1800's house, where to look.

[NuffaloBickel]

As the title says, our house was built between 1825 and 1850 according to records. It was heavily renovated at one point (foundation replaced). I've been detecting the yard any chance I get. I'm really not finding anything old however. The oldest coins I've found were a '53 Canadian penny and a 1960 Silver Canada Dime. I'm thinking there's got to be some history here somewhere. Something old. So where are the best places to start looking? I'd think the driveway would be good but it's full of hot rocks (you can see the iron rusting on them) used as the driveway surface. Should I discriminate iron and get digging? I'd hate to miss a relic though. The yard is actually kind of trashy too. I've got a decent detector coming in today and I'm excited to re-scan everything. I'm just wondering where you guys would think a good place to start would be. The basement is also all dirt and original but I'm guessing the electricity running overhead will wreak havoc on my signal. Thanks guys!

 

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[cudamark]

What detector have you used and what is the new one you're going to use? I'd hit that basement first. Any place around the house where people would have gathered or played should be checked, such as under a big shade tree, paths to the front and back doors, path to the outhouse, well location, etc. If you can find where that outhouse used to be, I'd carefully dig and shift that area. If they had a trash pit, I'd dig and shift that spot too. See if you can find any old photos of the property for more ideas. Maybe dirt was moved around or plowed into low spots.

 

[digger460]

I've found my best in just off the front sidewalk to the house, and under the graveled front driveway.

 

[Tpmetal]

look for a well or water source and detect between it and the house, look for where a clothes line would have been, look under the house with a sifting screen if your allowed, look next to the front side walk and path leading to the house, look around any large of age trees, this list goes on and on. I say just keep swinging slow and low. once you clean out the trash the goodies will start popping up.

 

[Javadroid]

I've found many coins under trees, where people would sit to get away from the sun on summer days. Usually pennies, but I recently found a 1919 and two 1945s under the same tree, and my son-in-law found a Mercury dime under that tree. Porch areas are also good, especially if you can get under it. That may be more common in the South.
Sounds like you have a great site, so don't give up on it! Keep us posted!

 

[EastCoastmetal]

I live in an 1860s or so old farm house, problem is in Canada that most farmers in the 1800s didn't have a lot of money , so you not likely to fine a whole bunch of decent coins ( Silvers) , another problem is , at least with my place is that they filled the area around some parts of the house to landscape etc and so it makes things dropped early on possibly too deep to detect, but I still haven't detected throughly around the house, lots of trash, but going to rope off an area at a time and completely clean it, just haven't got around to it yet . Some days my back hurts just thinking about it .

 

[digger460]

I live in an 1860s or so old farm house, problem is in Canada that most farmers in the 1800s didn't have a lot of money , so you not likely to fine a whole bunch of decent coins ( Silvers) , another problem is , at least with my place is that they filled the area around some parts of the house to landscape etc and so it makes things dropped early on possibly too deep to detect, but I still haven't detected throughly around the house, lots of trash, but going to rope off an area at a time and completely clean it, just haven't got around to it yet . Some days my back hurts just thinking about it .

You could alway's skim a little off the top

 

[NuffaloBickel]

Thanks for the pointers guys. We were borrowing a BH Quicksilver from a family member. My Ace 300 just came in today. I only got to take it out for about twenty minutes but I already found a few targets that the BH missed. I've got a couple of big trees there but the other half of the tree sits on the other side of the fence. Judging by the map from 1880 I dug up, I'm guessing the well sat back on what is now someone else's property. The lot isn't all that big these days. I'll definitely be hitting the sidewalk and notching out for the ferrous rock in the driveway.

 

[1942 merc]

look for dips in the ground up to three ft wide or so . If the grass is mowed there will be taller grass in the dip . That is where an old tree used to be .I have done real well around those dips where old trees used to be . I am having the same problem at an 1880s house that no one lives in now . Keep going it is there . Dig your 50s to 70s . V nickels and IHP .

 

[Waterbug]

Grid the whole yard area and search each grid from several different directions.If there is a garden,search it,too. Lost items can be found anywhere in a yard and usually in the most unlikely spot(s).

 

[trdking]

You can go to your City building department and look up your old plot plans. All Citys have them unless the Hall burned down. It will show you well location and Outhouse locations.
If the property used to be bigger, Its time to start asking the neighbors for permissions. Its perfect, Just claim the area as yours, "Hey, do you mind if I metal detect my old well location? Its on your property now" How can they say no? Its yours
My favorite place on the properties are anywhere people laid down. Crawl Holes, Attics (yes attics), Driveways (crawl under the car) Trees (nap time) Outhouses (fiddlin with the drawers) But like previously said Things can be anywhere. Great advice above.