🥇 BANNER 1862 S $10 gold

[Tom_in_CA]

Got my 15th gold coin. And a key-date gold coin. 1862 S $10. Will probably only merit a "40" grade at best, eh ? Plus I knicked it on the reverse below the "ten" (aargghh).

Got this over the weekend with a buddy on a reconn. trip to a new site we've been researching. A defunct country/mountain resort "in California".

Aside from this one coin, we got no other coins. Which was strange, because we got no lack of other period targets of a 'personal' effect nature. Eg. buttons, harmonica reeds, spoons, suspender clips, period match safe box, etc.... (as opposed to period bullet shells, period building debris, etc...). Will post pix of the other items in the day to come. In the meantime, here's the coin.

 

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[DannyB.]

I would not even know what to do if I dug that; probably just fall over dead! My luck; it would be full of chocolate.

 

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[VTColonialDigger]

Truly an amazing find That is Awesome!!!!!!!!!!

 

[USMC Reaper]

Congratulations!!!!

 

[park pirate]

Outstanding Tom.....

 

[frogmaster-riviera]

What a very nice find tom !

Thanks for sharing :-)

FM from the Med Sea

 

[RobRieman]

Beautiful gold Tom! You killed it again.

 

[Doc Arey]

Double Wow!!

 

[BigWaveDave]

That gold is so shiney, it hurts my eyes!
Congrats on your 15th hole in one!

 

[CMDiamonddawg]

Congrats ! Wonderful gold coin .

 

[IDXMonster]

For those who are asking "how" Tom is finding these,it's targeting. Going to the school grounds won't do. It HAS to be somewhere the coin has good odds of being,because there's the issue of even finding the coin when you get to the site. Many of the other things found on that trip might have been a gold coin,but they weren't. Without trying to zero in on where coins like that may be, the odds of finding one go down astronomically. Research,research,action. At some point you have to go and try to make good on that crazy notion of finding that spectacular thing. When proper steps are taken the notion really isn't crazy at all.
Oh yeah...nice coin! I have not seen one nicer that's been dug of any kind,nor one of more potential value.

 

[turf_aholic]

Tom huge CONGRATULATIONS!!! I can appreciate all the hard work and countless hours that must go into finding a gem like that. Having recently relocated to a new area, I have been struggling big time in locating sites that are historic, accessible and producing.... But i know that's all part of paying dues to get to a level only few have reached.

Again Tom great going and hope you find many more in 2017!!
Peter-TurfAholic

 

[TRanegar36]

Thanx everyone !!



3 from the Chicago area ? The west coast has a bit better odds (for some odd reasons that've been debated/discussed on forums before). So it would seem that for your upper mid-west area, you must have some sort of record , eh ? What type sites ?

Chicago area. 1 from a older house downtown - 2 from the same park.

My dad has 2... found at other parks (all older)

Just dumb luck. Dig it all - never expect it

My highest is a 2.5, his is a $5

Congrats on the big gold. You ever find a $20?

 

[hunting deer]

Way Awesome!!!! Congrats!!

 

[Auriemma]

Great find!

 

[cudamark]

That puppy will keep you in beans and weenies for a while! Congrats!

 

[IMAUDIGGER]

Trust me Brian, I felt bad. (Well ... sort of ! ) Because you most definitely put in sweat and blood on that effort with me ! You've "done your homework" with me on our adventures. And you even got an equal amount of conductors. So you were technically owed on this outing . Ouch I love your zeal, that you know your stuff, aren't a wuss, and respect period targets, history, etc... So the next one definitely has your name on it !




Imaudigger: They were each individual fumble fingers losses. Not a cache, or purse, or pocket spill, etc.... And not jewelry mounted bezzles (because if I count those, it's 16). They were from places like beach storm erosion, stage stops, emigrant stopping spots, oldtown urban demolitions, and 1 from a turfed park.

The first of the group was from late Dec. 1994. So it seems I'm averaging 1 per every 1-1/2 years since then. Prior to that first one in 1994, I'd gone since 1976-ish (my start). So that means ~18 yrs. to find the first one. Starting in the early '90s I focused all my attention on stage stops, old town urban demolitions, ghost-townsy stuff, etc.... As opposed to earlier times when I was primarily turf hunting.

Thanks for the info. I suspect most were San Fransisco mint (1850-1880)?
Did any of them exhibit very minor "coin debasement" on the edges? This would be where someone scraped the edges with a pocket knife (usually corner of the reed), just enough to barely dislodge a tiny fraction of gold?

 

[Molewacker]

Oh my ---

 

[The Urban Prospector]

Beautiful gold! Congrats!!

 

[Tom_in_CA]

For those who are asking "how" Tom is finding these,it's targeting. Going to the school grounds won't do. It HAS to be somewhere the coin has good odds of being,because there's the issue of even finding the coin when you get to the site. Many of the other things found on that trip might have been a gold coin,but they weren't. Without trying to zero in on where coins like that may be, the odds of finding one go down astronomically. Research,research,action. At some point you have to go and try to make good on that crazy notion of finding that spectacular thing. When proper steps are taken the notion really isn't crazy at all.
Oh yeah...nice coin! I have not seen one nicer that's been dug of any kind,nor one of more potential value.

thanx IDX-monster ! Your contributions to md'ing discussions are always on-target. And you're right: It's "location location location". Going to be hard to find a gold coin on:

Sandboxes, turfed lawns @ parks & schools, beaches (that aren't porking out 1800's coins like after a storm), etc..

Instead the places are:

a) places that are distinctly 1910-ish or earlier (preferably 1900 or earlier). Because by the 1910's paper money and check-writing and western union wiring type transactions was developing for larger denominations. This is borne out because you'll notice that even though gold coins were minted till the early 1930s, yet 99% of the time, when an md'r finds one, they are usually dated earlier than 1910.

b) places that are distinctly 1910-ish or earlier , because auto-travel was now in vogue by the teens. Versus slower methods of wagon, walk, ride, requiring longer travel times and thus more stops. Notice that all sorts of whistle stops (stage stops, little burgs, etc...) dried up at the advent of autos. So you have all sorts of places that PREVIOUSLY had traveler stops (with the express purpose of getting out and spending $$ or staying the night !).

c) Places that are heavily 1800's finds. Because the moment you're angling in park turf where a lot of your time is spent digging coins of newer years, plus junk (depending on how much 'cherry picking' TID's you've elected to do), then..... you're just spending more time @ those targets, versus time which *could* have been spent at areas that are distinctly and only 1800's. Thus places that were "defunct and gone" by the teens, will up your odds at a gold coin, and less modern junk and coins to take away your time-odds.

d) examples of the above is old town urban demolition (like sidewalk tearouts, etc...). Because often time those create a "cap", where all targets will be old. Thus also allowing you to go loooowwww disc, since all you're fighting is nails in a case like that. Or beach storms that are eroding down to where you're getting seateds and barbers.

e) TRAVELER and EMIGRANT spots (like stage stops, etc...) : Because back then, if you were heading to a place that didn't have a pickup point to send your money ahead to (banks of your same brand, or places with no ability to "wire" to, etc...), then it made sense then, that if you're picking up and moving for life (like the "westward ho" movement) that you've brought your entire life's wealth with you for the permanent move. And if cargo space was at a premium (like for westward ho wagon travellers), then you'd tend to put all your $ into larger denomination coins. Eg.: better to bring a single $5 gold, than 500 large cents, eh ?)

f) indian wars era forts. Supposedly they paid in gold coins. And similar miners ventures, loggers ventures, etc... where you can surmise that they paid in gold coins (which was perhaps something like $5 per week, for a blue collar dude in the 1880s, for instance)

g) Out west. For reasons too lengthy to speculate on here, md'rs out west have gotten more than the back-east guys. I know guys here who have 2, 3, 4, and one guy even 7 so far. And other guy who's at 15 or 20, d/t he got into what was probably a broke open cache. Yet he also got few singles so far here). Contrast to back east, and it seems that even the most-hardcore guys have gotten perhaps 1 or 2 ? Thus for some reason out here in the west seems better odds.

 

[Tom_in_CA]

.... You ever find a $20?

Thanx T-Ranger for the Chicago area details. You get 2x the points if you get a gold coin from the turf ! Because that means you overcame the time-needed to dig all the post 1910-ish coins. And overcame the junk factor (tabs ? foil ? And/or spending all your time 2nd-guessing depths, blah blah blah). So in my book you get a double atteboy for getting a gold coin out of turfed parks. ESPECIALLY if it's a $1 or a $2.50, as those would read beaver tail and round-tab area of the TID.

To answer your question: 2 of the 15 are $20's. One from a stage stop, and the other following beach storm erosion.