DownNDirty
Bronze Member
Last year I ramped up the research and digging time and it paid off with a good variety of finds and quite a few firsts. Here is the recap:
Military relics:
Buttons-2017 was the year of the South Carolina button for me apparently, as I found five of them. The best was a rare cuff-sized SC militia button with a solid silver top half. It was made by a silversmith/jeweler in Charleston and is in outstanding condition.
I was also fortunate enough to dig three coat-sized Civil War SC buttons and a four-hole button that was likely from a Confederate soldier's uniform.
My fifth SC button was probably made post-Civil war; it's cuff-sized with a lot of gold gilt.
I dug my first War of 1812 era buttons in 2017, five cuff-sized Artillery Corps buttons. Four were dug at the same spot, obviously from a discarded uniform. This button was produced between 1814 and 1821, so technically they may not have seen action in the War of 1812 but either way I am happy to have recovered them.
A very unique and interesting find was a WWI dog tag with the soldier's name on it. At the same site I also found his 114th Battalion Field Artillery collar disk.
One of my favorite finds of the year was a "Pottsdam" musket butt plate. It was originally issued to a Prussian soldier in Germany in 1830, then re-purposed by the Union army during the Civil War.
I recovered this yet to be identified musket butt plate from a coastal site. Based on the style it is likely 18th century and definitely had a military used as evidenced by the rack number.
During that same coastal hunt I dug three Civil War artillery shell fragments, all Union, and restored them with extensive electrolysis. The long one is a fragment of a Schenkl shell.
Speaking of artillery I recovered these British Revolutionary War grape shot from a Lowcountry SC creek-Aquachigger style.
Two other interesting finds were this eagle medallion which was an advertisement for a merchant in Charleston, SC in the mid-1800s and a pewter button mold.
I'm not a coin shooter but I do like to find an old coin or two every now and then.
My best coin find of the year was an 1836 capped bust half dime, a first for me.
Another first was this flying eagle cent.
A couple of KG IIs, silver dimes and a nice Indian tribe rounds out the highlights of my 2017 coin finds.
Here a few of the civilian buttons that I found in 2017, along with several cuff links and an 18th century faceted pendant.
My hunts of 18th century home sits landed me some really nice buckles, including my first complete shoe buckle and a faceted glass knee buckle.
Horse-related relics-saddle decorations and stirrups.
One of my favorite things is 18th century pit digging, and last year I excavated one. It produced an abundance of pottery sherds and a "harem" of hoes.
I did manage to squeeze in a couple of trips to my favorite fossil-hunting creek with good results.
When I dig an old site I like finding "big iron"-tools, implements, cooking vessels, etc.
Military relics:
Buttons-2017 was the year of the South Carolina button for me apparently, as I found five of them. The best was a rare cuff-sized SC militia button with a solid silver top half. It was made by a silversmith/jeweler in Charleston and is in outstanding condition.
I was also fortunate enough to dig three coat-sized Civil War SC buttons and a four-hole button that was likely from a Confederate soldier's uniform.
My fifth SC button was probably made post-Civil war; it's cuff-sized with a lot of gold gilt.
I dug my first War of 1812 era buttons in 2017, five cuff-sized Artillery Corps buttons. Four were dug at the same spot, obviously from a discarded uniform. This button was produced between 1814 and 1821, so technically they may not have seen action in the War of 1812 but either way I am happy to have recovered them.
A very unique and interesting find was a WWI dog tag with the soldier's name on it. At the same site I also found his 114th Battalion Field Artillery collar disk.
One of my favorite finds of the year was a "Pottsdam" musket butt plate. It was originally issued to a Prussian soldier in Germany in 1830, then re-purposed by the Union army during the Civil War.
I recovered this yet to be identified musket butt plate from a coastal site. Based on the style it is likely 18th century and definitely had a military used as evidenced by the rack number.
During that same coastal hunt I dug three Civil War artillery shell fragments, all Union, and restored them with extensive electrolysis. The long one is a fragment of a Schenkl shell.
Speaking of artillery I recovered these British Revolutionary War grape shot from a Lowcountry SC creek-Aquachigger style.
Two other interesting finds were this eagle medallion which was an advertisement for a merchant in Charleston, SC in the mid-1800s and a pewter button mold.
I'm not a coin shooter but I do like to find an old coin or two every now and then.
My best coin find of the year was an 1836 capped bust half dime, a first for me.
Another first was this flying eagle cent.
A couple of KG IIs, silver dimes and a nice Indian tribe rounds out the highlights of my 2017 coin finds.
Here a few of the civilian buttons that I found in 2017, along with several cuff links and an 18th century faceted pendant.
My hunts of 18th century home sits landed me some really nice buckles, including my first complete shoe buckle and a faceted glass knee buckle.
Horse-related relics-saddle decorations and stirrups.
One of my favorite things is 18th century pit digging, and last year I excavated one. It produced an abundance of pottery sherds and a "harem" of hoes.
I did manage to squeeze in a couple of trips to my favorite fossil-hunting creek with good results.
When I dig an old site I like finding "big iron"-tools, implements, cooking vessels, etc.
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Here's to a stellar 2018 for you-I know you will be digging a lot of old coins and relics this year.
