KG Copper, Early Large Cent/Buttons/Thimbles/Key/Intact Shoe Buckle = Great Day

Don in SJ

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May 20, 2005
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Found another new site this morning, and I dedicated about two hours pounding the small old homestead in the woods. There were two shallow depressions, grapevines and a iron field of hits about 50x75 feet. :thumbsup:
My first digs though were shotgun casings :( But as I started getting into the heavier iron hit field, I got a thimble for the first recovery, always a good sign that it was a homestead and not just a work area. I believe my second target was the key, which I think is a barrel key, and shortly thereafter another thimble, and then another thimble, Three thimbles in one hunt for me is unusual to say the least.

I was getting concerned that no buttons or coins were appearing, and then finally a button reading and a nice plain late 1700s convex button appeared and shortly thereafter two more buttons and they looked like Tombac type or close to them, which was telling me this site was occupied late 1790s into early 1800s.

I did some minor exploring and on an old overgrown dirt path I got the iron leg of possibly a stove and then went back to the depression area and got a great hit on the edge of one and thought for sure it was going to be a copper, NOPE, better than a copper, an complete, INTACT and working Shoe Buckle! I now considered the hunt a great success despite no coins.


I had not planned on a long hunt so I decided to make one last very slow pass thru the main depression area and glad I did. I got the nice high sweet tone on the Explorer telling me for sure Coin. It was a very deep reading and at about 8 inches or so I was rewarded with my first large copper of the day. As I scanned the hole, I got another coin reading about 6 inches away from this hole and at the same depth of the first copper a second one appeared......

Overall a great two hour hunt and I will be going back again shortly.
I am sorry for lack of quality of the pic of the site (cell phone pic) my camera was in the truck.

Finds for the day:
1770-75 KGIII Halfpenny (Counterfeit)
1802 Draped Bust Large Cent (Sheldon 228 variety)
Colonial era Shoe Buckle (intact and workable)
3 Thimbles
3 Buttons
1 Key (Barrel?)
1 Cane tip
1 Iron leg (stove?)
Some Unks :)

Don
 

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Upvote 0

HomesteadHunter

Full Member
Nov 14, 2008
145
3
Amherstburg, Ontario
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As always, its a pleasure to read your post. Your patience and attention to detail always seem to reward you, well done. The barrel key is a beautiful relic, I can't recall actually seeing one before. And what else can I say about the intact buckle, another great colonial relic. Looking forward to your next post!.

James.
HomesteadHunter.
 

richm

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Apr 30, 2009
484
10
Madison, CT
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Awesome finds Don, Looks like between the two of us we have a nice pair of buckles ;D Very interesting about the beeswax, If I use the beeswax should I remove the oil that I put on mine? What do you use to buff it? Rich.
 

TommNJ

Bronze Member
Nov 3, 2008
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NW NJ
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Wow, Excellent Job ! It looks like one of my fantasy hunts :o !!

TommNJ
 

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Don in SJ

Don in SJ

Silver Member
May 20, 2005
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richm said:
Awesome finds Don, Looks like between the two of us we have a nice pair of buckles ;D Very interesting about the beeswax, If I use the beeswax should I remove the oil that I put on mine? What do you use to buff it? Rich.

I would just leave yours as is, oil, beeswax, either ok I think. I just brush with a old soft tootbrush to remove excess wax that is all it needed. If you did want to put on beeswax or any other type, I would think you would have to soak the buckle in dish washing liquid for a bit to remove the oil first.

Don
 

West Jersey Detecting

Gold Member
Oct 23, 2006
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Re: KG Copper, Early Large Cent/Buttons/Thimbles/Key/Intact Shoe Buckle = Great

What can I say that has not already been said? I knew with the cooler weather upon us, it was only a matter of time before you had a killer day.

Like you said, thimbles are always a great sign. By me, they are often a sign of early campsites rather than homesteads, but always a welcome find!
 

Sniffy

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Mar 27, 2009
2,043
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Connecticut
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I have the exact buckle it appears! I never thought to coat it with beeswax....def. gonna spruce it up a bit more. Nice coppers as well....I"ll be back in Connecticut soon...hopefully with plenty of good posts similar to this one.
 

RPG

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Jan 10, 2009
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Alabama
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Very good hunt Don. I love seeing the things you guys find. The shoe buckle is awesome. :o

You know you've had a good hunt when you almost run out of room on the title bar. :D

Randy
 

CMDiamonddawg

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Oct 14, 2009
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Congrats on a fun day. Great finds , that old site has more stuff waiting for you . You find thimbles , you find buttons and buckles. ... wonder if the problem, was bad thread or bad sewing ? The colonial folks seem to lose alot of these objects.
 

Kirk PA

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May 23, 2009
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Pennsylvania
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That is what I am talking about! Give me that shoe buckle on the entire hunt and I would be one happy camper. Heck, I wouldn't need to dig coppers to keep me satisfied, if there were more of those relics in the PA soil. I was talking to Kyle about how we are due to find at least a complete frame. Our only hope is to hope the plow didn't deck it to hell. :laughing9:

Thanks for sharing, Don, and keep the passion high!

Kirk :icon_thumleft:
 

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