1st silver 3 center, large cent, wheats, whats-its, and buckles

redbeardrelics

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I got out in the 30mph wind storm Sunday, to look for a long gone school or church site on a friends farm I have been hunting for the last few years. I have been detecting the old home site there between the crop plantings for the last several years, and it has produced about 30 wheat's, a couple Indians, a few merc's, a few GW silver quarters, and a lone 1787 Connecticut copper. I have also detected once in a far corner of the farm about a half mile away and found a few flat buttons and an 1880-1808 era half cent. My friend that owns the farm said he saw an old map of the area when consulting with a local surveyor, that showed a long gone school on the property, so we both assumed it was in the far corner where the half cent was found.
I recently read a post here that referenced the "historic aerials" website, and was excited to find that many old maps were also found on that website. I was pleasantly surprised when I checked those old maps and found that it showed the school/church not on the back of the farm where the half cent came from, but rather right up on the main road only about 200 yards down from where the house was, right on the edge of this friends farm property. I searched that area Sunday and only found can slaw, so sadly assumed that the church / school was on the other side of the hedge row, where I do not have permission to hunt(yet). I was bummed out about not finding the old site where I hoped it would be, but fortunately my friend owned the field across the road from where I thought the school once sat, and also across the road from the neighboring farm where I now think the school once was. I was only 10 feet into the field across the road when I got the clear 1850 large cent signal, and another 10 feet in produced the 1853 3 center at 7". I was pleased that my GTI was able to find it, as they are so small and thin I would have had my doubts. The only other items I found in that spot were the two small buttons, and an old flat iron that is not pictured. The wheat's and buckles came from the same home site I have hunted there many times. Anybody know what the "tee handle" looking thing is? The handle part is lead molded with some decoration on it.
2.JPG

I am hoping the neighbor will let me detect in his field, and that it will be the actual school/church site. HH
 

Upvote 6

collector01

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Congrats on some great looking coins! Those 3 centers are hard to get the coil over. I'd hit that area again for sure. Sorry no help on the handle. HH!
 

CoinandRelicMan

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Can't get the large version of picture to come in here(weak Internet here), can you post some more picture of the coins ?
 

pepperj

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Nice digs, congrats on the silver it looks like it's nice shape.
 

Pointman

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The lead things looks like a cane handle. If it is, it is back when it was OK to touch lead and lick your fingers, lol.
 

beez0404

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I have to agree with Pointman, that appears to be a walking stick/cane handle. Love the 3 center a lot!
 

CASPER-2

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NICE - WTG -:thumbsup:
 

DMN

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Good collection. You know there is more out there.
I like the compass style disk. Is there any way you could get a close up of the front and back?
 

g-olden years

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:icon_flower::blob3::blob6::blob5::icon_flower: Congrats! Your research & hard work is paying off well! What is the circular item with star shape in middle & 200-250-300 on it? :dontknow: Andi
 

cjon455

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Nice 3 center, looks like a good day out to me, keep at it at that site, should produce more
 

Old Dude

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Walking cane handle was my first thought too. Congrats on the 3 cent...nice little coins!
 

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redbeardrelics

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Thanks guys, Walking cane handle makes sense to me. Here are some requested photos of the older coins and the aluminum disc. I thought it might have been a token or something better when dug, but now am thinking it is just a placard off a stove knob, or some such trash.
I went back again the other day and found some more wheats around the home site, a crusty IH in the middle of "no mans land", and just iron over near where the school/church should have been. Farmer was cutting the beans off the suspected school site, but it was not an appropriate time to approach him about checking it out. I met the 82 year old neighbor who knows the property owner and said I should have no problem if I asked, and another interested local man stopped by and offered up assistance in getting permission at some other potential sites down the road, so encouraged now that there will be hunts to come. HH 1.JPG 4.JPG 1850.JPG 1853.JPG 1853a.JPG
 

Rick (Nova Scotia)

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Garrett GTI series are perfectly capable machines.

Somedays a couple of good finds is lots, the 3 center is a cool find, Congrats on a first. I got a holed one a couple of years back, and it was 6 or 7 inches deep too.

Old schools are not always the hot spot one might think, even 50 - 60 years ago kids just didn't go to school with a pocket full of change like they do today, that's not to say there might be coinage, and probably more "other" stuff. I've just come to realize that the old schools are not great coin producers, for the reason stated above.
 

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redbeardrelics

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Garrett GTI series are perfectly capable machines.

Somedays a couple of good finds is lots, the 3 center is a cool find, Congrats on a first. I got a holed one a couple of years back, and it was 6 or 7 inches deep too.

Old schools are not always the hot spot one might think, even 50 - 60 years ago kids just didn't go to school with a pocket full of change like they do today, that's not to say there might be coinage, and probably more "other" stuff. I've just come to realize that the old schools are not great coin producers, for the reason stated above.

Thanks Rick. I am not at all sure if it is was a school or a church site. Friend who owns the property said he saw a "school" noted on an old map he saw at the surveyors. The online maps I looked at start at 1898, and there is a map for about a every 5-10 years up through the 1970's. They just show a black dot with a cross on top to identify the structure that was there, but there is no legend on the map that I can find, and they appear to show schools and churches both with crosses on top? This structure whatever it was, is on every map from 1898 up to 1944, and then wasn't on the next map from 1961. Interestingly, the 82 year old neighbor, and the 75 year old lady I know that grew up there, neither of them can remember there being any building there, so I am thinking that the 1944 map and probably some of the earlier ones were just copying the building locations off earlier maps? I only ever detected one older vanished school site, and it only produced about 5 Indians and 5 wheat's. The only old church site I detected had hardly anything up near the church itself, but lots of wheats , Indians, and some barber dimes about 80 yards away over nearer the creek. I am guessing that is where they had tent meetings, picnics, or maybe a prep area for baptisms? I think half the fun of this hobby is trying to figure out what went on at these sites, by looking at the clues we find in the dirt. HH
 

Rick (Nova Scotia)

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Thanks Rick. I am not at all sure if it is was a school or a church site. Friend who owns the property said he saw a "school" noted on an old map he saw at the surveyors. The online maps I looked at start at 1898, and there is a map for about a every 5-10 years up through the 1970's. They just show a black dot with a cross on top to identify the structure that was there, but there is no legend on the map that I can find, and they appear to show schools and churches both with crosses on top? This structure whatever it was, is on every map from 1898 up to 1944, and then wasn't on the next map from 1961. Interestingly, the 82 year old neighbor, and the 75 year old lady I know that grew up there, neither of them can remember there being any building there, so I am thinking that the 1944 map and probably some of the earlier ones were just copying the building locations off earlier maps? I only ever detected one older vanished school site, and it only produced about 5 Indians and 5 wheat's. The only old church site I detected had hardly anything up near the church itself, but lots of wheats , Indians, and some barber dimes about 80 yards away over nearer the creek. I am guessing that is where they had tent meetings, picnics, or maybe a prep area for baptisms? I think half the fun of this hobby is trying to figure out what went on at these sites, by looking at the clues we find in the dirt. HH

True, it is fun trying to "figure" it out.

Strange that the cartographers would put a "cross" on a school. I guess it makes sense now that you say school or church.
In any case your on a good site, just figureing out the details of it will depend on what you did up. Given the overall size of the site, (and surrounding areas) and what you've got so far, the possibilities are very good IMO.

Good luck out there.
 

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