HUGE day at the button farm

[Gridwalker306]

I had the whole day to detect, but where to go?! I decided to revisit the farm where I found six North West Mounted Police buttons a couple of weeks ago. Aside from the buttons, the only other good finds from this farm have been a few IH cents.

Today I decided to drop my frequency down to 8khz, and man the buttons started popping out! It was like a feeding frenzy for 45 minutes, I pulled nine NWMP buttons from the hard packed lane that circles the old house. Some are crushed from being driven over for 120 years, but I managed a couple really nice ones.

Also got an 1897 IH cent, and a hallmarked silver pipe stem band.

This makes a total of 15 NWMP buttons from this site now.

 

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[Gridwalker306]

Not yet...but will be making a return (with a sifter) this fall.

I bet you'll do great with the sifter, I'd love to try that. Actually, I was just thinking yesterday the only way to really find all the good targets at my farm would be to dig 12 or 14 inches deep in the areas close to the house, and sift the dirt. There is so much iron, it's ridiculous. Hmm now you've got me thinking

 

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[Gridwalker306]

Interesting, I've tested 8khz & I get the opposite, the signals dry up completely. Strange.....

Last time I was there I didn't find much, so on this trip I decided to start off in a different kHz to keep it interesting. I'm usually in 12khz, and most areas I detect ground balance at 84-90. However, where I found these buttons was sandy/gravely and ground balanced in the 68-78 range. I think the lower frequency worked well with this lower mineralization.

I should have switched back to 12khz to investigate, but I got distracted by all the digging.

 

[Gridwalker306]

Great hunt man! What's the react, silencer and audio response in your program? I've tried the lower frequencies, but I always end up right back at 18. Would be nice to find some settings I enjoy on a low frequency for a change up.

Thanks man, and I'll send you my program info shortly.

 

[Ahab8]

Wow J I really hope you find a badge or plate. That would be incredible buddy

 

[highnam]

Seems like they spared no expense making those buttons...really heavy deep stamp. Those are killer looking, I love a handful of fresh dug buttons. Nice job on the silver pipe band, I found one similar that was crushed and I almost tossed it, you had to clean it off and look harder, I was surprised to find hallmarks, then I figured out it was a pipe band. Keep it up!

 

[Gridwalker306]

Wow J I really hope you find a badge or plate. That would be incredible buddy

Thanks Abe, hopefully more related items will surface, especially a badge or plate.

 

[Gridwalker306]

Seems like they spared no expense making those buttons...really heavy deep stamp. Those are killer looking, I love a handful of fresh dug buttons. Nice job on the silver pipe band, I found one similar that was crushed and I almost tossed it, you had to clean it off and look harder, I was surprised to find hallmarks, then I figured out it was a pipe band. Keep it up!

Thanks highnam, they are well made buttons for sure. Very detailed, and be my hollow they are delicate. I'm really happy to have found a few that haven't been damaged.

I have found a few of the pipe bands in the past, no idea what they were until someone on Tnet filled me in. Yesterday when I dug this one I knew exactly what it was.

 

[Iron Patch]

What a day! But to me seems much more like an undetected area than a change in frequency.

 

[Professor of Engineering]

Great finds! Congratualtions!

 

[Gridwalker306]

What a day! But to me seems much more like an undetected area than a change in frequency.

Thanks Iron Patch, it was crazy popping so many so quickly. The ground was softer after some much needed rain, but was still tough digging these in the road/lane that goes around the house. It's definitely the type of area other detectorists would avoid when the prairie heat has baked it into seeming solid rock.

The landowner told me that several people had detected this farm 30 years ago, and I believe it due to the lack of coins. This was an important farm and should have been loaded with coins. I have found a handful of cents, and most of them were deep and or close to iron junk. The buttons were giving a high 60's low 70's signal, and I think the other guys just cherry picked the coins, especially the SILVER.

Ok, now I'm going to go on a tangent because I think it's interesting. My wife is the administrator for our town, not far from this farm. Part of her job is record keeping at the cemetery. In 2010, an elderly woman from California (104 yrs old!) wrote my wife a letter. She was wanting to check the status of her parents graves, and make a donation. They quickly became pen pals. Turns out she was born here (born 3lbs, not expected to survive), and her farm was right across the road from my button farm. My wife mentioned that she was married to a metal detectorist very interested in local history. She thought that was great, and told some very interesting stories. One story started "Walking to my first day of school in 1912, I lost my little gold ring with an emerald". Another was "My mother sold some vegetables at the local market, and came home with a silver dollar. My uncle jokingly smacked her hand, and the dollar fell between the floorboards. Nobody was easily able to retrieve it, so there it stayed for a rainy day". She did mention the farm across the road (button farm), and it sounded like it was one of the first farms around, and was a hub of activity.

I think the last time she wrote was in 2012, and we learned she passed away in 2014 at age 108. The stories she told certainly fuelled my love of local history, and I wish I could have had a face to face conversation with her.

Naturally I was very excited to get permission here. Although I was hoping for some awesome old silver, I am more than happy to have found the buttons. Sorry for blabbering, just thought it was cool to get firsthand information from someone born in 1906!

 

[Carolina Tom]

Congrats JC, another nice haul.

Perhaps this was the site of a long defunct doughnut shop... come on...

Best of luck to you sir!

 

[CASPER-2]

 

[Gridwalker306]

Congrats JC, another nice haul.

Perhaps this was the site of a long defunct doughnut shop... come on...

Best of luck to you sir!

Thanks Tom, I went back today and found two more buttons.

And I think you're onto something---