Back to the Texas Frontier Fort: Lots of relics, 2 seated coins, and some ID help???

[NZ49er]

Howdy all,

Put a full day in at my new site in the baseball fields today. Couldn't make it out on Sunday due to work, but I did drop off a shadow box for the land owner on Saturday morning. She was stoked and I've got full access to the fields . Found a bunch more bullets and buttons. Got an 1861 Seated Half-Dime and an 1877 CC (my first Carson City!) Seated Dime. Also scored a rotten 1872 Indian and a silver war nickel. Got a US bridle rosette, a friction primer, a coat sized Eagle C, a cuff Eagle I, 2 cuff eagles, an early US General Service 2-piece button, and a little one piece eagle and shield button that I'll need help identifying. Lots of camp relics. I thought I had a plate with that big brass spoon bowl. I left after the sun went down and was bummed about it. There are still signals EVERYWHERE. I've probably only managed to grid about 15% of the fields, digging everything except small iron.



Full Take

Buttons/Coins/Etc.

Need help with IDs on the following:

The lead US is a Rosette (I think?) any ideas on a date? Also, what is the little button? Its a one-piece with a lined field.


Any ideas on the bullets?


Also, what is this? They were found together.


This looks to me like a Burnside casing shoved into a scabbard throat. Thoughts?



Lastly, how can I GENTLY clean these ladies up? Both look like they've been burned. I don't want to etch them or anything, but is there a safe way to remove the black?


Thanks for letting me share my day with you,
-NZ49er

 

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[peruna]

Splendid bunch of treasures there...might want to soak the coins in (of all things ) virgin olive oil...I have found it helps remove some of the "crustiness" from metals that have been fatigued or disfigured in some way. Note that it is acidic, but the virgin olive oil is much less so.

Have used it on coins that were in a campfire, and other iron/lead. I have found it helped. YMMV.

 

[Digger RJ]

Wow!!! Very Nice!!! Congrats!!!

 

[Randy Combs]

Holy Canoli what a great digging day

 

[Steve in PA]

Amazing that you got all that out of baseball fields, since they are usually one of the first areas to get hit with a metal detector in any town. Your little button with the eagle and the shield is from a forage cap.

 

[xcopperstax]

What a historical gold mine you have come upon! Very nice seated coins!!! Not sure of the best treatment. It looks like they still have some pretty good detail. That US rosette piece (if that's what it is) is pretty awesome!!! Good luck on the bucket list there!

 

[cudamark]

On cleaning those coins, I would start with a hot soapy water soak,. followed by a soft toothbrush. Since they're not particularly rare, I would continue with the cleaning if they don't look good enough to you at that point. Personally, I like to remove tarnish if it's blotchy or unattractive. My usual method is to use the outside bottom cavity of an empty aluminum can filled with white vinegar. I put the coin in and let it soak for a couple of hours. I then remove it and rub the surface with baking soda and then rinse in fresh water. Repeat if it needs more. Just don't forget it and/or wait too long as vinegar is a mild acid and will eventually remove most of the detail off a silver coin. At this point, I can pretty much tell how long a particular coin will need to soak based on the surface condition. Until you can make an educated guess, it's best to check often. You can always clean more, but, you can't clean less and put detail back on once it's removed.

 

[park pirate]

Awesome hunt....

 

[A2coins]

Great of you to do the shadow box very thoughtful jeez wow that's just some amazing finds I'd be living in a tent on that site and probobly wouldnt sleep much. Thanks for sharing you finds freakin awesome. Tommy

 

[Gimmie The Loot]

Wow real nice assortment there. If you need help there, I'm near Austin.

 

[pa-dirt_nc-sand]

Wow! Incredible hunt, and awesome Seated silvers. Congrats

 

[NZ49er]

Your little button with the eagle and the shield is from a forage cap.

Thanks! I knew I'd seen a picture of that before, but couldn't remember what it was. The baseball fields are old and privately owned in a very small town. I think that's why they haven't been hit before. Appreciate the ID!

 

[NZ49er]

Splendid bunch of treasures there...might want to soak the coins in (of all things ) virgin olive oil...I have found it helps remove some of the "crustiness" from metals that have been fatigued or disfigured in some way. Note that it is acidic, but the virgin olive oil is much less so.YMMV.

Thanks, I think I'll give the olive oil a go, maybe step it up to something else if it doesn't knock off the hard crud.

 

[NZ49er]

On cleaning those coins, I would start with a hot soapy water soak,. followed by a soft toothbrush. Since they're not particularly rare, I would continue with the cleaning if they don't look good enough to you at that point. Personally, I like to remove tarnish if it's blotchy or unattractive. My usual method is to use the outside bottom cavity of an empty aluminum can filled with white vinegar. I put the coin in and let it soak for a couple of hours. I then remove it and rub the surface with baking soda and then rinse in fresh water. Repeat if it needs more. Just don't forget it...

Thank You! I'm thinking about giving the olive oil a try first, then the vinegar and baking soda if that doesn't do the trick. Thanks!

 

[NZ49er]

Wow real nice assortment there. If you need help there, I'm near Austin.

Thanks! I've only got permission for myself at the moment. Don't want to push it too far. Might be interested in meeting up sometime if I'm in the Austin area in the future, though. Job moves us around a lot.

 

[basque-man]

Great looking saves for sure!

 

[creskol]

Darn.. you were one busy digger! That's a very nice assortment of goodies! Well Done!

With regards to cleaning those coins, I have had good luck with a product called "MS 70 Coin Brightener" from Betterbuilt Chemicals

 

[Professor of Engineering]

Coin and awesome relics, congrats!

 

[washingtonian]

Amazing! Congratulations on finding a great site. You work hard at this, you deserve it. Keep on posting what you find and make sure you get a big old group photo of everything from this site at the end. Can't wait to keep following along!

 

[JeffInMass]

All those amazing finds and 85% yet to cover- WOW! GL the rest of the way...