old homeplaces vs public spots

[Darren in NC]

Question...as we were returning home from the courthouse, we saw a zillion old homesteads to ask permission for detecting. How many of you do better at old gathering places (old fairgrounds, parks, campgrounds, etc) than old homesteads? Seems to me the old homesteads might yield a few coins, but if possible, hit the gathering spots. What's been your experience? Are the homesteads worth it?

 

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[True_Metal]

I would say they are definately worth it. Your talking about possible virgin sites as opposed to sites that have probably have been pounded to death. Hunt the homesites, what have you got to lose? 8)

 

[nedigger]

Does it have to be either/or? Why not try to do both? You could do your own experiment to see which is most productive or produces the best finds and then post the results (and pictures). Good luck and HH.

 

[True_Metal]

Does it have to be either/or? Why not try to do both? You could do your own experiment to see which is most productive or produces the best finds and then post the results (and pictures). Good luck and HH.

Good point! 8)

I dont know why i didnt define that in my previous post, as thats exactly what i would do.

 

[Darren in NC]

My point was not to propose an either/or scenario. I'm simply wondering what others experience have been with both. Perhaps I should have been more clear that I have already experienced better results researching old gathering places with good results. Rarely have I found much at old homesteads. I was simply wondering if anyone else had experienced the same.

 

[TedinRI]

I almost never do public parks, commons, etc. 99.9 percent of my detecting is done at cellar holes in the woods, old homes, construction sites and farmer's fields. I used to do those public areas but gave up on them for the most part. I found over the years that a public area that looks good and promising to you has probably already looked good and promising to someone else long before you got there! IMO you're better off staying off the beaten track, doing research, hiking along old stone walls in the woods and finding stuff that way. Your chances are better of:
1. Finding less modern junk and trash
2. Hitting a virgin site
3. Finding a higher percentage of old stuff.

 

[smhead]

Older homes in my area usually are pretty good IF you know how to read them. Raised yards, curb styles, history, etc all play into site choice. Some that look great are filled with garabage, others are less visually tempting but procude well. I found older churches are pretty good if you find a gathering spot.

Now I too prefer to hunt and research, ask friends, etc, and locate that one virgin spot. This weekend I will be hitting a private tract of land (more like hundreds of acres) that has a ghost town on it, high hopes, lots of 1850 era history there, and the owner already found a Colt 1851Navy revolver sticking out of the ground. Its my personal secret honey hole, will provide years of searching for me and my friends, and I worked a long time developing the leads and researching it. That's the best kind of site. I just hope we can find some good spots on all that land quickly before winter comes, instant gratification is sooo good.

 

[CWnut]

in my area old homesites are very,very trashy. There are a bunch of old mining camps around here with company houses. I swear i believe these people never hauled any garbage off. I like to hunt old homesites but they quickly discourage you and i find myself going more to public gathering places.

 

[still diggin]

I find that old homesites the people buried there garbage and when you find the dump you can find all sorts of goodies, my home was first built in the early 1900 that house burned, my house was built in the 40 i have found indian heads silver rosies mexican pecos coin from china it has a square hole in the center. medillions one dated 1908 from Illinois from the G.A.R. found that is a oragnation that was founded by the veterans from the civil war. found one sterling silver spoon with the history of michagan.from 1610 to 1846 printed on it, its a beauty.found old bottles, so in all not bad for an old house with a garbage dump. so dont pass up the dumps. you never know. STILL DIGGIN

 

[smhead]

I got skunked at some old homesites this weekend. This town is known for its 90% intact victorian neighborhood, and I have a friend there who let me come over to poke around his yard. Site was occupied since 1860s. As I drove up I knew it wouldn't be good. The yards are all built up a good three feet above the street grade, which is still gravel and unpaved through much of the area. The soil was soft and loamy, and nothing was found except two Dairy Queen tokens at 5" or so, meaning even large aluminum sinks quickly in the soft soil. No hope for all the goodies three feet below. Looking around the hood, I saw many homes with yards level with the ground, and think there may be hope in these areas. Some of the old houses are vacant and falling apart, and its a juicy looking place for a THer, but it skunked us.

Also went out to an old ghost town site, it was a work town for the local planter and rancher, his hands lived there in a series of two room cabins. We drove up and as I remembered from the first time I was there the general store is standing and the town's houses are still there. A few barns too, and the old planters house fell down and was hauled off. Wall paper on the walls of the old houses were newpaper, turn of the century, I thought for sure I could pull something out here. No dice. Just an 1950s wheatie. Too much weeds and overgrowth, and where the old house that fell used to be was a water filled swamp full of weeds. Around the general store, which had a shed upstairs, was piled iron junk, parts of cars, machinery and assorted metal that it was hard to detect at all. Bummer, there's silver there and I can't get to it.

We did manage to find some old WWII era letters from my friend's grandad in one old house, he appreciated that find.

Reading the land can be deceptive. I know there's some good spots in the neighborhood, I just have to find the houses with low yards.

If they ever pull up the sidewalks in this town, I'll definitely be there!