Ultra Rare Confederate Button Found Today! Times Deux!

smokeythecat

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On April 3, I found a rare St. Timothy's Hall school button at a farm I have pounded. Apparently I haven't pounded it enough. Went to a field after the dentist and started digging where I stopped on Monday.

St. Timothy's Hall was a southern sympathizing military school in Catonsville, Maryland. During the Civil War, many of it's students left the ranks to join the Confederate Army.

It is best known due to alumni John Wilkes Booth, who did attend for a time 1852-1853. Booth, if you remember your history, assassinated President Abraham Lincoln in April of 1865. Another alumni, Samuel Arnold, was convicted of conspiracy in the murder and went to prison for it.

Maryland was a very divided state during the Civil War, and this particular school had a strong southern bend. While the headmaster was a strict abolitionist, the school body leaned strongly to the south, and it was reported when each southern state seceded from the union, the student body cheered and fired the cannon in salute to that rebellious state.

The school gave the Confederate Army General Fitzhugh Lee, another alumni and General Steven Elliott, among many, many other soldiers.

Professional button collectors consider this a true southern school button. The button itself is intact. Whew! Alphaeus Albert's "Record of American Uniform and Historical Buttons", Bicentennial Edition lists it as SU378 on pages 342 and 343. It lists its backmark as "Scovills & Co. Superfine".

This button does NOT HAVE THAT BACKMARK.

It has the "Waterbury Button Co.**" which was used exclusively 1861-1865. Now we all know there was never just ONE button made, but today I went and found another identical button. I have to admit it was TWO FEET away from the first one. I had gotten so excited on the one from Monday, I ran back to the truck and just left to go home with the treasure.

Both buttons have the Waterbury backmark. The back is pushed farther in than the first button and there is a little more ground action on it, but I'll take it! Two Confederate used buttons in the same week. This is the stuff of dreams. I am certain both came from the same coat. If that coat could talk! This site was less than a mile from what we lovingly around here call the "old trail", the old road that connected York PA, to Baltimore, MD.

THE SECOND BUTTON STILL HAS THREAD ON THE BENT OVER SHANK. Amazing! See the other BANNER post for the rest of the details on this school. The "new" find is on the left.

Happy dance commencing now! sttimothy3.jpg stimothy4.jpg sttimothy3.jpg st timothy rear.jpg timothy2r.jpg timothy2.jpg
 

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DeepseekerADS

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Wow! That is pretty cool.

Maybe there's another one or more awaiting you.
 

Gridwalker306

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That's incredible dude, double congrats! Similar thing happened to me last year. I made Banner with three NWMP buttons, in the following few weeks I found a total of 19 of them.

Your buttons are really really cool, hope you find even more!
 

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smokeythecat

smokeythecat

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I don't think I'll find 19 of these. Today I gridded out a 75' x 75' area around where the buttons were found and loaded GPS coordinates in my device which gets me within a couple inches of each, in case the mind goes pffftttt! and I forget where I found them. Did find two new quarters, an unfired military style rifle shell and two Lincolns.
 

Peyton Manning

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sure wish I lived closer to you Smokey
 

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smokeythecat

smokeythecat

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How many miles is it? Was so excited on the first button, left and went home and didn't really look for anything else.
 

Relicific

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Double mint buttons
Awesome finds
 

CRUSADER

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In my last post I stated 'unique to date', didn't take long to change that one...lol
 

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smokeythecat

smokeythecat

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You got that right, Crusader. Of course more were made. But where are they now? Just like the Washington Inaugural Buttons, MANY were made, few have survived.
 

fishstick

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DAMN SMOKE!!!!!! Is there anyway you could give me the winning #'s for tonight's Powerball drawing LUCKY!!!!!! CONGRATZ.....
 

Scrappy

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In my last post I stated 'unique to date', didn't take long to change that one...lol

Yes. Once posted online a bunch of examples always seem to come out of the woodwork. I remember you once said that "known examples" is a loaded word, and described accurate numbers in many cases is multiplied by a factor of 10.

Nice buttons Smokey
 

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smokeythecat

smokeythecat

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No one really knows the number of buttons made, number still around non dug, dug items, and still surviving in the ground plus those destroyed.
 

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smokeythecat

smokeythecat

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BTW, I did get the copy of the North South Trader in the mail a couple days ago. I didn't realize there weren't that FEW Southern schools out there. I have buttons from three of them. Amazing, especially if you consider only one was found in Virginia. The others were from the north. North meaning Maryland.
 

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