Hi There - I live west of Albany, NY and have started tromping around the State Forests. I have come across quite a quantity of old stone foundations, and have been finding some goodies in them. I realize to a lot of people its flat out junk (my husband), but I have the greatest time just squatting in an area and seeing glass/metal/etc just pop out at me. A friend of mine, Laura, shares the same love and this past weekend we wandered into the woods with a small shovel and a pail. A few hours later we were making our way back to the Jeep and completely fascinated by what we found. Lots of bits of glass, old crockery and lots of metal. Laura researched the bits of glass we found and shared with me, but I ended up with most of the metal bits. I have a big ole buckle, the remains of a small umbrella, the tag from an old instruments (possibly a bugle) and some other odds and ends.
So now I have a few questions - I have done some quick searches on NYS forests and I don't see where I can't dig out old stuff - but does anyone if what i'm doing is actually legal? And secondly - does anyone have a good way of cleaning up any of my metal finds? I just want to see if there is anything underneath the layers of dirt that can help me identify the little bits of stuff I have found.
Thank you so much and I look forward to reading any responses anyone has.
So now I have a few questions - I have done some quick searches on NYS forests and I don't see where I can't dig out old stuff - but does anyone if what i'm doing is actually legal? And secondly - does anyone have a good way of cleaning up any of my metal finds? I just want to see if there is anything underneath the layers of dirt that can help me identify the little bits of stuff I have found.
Thank you so much and I look forward to reading any responses anyone has.
