DownNDirty
Bronze Member
Last year I discovered the site of a house that (based on the relics I found) existed in the 18th and early 19th centuries. The owner obviously was a man of means, as I found three silver cufflinks, an elaborate shoe buckle and coins from the 1700s. I was reasonably sure that I had found a house that is marked on the Mills' Atlas of 1825 belonging to W__ T____ (we'll call him WT), but I wasn't sure.
About a week ago I received a phone call from an elderly lady whom I did not know. She explained that WT was her great-great-great grandfather and that she had done a lot of genealogy research to about him. She had spoken with the owner of the land where I found the home site (a friend of hers) and he told her that I had located WT's house and suggested that she contact me. She was very excited to learn of my discovery and confirmed that I had indeed found the site of her ancestor's house. The fact that I found items like silver cufflinks (including one that was made from a 1762 half real coin) made sense, because WT was an attorney and a politician. She said that she and her cousins had searched for WT's grave with no luck, and she never dreamed that she would find out where he lived.
I shared some information with her and made arrangements to show her the site. Yesterday I met her, her daughter and another relative and took them there; the site is on the edge of a tiny field in the woods. Before walking to the site I showed them some of the relics that I had found there. I told her that I wanted her to have something that belonged to her ancestor and I gave her a silver cufflink and decorative dandy button
She was thrilled to receive them and thanked me profusely
So we walked to the site and I explained to them where I found the relics, and where the house would have been. I also explained how I found the site and that I knew where the structure was because of a concentration of square nails. They marked the area with flags so that they could come back to it later, then we took some photos; here is the lady, her daughter and yours truly
Call it instant karma maybe, but as I was standing at the site talking to the lady I looked down and right next to my foot was a complete arrowhead! I had never found a whole one in that field
This was a very rewarding experience for me for a couple of reasons. First, it felt good to help the lady connect to her past and to give her a couple of items that were worn by her ancestor; and second, it is cool to know who built and lived in the house and have some history for him. I metal detect because I am interested in the history, and in my book it doesn't get any better than this.
About a week ago I received a phone call from an elderly lady whom I did not know. She explained that WT was her great-great-great grandfather and that she had done a lot of genealogy research to about him. She had spoken with the owner of the land where I found the home site (a friend of hers) and he told her that I had located WT's house and suggested that she contact me. She was very excited to learn of my discovery and confirmed that I had indeed found the site of her ancestor's house. The fact that I found items like silver cufflinks (including one that was made from a 1762 half real coin) made sense, because WT was an attorney and a politician. She said that she and her cousins had searched for WT's grave with no luck, and she never dreamed that she would find out where he lived.
I shared some information with her and made arrangements to show her the site. Yesterday I met her, her daughter and another relative and took them there; the site is on the edge of a tiny field in the woods. Before walking to the site I showed them some of the relics that I had found there. I told her that I wanted her to have something that belonged to her ancestor and I gave her a silver cufflink and decorative dandy button
She was thrilled to receive them and thanked me profusely
So we walked to the site and I explained to them where I found the relics, and where the house would have been. I also explained how I found the site and that I knew where the structure was because of a concentration of square nails. They marked the area with flags so that they could come back to it later, then we took some photos; here is the lady, her daughter and yours truly
Call it instant karma maybe, but as I was standing at the site talking to the lady I looked down and right next to my foot was a complete arrowhead! I had never found a whole one in that field
This was a very rewarding experience for me for a couple of reasons. First, it felt good to help the lady connect to her past and to give her a couple of items that were worn by her ancestor; and second, it is cool to know who built and lived in the house and have some history for him. I metal detect because I am interested in the history, and in my book it doesn't get any better than this.
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