Found My White Whale!!!

[oldmxrat]

Ever since buying our winter home in Southern Nevada I've been fascinated with Hoover Dam. If you've never been, the dam tour is incredible!
Anyways, I've read several books about it, and being a md'ing addict I thought of what would be the ultimate dam-related find. Boulder City was fenced off and gated with armed guards during dam construction and workers were issued badges to allow them to come and go to Vegas and elsewhere. The badges were carefully accounted for by the government and the contractor (Six Companies Inc.).

Long story short, I figured it would be next to impossible to ever find one, but made it my lofty goal. My wife's uncle lives in Boulder City and knows a great many people. He secured me a permission to hunt a very tiny yard in one of the first houses built for workers. I searched that yard for hours listening for the tiniest blip. Pulling a handful of clad and modern junk it didn't seem like I was going to get any of the old coins I was expecting.

Then I got this barely repeating signal that was high one way, but low at 90 degrees. A nail, right? Well, I dug that nail signal and low and behold, at about 12 inches down...
Holy moley, I could hardly believe my eyes!

The pin is broken off at both ends and the back was really crusted over (I know, I know, shouldn't have cleaned it so aggressively, but it's mine and I'm not selling!) but it is perfect in my mind.

I guess you gotta dream big. I'm thinking my new white whale is gonna be a $20 gold piece!

 

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[KodyB]

Ever since buying our winter home in Southern Nevada I've been fascinated with Hoover Dam. If you've never been, the dam tour is incredible!
Anyways, I've read several books about it, and being a md'ing addict I thought of what would be the ultimate dam-related find. Boulder City was fenced off and gated with armed guards during dam construction and workers were issued badges to allow them to come and go to Vegas and elsewhere. The badges were carefully accounted for by the government and the contractor (Six Companies Inc.).

Long story short, I figured it would be next to impossible to ever find one, but made it my lofty goal. My wife's uncle lives in Boulder City and knows a great many people. He secured me a permission to hunt a very tiny yard in one of the first houses built for workers. I searched that yard for hours listening for the tiniest blip. Pulling a handful of clad and modern junk it didn't seem like I was going to get any of the old coins I was expecting.

Then I got this barely repeating signal that was high one way, but low at 90 degrees. A nail, right? Well, I dug that nail signal and low and behold, at about 12 inches down...
Holy moley, I could hardly believe my eyes!
View attachment 2077564
View attachment 2077565

The pin is broken off at both ends and the back was really crusted over (I know, I know, shouldn't have cleaned it so aggressively, but it's mine and I'm not selling!) but it is perfect in my mind.

I guess you gotta dream big. I'm thinking my new white whale is gonna be a $20 gold piece!

That’s absolutely incredible!
I’m happy for ya!

 

[KodyB]

Ever since buying our winter home in Southern Nevada I've been fascinated with Hoover Dam. If you've never been, the dam tour is incredible!
Anyways, I've read several books about it, and being a md'ing addict I thought of what would be the ultimate dam-related find. Boulder City was fenced off and gated with armed guards during dam construction and workers were issued badges to allow them to come and go to Vegas and elsewhere. The badges were carefully accounted for by the government and the contractor (Six Companies Inc.).

Long story short, I figured it would be next to impossible to ever find one, but made it my lofty goal. My wife's uncle lives in Boulder City and knows a great many people. He secured me a permission to hunt a very tiny yard in one of the first houses built for workers. I searched that yard for hours listening for the tiniest blip. Pulling a handful of clad and modern junk it didn't seem like I was going to get any of the old coins I was expecting.

Then I got this barely repeating signal that was high one way, but low at 90 degrees. A nail, right? Well, I dug that nail signal and low and behold, at about 12 inches down...
Holy moley, I could hardly believe my eyes!
View attachment 2077564
View attachment 2077565

The pin is broken off at both ends and the back was really crusted over (I know, I know, shouldn't have cleaned it so aggressively, but it's mine and I'm not selling!) but it is perfect in my mind.

I guess you gotta dream big. I'm thinking my new white whale is gonna be a $20 gold piece!

Yours is also quit a low number tag.

 

[Kray Gelder]

You did the right thing, cleaning it. Very cool and unusual find. I have done the dam tour. I was there when the new bridge was only partially built. That was neat to see also.

 

[Lenrac2]

Amazing!! Congrats on your rare find!

 

[Bamasteve]

Awesome find, congrats!

 

[cudamark]

I wonder what the purpose is of that hole in the badge?

 

[Gulf Coast Pirate]

Awesome find! Congrats!

 

[scruggs]

Very nice find, Congratulations!

 

[E-Trac-Ohio]

Congrats on a very rare find and a great piece of history !

 

[pepperj]

Congrats on you finding your white whale. Truly a piece of history saved once again.

 

[Silvermonkey]

A great find...and a better back story! Congrats on finding this particular White Whale!

 

[GaRebel1861]

Thats a Dam nice find! Congratulations - those have to be few and far between.

 

[hampton detector]

Ever since buying our winter home in Southern Nevada I've been fascinated with Hoover Dam. If you've never been, the dam tour is incredible!
Anyways, I've read several books about it, and being a md'ing addict I thought of what would be the ultimate dam-related find. Boulder City was fenced off and gated with armed guards during dam construction and workers were issued badges to allow them to come and go to Vegas and elsewhere. The badges were carefully accounted for by the government and the contractor (Six Companies Inc.).

Long story short, I figured it would be next to impossible to ever find one, but made it my lofty goal. My wife's uncle lives in Boulder City and knows a great many people. He secured me a permission to hunt a very tiny yard in one of the first houses built for workers. I searched that yard for hours listening for the tiniest blip. Pulling a handful of clad and modern junk it didn't seem like I was going to get any of the old coins I was expecting.

Then I got this barely repeating signal that was high one way, but low at 90 degrees. A nail, right? Well, I dug that nail signal and low and behold, at about 12 inches down...
Holy moley, I could hardly believe my eyes!
View attachment 2077564
View attachment 2077565

The pin is broken off at both ends and the back was really crusted over (I know, I know, shouldn't have cleaned it so aggressively, but it's mine and I'm not selling!) but it is perfect in my mind.

I guess you gotta dream big. I'm thinking my new white whale is gonna be a $20 gold piece!

That’s Awsome! Great find

 

[Steve in PA]

Congrats on finding an interesting piece of 20th Century American history

 

[billb]

Outstanding
Congratulations on your achievement

 

[Nathan W]

Very cool, is that a badge that employees wore?

 

[Squirrel322]

That is awesome! It looks perfect to me too!
Congratulations

 

[Back-of-the-boat]

I wonder what the purpose is of that hole in the badge?

I would think it would be like a chit for using tools, once that employee got a tool for use on the worksite he gave the tool shop his badge/chit and got it back when he turned in the tool at the end of his shift. Just a thought of how it could have worked.

 

[🧱South Jersey Scolino🏴☠️]

Ever since buying our winter home in Southern Nevada I've been fascinated with Hoover Dam. If you've never been, the dam tour is incredible!
Anyways, I've read several books about it, and being a md'ing addict I thought of what would be the ultimate dam-related find. Boulder City was fenced off and gated with armed guards during dam construction and workers were issued badges to allow them to come and go to Vegas and elsewhere. The badges were carefully accounted for by the government and the contractor (Six Companies Inc.).

Long story short, I figured it would be next to impossible to ever find one, but made it my lofty goal. My wife's uncle lives in Boulder City and knows a great many people. He secured me a permission to hunt a very tiny yard in one of the first houses built for workers. I searched that yard for hours listening for the tiniest blip. Pulling a handful of clad and modern junk it didn't seem like I was going to get any of the old coins I was expecting.

Then I got this barely repeating signal that was high one way, but low at 90 degrees. A nail, right? Well, I dug that nail signal and low and behold, at about 12 inches down...
Holy moley, I could hardly believe my eyes!
View attachment 2077564
View attachment 2077565

The pin is broken off at both ends and the back was really crusted over (I know, I know, shouldn't have cleaned it so aggressively, but it's mine and I'm not selling!) but it is perfect in my mind.

I guess you gotta dream big. I'm thinking my new white whale is gonna be a $20 gold piece!

Congrats! Definitely a very cool find 🏴‍☠️