites, but none quite like yours. And I assume you're not finished there yet.

 

[BuckleBoy]

Absolutely fantastic finds.